> Subject: Update: female zoo ferret in heat
> Date:   Wed, 14 Jul 1993 14:49:53 -0400
> From:   [log in to unmask]
 
> My SO is also a zoo keeper, and through her I found that the plan of action
> at the zoo is to keep the jill with a pair of castrated hobs.  The idea is
> that this will cause a false pregnancy, thus bringing her out of estrus.
> In "Biology and Diseases of the Ferret" (page 187) Fox mentions keeping
> a female ferret with vasectomized hobs is an option for preventing prolonged
> estrus.  Will castrated hobs have the same affect?
 
No.
 
It's the actual insertion that causes the female to ovulate.  So
you need a vasectomized hob who can do the job.  (they still have all the
necessary working parts, just the semen can't make it all the way)
Also, the hob (whole or vasectomized) has to be in rut.  They have
seasons, too, just like the females.  If he's not in rut, he won't
be in any mood to take care of the problem.
 
Does anyone with a fax machine have "A Tau Full of Detours" by Fara
Shimbo?  She's not a vet, but it does explain the process very well.
 
- Nancy
 
Nancy Hartman       Internet - [log in to unmask]        GEnie - n.hartman4
President, Delaware Valley Ferret Club | CIS Grad Student, U. of Delaware
      ***  Caregiver to Percy, Bree, & Popcorn, the ferrets  ***
  "We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals" - Kant
 
[Posted in FML issue 0521]