>My ferret, Kane, had a horrible reaction last year, but the others
>didn't.  It's about that time to renew shots (February).  Should he get
>done?  Can I get everyone else done and exclude him?  Can he take more
>benadryl (shot form) before the shot?  Last year was his first reaction
>to an adult shot.  He had his baby ones the previous year.
>
>Lisa
 
My first ferret to have a vaccine reaction (to Fervac-D), four-and-a-half
years ago at the age of two, has been successfully vaccinated every year
since with NO REACTION, just good pretreatment.  We switched to Galaxy-D,
and this year to the new Merial vaccine.  My vet said he has vaccinated
over 200 ferrets with the Merial vaccine, with only one mild reaction.
I have another ferret who has reacted to both the distemper and rabies
vaccines, and I continue to vaccinate him as well, with no further
reactions - just careful pretreatment (by my vet).
 
The bottom line is this: distemper is a horrible, miserable, painful way
to die, and is almost always fatal.  A vaccine reaction can usually be
avoided or minimized by a vet who knows his/her stuff.
 
Forgoing distemper vaccination is not a good idea, IMHO.
 
Have the vet pretreat, give the rabies and distemper vaccinations three
weeks apart, and stay at the vet's office for 45 minutes after the shot
(30 minutes is not long enough, in my experience).
 
Nancy and critters
[Posted in FML issue 3965]