Dear Holly:
 
>Well, from what my vet tells me, the primary source of giardia is usually
>stagnant water.  Rice grows in stagnant water.  He also mentioned that raw
>fruits and vegetables can be a source, and of course the rice was raw.  So
>I suspect I got contaminated rice.  I do not mean this as a slam or flame
>against Modern Ferret in any way.
 
Let's not incriminate the rice or Modern Ferret just yet.  The chances are
really remote that Giardia cysts could be survive on dried rice - Giardia
is usually seen on leafy vegetables or fruit in third world countries.
Giardia, like most protozoa, survive best in wet conditions - cysts survive
desiccation such as you may see with dried rice, but in very small number,
and it is very unlikely that an infection would result.  (Plus there are no
medical reports of Giardia infections from commerciially available dried
rice.)  Most infections result from ingestion of contaminated water.
(Side note, when I was a vet student at the University of Georgia in the
early 80's, they installed a man-made lake for the student body downhill
from the horse barns - how did all of those Southern debutantes come down
with diarrhea - you guess it - Giardia.)  While I'm not totally discount
the possibility of infected rice, we still have to explain how one ferret
has it while multiple ferrets play in the rice box.
 
Usually, we get positive proof before publicizing the root of a problem -
even something as benign as wild rice may throw a panic into others who
are using similar products (rice boxes) - and unfortunately casting blame
on Modern Ferret by association.  There is an easy way to prove your
theory - take the rice from your box, soak it in warm water for 3 days,
and have your vet look at it under the microscope for Giardia cysts.
 
I'm still concerned that only one ferret has the Giardia....
 
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, DVM
[Posted in FML issue 3289]