An anonymous ferret owner writes::
> I once had some ferrets that had ear mites, and I tried the oily stuff
> that goes in their ears.  I had limited success, on account of the
> squirminess of the guys during application.  Then one of my vets gave
> them each a single subcutaneous injection of _something_, I forget the
> name of it (help me out here, pre-vets!).  No more ear mites.  The stuff
> was incredibly effective.  Assuming that there are no nasty side
> effects, I really can't recommend using anything else.
 
The treatment mentioned here might be Ivermectin which can be given as
a subcutaneous injection and is supposed to be very effective against
ear mites in ferrets.  Ivermectin is also used to kill heartworm
microfilaria in dogs (Heartguard 30 I think) and is used in cattle,
sheep, horses etc for some of the parasites that affect these critters.
I am not aware of any major side effects if an appropriate dosage is
used.  However, like most drugs, Ivermectin can overdosed and
potentially fatal - so it should be administered by someone who knows
what they are doing.
 
 Rich Ellis ([log in to unmask])
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
[Posted in FML issue 0463]