Excerpts from mail: 2-Mar-93 Ferret List Issue 425 by Ferret Mailing List@ferr
> ferrets.  I went to an animals hospital that said they were used to
> dealing with ferrets and then proceded to tell me that the innoculations
> they give ferrets are the same as they give to dogs.  This concerned me
> because ferrets are not cats and they are not dogs and everywhere I go,
> "Oh, ferrets, yeah feed em cat food, give em cat treats".  I wanted to
> check what kind *exactly* of shots a ferret needs before I go someplace
> where they *say* they know what they are doing. Could anyone possibly
> supply me with this info?
 
Actually, they were most likely correct. The distemper vaccine (Fromm-D
or Fervac-D are the ones I know of) is a vaccine that you can give dogs.
Most people give their dogs something more complex including lots of
other things than just straight distemper, but it started out as a dog
vaccine. The vaccine for rabies is IMRAB, but I can't remember off the
top of my head if it's used for cats or dogs.
 
[I think for both - since it's the same disease in either animal
(unlike distemper), but not the commonest one in use.  The standard
one (not IMRAB) is cultivated in ferret cell culture, and there's
evidence to indicate that it can *give* rabies to a ferret.]
 
And I've been told to use Linatone for cats (before they came out with
Ferretone), and cat flea shampoos (preferably something safe for
kittens) on the ferret.
 
I just consider it another piece of evidence of the uniqueness of the
ferret that they take dog vaccines and cat shampoo. :)
 
--Barb--
 
[One article given to me from one of the vet journals has the following
comment: "treat as for cats except where otherwise noted".]
 
[Posted in FML issue 0427]