>From: "Ferret Aid Society..." <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: FerVac Reactions-need your imput :o) By now we've given nearly a thousand vaccinations with Fervac-D. Ferrets from 8 weeks up to 6 years old. No reactions of any form. None. Not even lethargy. But we had the same percentage with FROMM-D when it was available and the twenty or thirty Galaxy-D shots we gave (don't feel like diggin up the notes for an exact count) But thats just our experiences. The breeders/shelter we work with have had mostly the same results. Many folks like to rag on Doug McKay in Ohio but with all the ferrets he has he gives over a thousand vaccinations a year. Last we'd heard he had never had any reactions either. This is not meant to start a debate about his ranch - just using his number of vaccinations with no reactions. Some vets seem to have reactions with every third ferret. Something other than just the vaccine seems to be involved. We think it has to do with stress. Vet exams are stressful for ferrets, and our personal belief is that vaccinations should not be dome immediately following poking and podding and especially after a vet puts a thermometer where a ferret really doesn't want a thermometer. >From: Sandi Ackerman <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Wood litters >>"Stove Chow" and other wood stove pellets are hardwoods. >Must be a demographic difference. Dang left coasters... Must be that you folks have more BIG evergreens. All of our East coast BIG trees are hardwoods. No way I'd ever burn pine in a wood stove. But the Kitty litter equivalents are better at odor control as litter - but we just aren't sure about the effects of breathing it in by the ferrets so we limit its use to road trips - when enclosed in a van (VW to pique Ed Lipinski's interest) odor control grows in importance. Limitting the exposure to pine oils can't be bad - even if its unnecessary. But now that I think about it, we did get offered Redwood pellets at one point. Oh well. Never said we were perf3ct <grin> bill and diane killian zen and the art of ferrets http://www.zenferret.com/ mailto:[log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 2369]