I rescued a ferret from a shelter that had no safeguards present or
quarantine for ferrets. He came with an "upper respiratory infection".

Well, after three days of him being here, the cats and all the other
ferrets were sneezing wet sneezes. Some had small signs of eye
crust/discharge.

After three weeks, the ferret had finished his antibiotics and was
seemingly fine. However, many other ferrets still had sneezing. It
was random and being passed on from one to the other. The cats had
stopped after about two weeks of sneezing and eye discharge.

So we chalked it up ot an upper respiratory. However, do ferrets
pass on URIs to cats? Within 3 days?

Also, we thought this was licked. No one was sneezing anymore for
a while. But then I noticed the rescue ferret was sneezing, again,
mostly when he woke up.

Well, now the cats have it again, and some ferrets. The cats are very
hard hit this time. Now there is also a "kennel cough" type of cough,
which if you have had a dog with it you know the kind of cough I mean.
A backward, snuffling type of sound I guess.

I have a vet appointment Monday but I know I'm going to hear the same
thing. "Cat's don't get Bordetella". They do, but always in shelter
situations. The shelter he came from is nice and all, as far as the
people....but the conditions are horrible for infectious diseases. I've
never been anywhere with as bad a layout. I would have had no clue but
they had me walk to him instead of bringing him up. I basically had to
track through several common areas to get to him. There were no wings,
just one concentrated hallway where workers tracked germs from every
cat, dog, and small animal room, to be tracked along to the next.

My question is: can cats and ferrets pass back and forth a cold, or
Upper Respiratory Infection? Has anyone here had ferrets come down
with Bordetella, or their cats?

I am thinking Bord because of the tenacity I've seen with it. I've also
had someone tell me they adopted cats from a shelter that had a large
number of cats with Bordetella, and they have had problems since, and
their ferrets got it. It seems ferrets are not hard hit if they do get
it.

I am not a vet, but I am at a loss because many vets (all that I have
called) do not carry the cat Bordetella vaccine. There is one, but I
can't find anyone who stocks it, which would mean me having them
special order a tray, if they are willing.

Laryssa

[Posted in FML 6476]