Dear Alison:
 
>I'd be glad to hear from any other vets on the list with more ferret
>experience than I have.  I've recently examined a ferret (adult male,
>neutered about six months ago) which has marked sinus arrhythmia on
>cardiac auscultation - no murmur.  Is this a normal finding, as in dogs,
>or of possible clinical significance in a ferret?
 
Pronounced sinus arrhythmia and respiratory bradycardina is common during
auscultation in the ferret. (For non-vets, the heart slows down during
inspiration.)  It can sometimes be quite dramatic.  I get this question
quite a bit.
 
All the best,
Bruce Williams, DVM
[Posted in FML issue 3258]