I have been attempting to formulate a list of diseases that a ferret could
either catch or transmit to or from humans or other pets.  I have received
questions about other diseases that dogs, cats, and humans get vaccinated
against.  Here is the list I have compiled so far, and I would greatly
appreciate corrections, additions, deletions, and more corrections.
 
- Aleutians disease (a form of parvovirus): ferrets can catch this.  Causes
gastrointestinal and neurological problems, no effective treatment
available.  Contagious from ferret to ferret.
- Bordatella bronchiseptia (kennel cough): normal to be carried by dogs,
cats, humans, and ferrets; appears when immune system is stressed or when
exposed to high concentrations (such as when boarding your ferret in a dog
kennel).  Do not treat ferrets with preventive dog medications (nasal
drops); it can CAUSE bordatella; treat with antibiotics post-infection.
-- Botulism: food poisoning from canned food that has spoiled.  Potentially
fatal (to both humans and pets).  Do not feed your ferrets food that you
would not eat, or food from old, dented cans.
- Chlamydia psittaci: a potential problem for ferrets, resulting in
conjunctivitis of the eye.  Could be caught from parrots.  Potentially
transmittable from infected ferret to human.
- Coccidia: intestinal parasites
- Cold, Common Human: transmits from humans to ferrets.
- Coronavirus: not transmittable to ferrets.
- Cryptococcosis (menengial encephalitis): 3 cases found in ferrets; a deep
fungal disease from pigeon excreta and soil.
- Cryptosporidiosis: potential disease with all humans and animals from
water filtration problems.  Difficult to diagnose; would be seen as severe
gastrointestinal upset.
- Distemper, feline: not transmittable from cats to ferrets.
- Distemper, canine: 99.8% fatal in ferrets.  Your ferret must be
vaccinated.  Airborne and easily caught.
- Epizootic Catarrhal Enteritis (ECE): The "greenies" is highly contagious
from ferret to ferret, but does not appear to transmit to other pets or
humans.
- Feline AIDS: ???
- Flu, human viral influenza type A: transmittable back and forth between
humans and ferrets.
- Giardia (Montezuma's Revenge): highly contagious to and among humans,
cats, dogs, ferrets through fecal-oral contact.  Usual source: fishtanks,
rodents (pet hamsters or rats), stagnant water.  Gastrointestinal upset,
ulcers and other problems may result.  Treat with antibiotics and/or paste
wormers.
- Histoplasmosis: deep fungal disease from bat guano.  Results in
pneumonia-like symptoms.
- Human diseases we vaccinate against: diptheria, mumps, measles, whooping
cough, polio.  These do not transmit to or from ferrets.
- Infectious canine hepatitis: no evidence this can be transmitted to
ferrets.
- Leptospirosis: a potential problem for ferrets (and humans), but uncommon.
The bacterial infection may cause a UTI.  Treat with antibiotics.
- Leukemia, feline: not transmittable from cats to ferrets.
- Parvovirus, feline (Panleukopenia): not seen in ferrets.
- Parvovirus, canine: the canine form does not appear to be in ferrets.
- Pneumocystic pneumonia: protozoal disease common in HIV patients, could be
transmittable to ferrets with suppressed immune systems.
- Pneumonia, human respiratory: no evidence this transmits to or from
ferrets.
- Proliferative Colitis: Camphylobacter infection of the intestine.  Can
treat with antibiotics.  Humans and ferrets can get this.  Unknown
transmission.
- Rabies: ferrets unlikely to get this from rodents, foxes, or skunks; might
get from raccoon bite; unknown from cats, dogs, or bats.  Vaccinate your
ferret yearly against rabies.
- Rhinotracheitis: cat specific disease apparently nontransmittable to other
pets or humans.
- Respiratory Syncytial Virus: seen in human infants; ferrets could be prone
to catching this if their immune systems are depressed.  Possible
transmission from human to ferret and back to humans.
- Salmonella: Can easily be caught by both humans and ferrets; causes severe
gastrointestinal upset.  Could be transmitted by reptiles.  Do NOT feed your
ferrets raw eggs or raw chicken, which both carry salmonella.  Those who
have caught salmonella can potentially spread it.
- Tetanus clostridium: potential danger to ferrets, as with humans.  Usually
enters through a puncture wound, causing stiff walking, "wooden tongue" and
slobbering.
- Toxoplasmosis: rarely seen in ferrets.  A ferret can ingest oocytes from
cat feces, but does not appear to re-shed the oocytes.  In cat feces, can
cause placental separation in pregnant women.  To be safe, pregnant women
should not change the litterbox of a cat and/or ferret.
- Tuberculosis: seen in ferrets in New Zealand.  Can be transmitted back and
forth between ferrets and humans.  This strain's source is usually a monkey.
 
Thanks (sorry so long)
Erika and the Terrific 10
Ferret Lovers Club of Texas
[Posted in FML issue 1962]