To the anonymous poster - I'm not trying to change your mind and this is
no flame.  Just sharing some facts and helpful hints that you may find
useful.
 
>vaccinate for distemper, until someone can find a GUARANTEED vaccine
>that won't kill them!.
 
ANY vaccine can cause a reaction.  It would be great if there was one out
that with a guarantee, but unfortunately there are no guarantees like
that in life :)
 
There are things that you can do to help prevent or lessen vaccine
reactions, though.  Stress seems to be a major cause of a ferret
reacting, in my experience, so I do my best to keep everyone relaxed and
calm.  I always bring a treat with me to the vet's office to keep them
distracted during the actual vaccination and most don't even flinch.
 
I noticed that more of my kids were reacting in the summer, when it was
very hot and humid - maybe a connection between the drastic temperature
change from outside to inside the vet clinic?  I started vaccinating my
kids in the cooler months (hard to do with shelter kids, but you can do
it with your own) and the vaccine reaction rate went down.
 
A friend who was having lots of reactions started to fast her ferrets
3 hours before the vaccine appointment.  This also helped reduce her
reactions.
 
Pretreating with benadryl is another good idea.  I normally only do this
with a ferret that has already had a reaction, but some vets feel that
pre-treatment should be done regardless.
 
>You know what strikes me as odd?  While I see - almost weekly - a
>story about a ferret having a horrid reaction, and/or dying from being
>vaccinated (pretreated or not, vet on hand or not) - I have yet to see
>ANY stories about someone's ferret actually contracting distemper and
>dying from it...(beyond someone's well meaning "advise and description).
 
Then you must not have heard about the lady in NJ that lost over 20
of her 30 ferrets to Canine Distemper because she did not vaccinate
correctly and didn't vaccinate some (this was a couple years ago).
Or the time when a shelter in OH got in two ferrets that had Canine
Distemper.  I could go on, but I'm sure you get my point.  The stories
may not be coming to the FML, but they *did* happen.
 
I agree that a vaccination reaction is scary, but CD is even scarier
since it's fatal.
 
My suggestion for those that don't want to vaccinate - at least get their
kit series done and their first annual booster.  Then make sure you take
appropriate precautions to protect them.
 
Hope this helps!
 
Mary
 
*****************************
Mary McCarty-Houser
Director, Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Assn of Centre Cty
www.ferretrescue.com
[Posted in FML issue 4617]