Ferret Info Kindness Matters Ferret Rescue

ADRENAL DISEASE – A majority of ferrets six years old will have adrenal disease. A tumor grows on the adrenal gland.

The first symptom is often thinning fur, especially on the tail or at the shoulders. Other symptoms are weight loss, inability to gain weight, pot belly, muscle wasting, enlarged ni***es, aggression especially toward other ferrets, itching more than normal, for females - enlarged v***a and anemia, and for males - increased odor and difficulty urinating (swollen prostate-dribbling, straining, pain when urinating). The tumors are usually non-cancerous; but can become cancerous if not treated. If not taken care of, the ferret will get more and more uncomfortable over time and eventually have a painful death.

It's diagnosed based on symptoms, rather than tests. For this reason, vets are slow to diagnose it. It does no harm to treat for adrenal disease, even if the ferret doesn't have it. It definitely does harm not to treat. So, if you think your ferret has it, push to have treatment done.

There are four forms of treatment – melatonin, Suprelorin (Des) implants, Lupron, and surgery. My recommendation is to always start out with the lowest form of treatment (melatonin) and then go to the other forms. Each form of treatment will only help for so long. The sooner treatment is started, the better it will work.

Melatonin can be given as a supplement or an implant. The liquid supplement should be given daily seven to nine hours after sunrise to mimic the body's natural output. The implant is a small medicated piece injected under the skin like a microchip. This gives off medication every day that treats the symptoms. Many believe it doesn't slow the progress. (I've used melatonin implants for 20 years and have seen no difference between using it and the Suprelorin.) It lasts four to six months. If given regularly at a young age, many believe it can help prevent adrenal disease. Most ferrets respond to this implant. Cost: vet visit and about $60.

A Suprelorin (Des) implant is hardened medication injected under the skin like a microchip. It gives off medication daily. The implant lasts 8-12 months. It slows the progress of the adrenal disease and treats the symptoms. Many people believe it prevents adrenal disease or delays the symptoms. Cost: vet visit + about $225 (more if the vet uses anesthesia to do the implant).

A Lupron injection or implant starts working faster than melatonin or Des implants. It lasts 1-2 months. It's good at stopping symptoms and slowing the disease progress. It works on most ferrets. It's difficult to find in the U.S. Cost: vet visit + about $100.

If the ferret is otherwise healthy, adrenal surgery can be done. It’s preferred to do surgery after 4 ½ -5 years old. Surgery removes the left adrenal gland, so the problem is removed until the right adrenal gland becomes affected. It's recommended to continue treatment with implants after surgery to slow down the progress of the right gland being affected. Cost: vet visit + $1,000 or more

If the right adrenal gland is affected, most vets cannot remove it. The vena cava artery surrounds the right gland. It's complicated and dangerous for this surgery. There's a 75% chance the left gland is affected. Having an ultrasound done before the surgery is the best thing to do. This determines which gland is affected and if there are any other major issues that may prevent surgery.

Once the left gland is removed, the right has to work harder. This increases the chance of it being affected by adrenal disease faster. That's one of the reasons for waiting to do adrenal surgery until they're older, unless the symptoms warrant doing surgery sooner.

These are pics of ferrets in various stages of adrenal disease and a picture of where the adrenal glands are located.

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BOT FLIES - During the warm months, a bot fly can land on an animal and lay eggs within seconds or lay eggs on grass and the eggs get on animal fur.

The eggs are small and difficult to see (pics below). One week after being laid, eggs are ready to hatch. If they're on grass, when a warm body (human or animal) comes in contact, the body heat
triggers the egg to hatch within seconds. The tiny larvae climb on the animal and crawl through the fur.

The just-hatched larvae enter the body through mucous-lined openings like the mouth, eye, nose or a**s. They migrate through the body for five days, ending up in tissue just below the skin. They cut a breathing opening through the skin, then feed off the tissue and develop for 21 days.

I've been rescuing ferrets since 2003 in Georgia USA (hot weather). I've only had a ferret with bot flies once. It's not common, but can occur, especially in other countries where they're kept outside.

Bot flies eggs or larvae aren't killed by topical flea and tick treatments (drops or spray)! If you do see bot fly eggs, you can bathe the ferret in a flea and tick shampoo. Eggs can't be combed out, like with a horse, because a ferret's fur is too thick and the skin too soft.

Once larvae are in the body, the animal must be taken to the vet to have any removed. Don't attempt to remove a bot fly larvae on your own. If it's squeezed too hard or part breaks off, toxins in the larvae can be absorbed into the ferret’s system and can kill it. This should be done by a vet!

A ferret won't get bot flies as readily as animals that spend a lot of time outdoors, unless they live outside like in other countries. Bear in mind, ferrets get heartworms like dogs and cats and avian flu. There's not a test to see if ferrets have heartworms. When taking your ferret out, try to stay away from areas with bird droppings and where there are likely to be a lot of flies and mosquitoes. (People in the U.S. should not keep their ferrets outside due to the warm temperatures.)