Hi Tracy,
 
Congratulations on your ferrets.  In reading your post, I wanted to give
you some of my experiences for reference:
 
* I have 6 Marshall Farms ferrets.  Yes, as babies and into their second
year they were healthy and active.  However as they reached 3 and 4, they
started to develop chronic illnesses, and 5 out of 6 have had adrenal
disease and surgery to correct it.  Two have insulinoma.  Marshall Farms
ferrets are notorious for developing these diseases later in life because
Marshall Farms continues to breed parents who have the diseases, insuring
that their ferret lines will carry genetic predisposition to adrenal
disease, insulinoma, lymphoma (cancer) and other conditions.  This is
because the bulk of Marshall Farms ferrets are sold to labs for
experimentation and research.  Pet ferrets are actually Marshall Farms
"secondary sideline" and not their main business.  This, in fact, is
documented by several sources.
 
* I don't mean to be harsh here but NEVER assume that your ferrets are not
at risk for distemper reaction.  My ferrets were fine with their distemper
shots until they were 3, then all but one had a violent reaction to the
same shot they'd had for 3 years!  We hype the reality of a reaction for
just this reason - because you NEVER know when it's going to happen.
Ferrets have died horribly from distemper vaccine reactions (and a vet who
didn't know what to do to save them).  If your vet does not pre-medicate
AND does not advise that you wait for at least 30-45 minutes at the clinic
afterwards, you are not dealing with a ferret-knowledgeable vet and a
reaction could happen when you least expect it.  Let me assure you that I
hope & pray your babies never have a reaction to distemper.  It is horrible
to see and awful for them to go through.
 
Much of what we post on the FML is only in the interest of the ferrets.  We
"hype" distemper reaction because it is unpredictable and fatal.  While I
am very glad your ferrets did not experience a painful reaction to their
shots, it is somewhat rude to accuse people of making too big a deal out
of it simply because your ferrets, this first time, did not experience a
reaction.  You are lucky they did not, but please do not use that good
fortune to accuse well-meaning and experienced ferrets owners of misleading
you.  You would be wise to keep the possibility of a reaction in mind as
they age, and a reaction can happen at ANY time.  My ferrets showed me that
last year.
 
In regards to the Marshalls thing, again, Marshall Farms babies are often
perfectly healthy - it's the genetic code that makes their little bodies
start to break down so early that we object to.  Also there have been tons
of cases all over the country lately of Marshalls ferrets arriving in pet
stores so young that they do not yet have teeth or all their fur.
 
Because you have had one good experience with distemper shots and acquired
two Marshall Farms ferrets that do not appear to have any health problems,
please do not jump to the conclusion that everything we have been saying is
wrong or over-inflated!
 
That is a very naive way to think, and if you disregard the warnings about
the possibility of distemper reactions, your babies may pay for it later on.
 
-Heather W.
Massachusetts
[Posted in FML issue 3457]