This post assumes people have seen the preceding posts on the FHL or
the FML, or both since both in the last few days have had some good
info which needs to be considered.

I forgot to include the link for the Ferret Adrenal TN Panel:
http://www.vet.utk.edu/diagnostic/endocrinology/index.php

The first sentence of my recent adrenal post makes much more sense with
a comma in it:
>Once the FDA gives an approval date for the Minor Use Minor Species
>application placed by Virbac U.S. and Peptech, Suprelorin will be
>sold in the U.S.A.

I forgot to include this in the discussion of Neovac.
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/FHL13457

There are bargains and then there are choices which are made with too
little information that turn out to truly burn people. Here is an old
example: When Steve was a teen in college he found himself one year
with no Thanksgiving dinner invitation and $2 in his pocket. Knowing
way, way too little about nutrition he figured that he should get
whatever would provide dense calories for under a couple of bucks.
He bought cake frosting. BAD choice and one for which he paid.

Now, here is a current example:
If people who have options decide to spend their money to use a canine
distemper vaccine that has not been proven to actually work in ferrets
and which has had only short term safety work in only a handful of
ferrets then that is like thinking that frosting is a meal.

Think it through:
If it does not work you will wind up with disease vulnerability
increased. If you have a shelter then you can pass along an increased
disease vulnerability to the animal families of others and perhaps
have legal responsibility for doing so.

Now, I can understand the argument that some are interested in field
testing, so let's discuss how to safely, fairly, and legally handle
field testing if the manufacturer is not accepting the cost of doing
the testing.

I am sure that others will know this topic better but here is what
occurs to me to consider:

1. You need to find out what the legalities, laws and regulations are
for using an unproven vaccine. If the ferrets will then be adopted to
someone else or sold to someone else you need to know if that increases
your culpability. Check with your lawyer, your state public health
veterinarian, and your local community. Know that potential buyers or
adopters will need to be informed beforehand and should also collect
data at the expense of the manufacturer. In some places it may be
illegal for you to use a vaccine that does not have governmental
approval for use in ferrets, and might even put you in a position to
have your shelter or breeding facility become illegal and shut down,
or for you to be sued.

2. You should not have to pay to be a test site. Why should you pay
for something that might not work? Yes, it might work, but then the
manufacturer gets value from data collected, so don't become a chump...

3. Titers by an independent expert need to be done; these should also
be reimbursed by the manufacturer. See past FHL and FML posts in
archives about getting titers done at Cornell, for example. It should
be arranged that the results go to your treating veterinarian who then
can share them with the manufacturer. Because the vaccines might not
work do wait at least 3 weeks after vaccines to do the first titers,
then repeat on the schedule which your vet and other experts recommend,
perhaps every 3 months but at least every 6 months.

4. Any responsible manufacturer will want to collect the data and later
present the full picture, BUT will also want that to be accurate, so
the treating veterinarians should be able to publicly at any time
during the study share info with other vets including on VIN if the
titers come back at bad levels, and the manufacturer should include in
any article a table the specifically lists the test locations by name
so that it is obvious that the manufacturer is open to being checked.

5. Know that in using any unproven vaccine you are taking risks, and in
encouraging others to use unproven vaccines you may be placing yourself
in a difficult spot in relation to legalities, so instead of just
passing along what you like of what you have read also pass along the
short comings, questions, and what data does not exist.

6. Time kit vaccines, dosing, etc, according to what the treating vets
recommend, especially because ferret kits rapidly lose protection. See
an included FHL post link today and two in a previous post of mine on
this topic.

Sukie (not a vet)

Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.miamiferret.org/
http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
all ferret topics:
http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html

"All hail the procrastinators for they shall rule the world tomorrow."
(2010, Steve Crandall)
On change for its own sake: "You can go really fast if you just jump
off the cliff." (2010, Steve Crandall)

[Posted in FML 7312]