Well, HodgePodge and Portnoy got their distemper vacs, w/ Fervac-D, and did
not have a reaction. Yay! They also didn't really notice the actual shot,
either.  :)
    Unfortunately, I'm going to have to switch vets, b/c this vet displayed
great ignorance, contempt for any knowledge on ferrets I might have, and
close-mindedness.  I read here on the FML about how there might be a
greater chance of reaction if the shot is given in the neck, so it might be
a good idea to do it in the rump.  So I mentioned to her that I'd like her
to give the shot there.  Dr.  Kanton said no.  I told her why, and she
steadfastly refused.  Finally I told her that I wasn't talking about
intramuscular, I meant subcutaneous in the rump (in case she was confused).
She kept saying no, w/o giving any reasons except that "studies don't prove
anything".  When I pointed out that these are MY ferrets, after all, she
said o.k., but acted like it was a big problem to her.  She asked me, w/
the tone of voice like she was doubting my intelligence, if I knew how to
scruff a ferret to help her hold them.  ARGH!  OF COURSE I know how to
scruff a ferret.
    Then she began a tirade about Marshall Farms, and how they are the
scourge of the earth.  I told her that I am intimately familiar w/ both
sides of the issue, and I personally feel that MF isn't all that bad.  (No
flames please, I'm not trying to convince anyone of my viewpoint.) So she
switched to trying to convince me to buy Totally Ferret food, which is more
expensive than I can manage, AND the kitten food I give my ferrets meets
the requirements for ferrets.  AND they like it.  :)
     Part way through the exam,she demanded to know if I'm on the FML.  When
I said yes, she said "I could tell", in a condescending & irritated tone.  I
mentioned that Dr.  Bruce Williams is a wonderful and very knowledgable vet,
adn she said he doesn't know anything about living ferrets b/c he only sees
them dead or sees tissue samples.  She also thought it was very bizarre to
wait between the distemper and rabies vaccinations, just in case, but I
insisted.
    At this point I was VERY angry, and luckily the vaccinations and exams
were over.  I am still appalled and confused by this barrage of hostility.
I also don't understand the "you can't possibly know anything about ferrets"
attitude.  I already knew alot, and reading the FML teaches me something new
almost every day.  Not only that, but I feel that those whom I listen to
here are intelligent knowledgable people who give me something to learn.
    *sigh* Too bad, too, b/c this vet clinic is the closest to where I live.
Dr.  Kanton has a good assistant, Dr.  Ackerman, who is young and open, and
listens to what I have to say, and explains what she's doing, etc.  All you
could want in a vet.  But I'm not going to support a vet like Dr.  Kanton
who closes her eyes to the possibility that there are still things to learn,
and maybe a customer might come in w/ a fact that she didn't know!
    O.K., now I've ranted and raved enough. :)  It's nice to be able to
add 2 more ferrets to the ranks who haven't had reactions. I was so
nervous!  More so than my ferrets... ;)
 
CA & DA (the humans), Eudora & Graham, cats ("how come THEY got to go out
in the pet carrier??") and Hodge & Portnoy ("that lady didn't know enough
about ferrets!!")
[Posted in FML issue 1188]