Hi, Inge.  Ferrets can get Canine Distemper very readily but don't
appear able to get Feline Distemper.  Not all animals get Canine
Distemper, so the animal has to be able to get it and then to shed
live virus to transmit it to be a vector animal.  Dogs, foxes, wolves,
coyotes, raccoons, skunks, otters etc. are all animals who get it.  It
may surprise some people that seals and the big cats getCanine Distemper.
In fact, Purevax was first being developed as the only safe way to
protect many zoo animals from canine distemper, then when it looked like
the project may be dropped the head pathologist of the national zoo
alerted Bruce Williams who asked me to start posting passing along expert
letters and talking about about the need for letters of support from the
ferret community because of the expected lower rate of reactions.
(Reactions still happen and are as severe, but they happen less often
with Purevax.)
 
(BTW, off topic but important to know, toxoplasmosis is killing a large
number of otters in the American west and north west.  There is a request
that people in areas with otters or with street and yard run-off that
goes to otter areas not let their cats outside and not dispose of cat
waste outside.  It turns out that some mollusk species act as vectors of
the disease.
 
I just spent a decent chunk of time holding Mornie in the shower.  It
seems that she jumped the barrier, got into the kitchen garbage (despite
that having been put high) and found the scant remains of some jalapenos
I was enjoying last night.  Although she was not squinting her face did
smell of them (Apparently, she found them tasty but then found that they
burn.) so into the shower she went to make sure that eyes, nose, lips,
etc. were safe.  I did learn that she likes to keep her eyes open in the
water, so that was good.  All is fine, but in the future I think I will
package hot pepper waste before putting it in the garbage.  25 years and
they still teach me...
 
For some causes of diarrhea it makes no sense to medicate all and could
be counter productive, BUT some things -- coccidia for instance, since
with that pretty much all need Albon since it is shared so readily, or a
situation where all share an infection or the vets thinks that they might
all share an infection -- necessitate treating all or the infection will
return.  So, it depends on the cause, and details about many are in the
archives of both the FML and FHL.  If you feed raw then know that some
parasites are more common among raw fed ferrets (See the vet posts URLs I
gave in response to your question about vets who had treated ferrets with
raw diet medical problems because they also contain parasite info.) If
you feed raw and the diarrhea is determined to be from one of the harder
to treat bacteria which can be contracted that way (Ask your vet to do a
culture of the bacteria, especially if it gets bad!) then, please, look
at those URLs again because there are a range of medications that can be
tried, but some are not all that safe for ferrets and are best reserved
for when the safer antibiotics can not control the infection.  (One of
your sweet private notes leads me to think that you feed raw, and now you
ask about diarrhea so I want to make sure that you have all bases covered
in ways that best protect your ferrets' health.  Their well being is what
matters, which is why it matters so much for everyone to have full
information -- not only to learn but also in case anything goes wrong.)
Best of luck.  I hope the ferrets' diarrhea resolves soon and easily.
For persistent diarrhea also consider possibilities like giardia from
aquarium water or water outside, disease from a spoiled food stash, and
all of the other more commonly encountered causes.
 
And a note to the people who like to use hob nail boots when this topic
comes up.  Inge asked for the information originally which is when I
provided the expert info, and she certainly needs this info now.  When
a need is paramount I can't take the time to worry if you find it
personally upsetting to discuss the complete picture because the fact
of the matter is that a sick ferret deserves the optimal care and that
is the bottom line.  That info exists not only to inform people who are
choosing, but also to help with treatment and testing when things go
wrong.
 
Heck, just recently I was helping someone try to find a lab to find out
which type of mycobactrium (TB) her ferret has.  When telephoned NW
Zoopath said they aren't doing that anymore, which is really bad news
if accurate.  In some states if it is bovine TB or human TB that animal,
or sometimes all susceptible animals in the home will be destroyed.
(U.S.  states vary on such things and those are considered very serious
zoonotics; plus some states are very strict on that regard and treating
vets know when their own states are.) When ferrets get a TB, though, it
is usually avian TB (which is actually common in wild birds) and that
poses a risk only to immune compromised humans so then the ferret is
certainly ill, but the situation is far safer.  Atypical mycobacteria
are also a possibility when ferrets get mycobacteria.  In such cases
specialized pathology can at times save lives, in some states of all the
vulnerable animals in the household, but it can be hard to find, and it
sure does not help that the current U.S.  Administration wants to do away
with the AFIP, which can do such testing.  People in other countries will
need to check in their own countries in relation to laws, regulations,
and finding pathology.
 
This resource may prove useful to help such folks; I sure hope so:
http://www.vetcontact.com/en/vet.php?k=91
 
-- Sukie (not a vet)
Ferret Health List co-moderator
http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/ferrethealth
FHL Archives fan
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
replacing
http://fhl.sonic-weasel.org
International Ferret Congress advisor
http://www.ferretcongress.org
[Posted in FML issue 5165]