FML'ers - Over the last several days I have seen an alarming trend in the number of posts by people who are either questioning the need for distemper vaccination for ferrets or have decided not to get it at all. The current number of allergic reactions to Fervac-D is indeed distressing (possibly up to 2%), but should not prevent people from vaccinating against distemper. Fervac-D is the only tested distemper vaccine for ferrets, but is not the only distemper product available. Galaxy-D, if your veterinarian can get it and is willing to use a non-approved product, is an excellent alternative to Fervac-D, with a far lower incidence of reactions. There are a number of other products available for use in dogs - while these are multivalent vaccines while contain other non-ferret related viruses, even these are preferable to non-vaccinated ferrets. Years ago, it was all we had to use in ferrets, and I never saw either a reaction to the vaccine or distemper in a vaccinated ferret. Why is vaccination against distemper so important? Simply put - distemper is 100% fatal and a miserable way to die. You may forget the urban legends of treating ferrets for distemper - it doesn't work. (Perhaps one in 1000 may survive as a miracle which we don't understand - but will suffer debilitating long-term neurologic disease as well as serve as a shedder of this virus to infect others.) If your vet is using Fervac -D - there are things that you can do to lessen the chances of a severe reaction - 1) Pretreat with an antihistamine such as Benedryl. (No, prednisone is NOT as good - a steroid helps lessen the severity of reaction but does nothing to prevent it. As histamine is the chemical in the body which is responsible for the allergic reaction - the bronchoconstriction, the vascular dilation, the hemorrhage into the gut, the shock - only an antihistamine, administered BEFORE the event, has any preventive reaction.) 2) Wait 30 minutes after any vaccination before leaving the vets. Anaphylactic reactions most commonly occur during that time period. 3) Vaccinate only at the vets - if you are using Fervac at home, without access to emergency treatment if needed, you are courting disaster - I don't ever vaccinate at home. Distemper is heartbreaking - it is a disease that claims the young (for the sins of the industry) - and the innocent (for the sins of their owners). As educated ferret owners, we must do everything to prevent the occurrence of this terrible disease in the lives entrusted to us, even if it involves taking educated risks. With kindest regards, Bruce Williams, dVM [Posted in FML issue 3237]