What vaccines does a ferret need?

Ferrets are small mammals of the mustelid family, a family that also includes the weasel and the badger, among other animals. Formerly used for hunting in burrows, especially rabbits, but in recent years is very common to see them as pets. In general, the owners of these animals do not know what care your pet needs, so in .com we tell you what vaccines a ferret needs .

The distemper

Distemper, also called Carré disease, is caused by a virus that can affect several animal species such as dogs and ferrets.

In ferrets, distemper can have very serious consequences, so vaccination is highly advisable. Although there are specific vaccines for ferrets, these are quite difficult to obtain in some countries, so in many cases vaccines for dogs are used exceptionally.

It should be noted that certain types of vaccines for dogs can be harmful to ferrets, so it must be the veterinarian who decides what kind of vaccine to use.

Anger

Ferrets are susceptible to being infected by the rabies virus. Currently, in many countries rabies is considered practically eradicated, while in others it is still a problem and the authorities oblige to vaccinate.

The need to vaccinate depends on the legal obligation (variable depending on the country in which the ferret lives) and how frequent rabies is in that area. As an example, in the Valencian Community (a region of Spain) vaccinating ferrets with rabies is not mandatory, and due to the low frequency of occurrence of cases of the disease, it does not seem necessary to vaccinate.

Therefore, we recommend contacting the College of Veterinarians or the competent authority in animal health and / or public health to know the specific requirements of the place.

Despite the above, if you want to travel with the ferret abroad, you must obtain an international passport for your pet, and, one of the requirements to get it is to be vaccinated against rabies.

As in the case of distemper, the veterinarian should decide what type of vaccine to use.

Other diseases

Although it is not very clear, ferrets could be sensitive to other diseases that affect our pets and for which there is a vaccine, such as parvovirus and kennel cough.

Even so, the fact that the degree of sensitivity of the ferret and the effectiveness (and safety) of these vaccines are not widely studied mean that vaccination is not very common nor recommended.

• Vaccinations in ferrets usually produce hypersensitivity reactions (allergy) that are resolved with the administration of antihistamines. Therefore, we recommend that you closely monitor the ferret after the vaccination and if you detect swelling of the face or difficulty in breathing go to the veterinarian.