by Mary Wesker

One of the most circulated pieces of bad advice I see here (aside from diet recommendations) is that there is a high risk of adverse reaction from vaccines in ferrets. Leaving my own opinions aside, I’m going to offer you several excerpts from these educational links (linked below, also in the Educational Link Dump Doc) on the importance of vaccinating HEALTHY ferrets. Obviously, if they are not physically fit or able to be vaccinated for a legitimate medical reason, nobody, myself included, would recommend vaccinating. Even if your ferret does have a reaction, it is treatable, whereas the diseases the vaccines are for are quite deadly and not always treatable.

American Ferret Association with info on Titer Testing, recommended Vaccines, Scheduling, and Recommended Brands

https://www.2ndchance.info/test.php?page=fervacs

Overvaccination risks and about the Science Based Vaccine Schedule

“Vaccine reactions are extremely rare and usually involve a bit of vomiting or diarrhea. Sure beats death which is pretty permanent" (bolded because I strongly agree with the sentiment).

"People overreact to “reactions” as they are visible and usually immediate. However, they also don’t recall that their ferret may have just eaten; were plied with treats for being a “good ferret;” or had their routine upset for that day. Perhaps the vet did two shots during the same visit: Rabies and distemper. That is why you go to a vet for shots. They are prepared for reactions and can treat. Do not allow fear of the unknown to prevent you from providing the most basic protection your pet needs from you besides food and housing.”

Also, from the AFA’s Vaccines section: "Incidence of and Risk Factors for Adverse Events Associated with Distemper and Rabies Vaccine Administration in Ferrets," JAVMA, Volume 226, Number 6, March 15, 2005, pages 909-912. Summary: The adverse event incidence rate for Rabies alone, Canine Distemper alone, and the combination was 0.51%, 1.00%, and 0.85%, respectively, which were not significantly different. This study was based on 3,587 ferrets. The risk of an adverse event was primarily associated with an increase in the number of Canine Distemper vaccinations."

http://www.ferret.org/read/vaccinations.html

Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital on Vaccinating:

"We recommend ferret do not receive distemper and rabies vaccinations at the same time due to increased risk of reactions when administered together. We recommend splitting up the vaccinations about 2-3 weeks or more apart. This also allows the ferret's body to better process each vaccine and develop the highest possible antibody levels from each vaccine.

Some ferrets have allergic reactions to their vaccinations. We recommend premedicating ferrets with an antihistamine before each vaccination and to closely monitor the ferret for 30 minutes following a vaccination. We encourage you to spend at least 30 minutes at Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital after your ferret's vaccination so we may treat your ferret should an allergic reaction develop despite the pretreatment with an antihistamine. If your ferret has a severe reaction, we'll discuss what options are appropriate for it in the future.”

There are internal links from this article with CDV symptoms as well.

From Ferret Association of Connecticut on Canine Distemper:

“The greatest threat to our pets are unvaccinated dogs, many of which do not show symptoms of canine distemper. You say you do not have a dog? And you never see fox or raccoons. Yet you could silently carry the illness home and pass it on to your pet ferret when you innocently pat an unvaccinated dog somewhere; or unknowingly track in a bit of infected domestic or wild animal fecal material on your shoes. It happens. No one plans it. How does one get the flu? That is why we vaccinate against viruses because we cannot expect every possibility. Think of it as an insurance policy.”

From later in the article: “... Survival Following Symptoms. Yes, ferrets can survive major symptoms. But it is very rare, and they are never the same afterwards. The suggestion to euthanize upon seeing symptoms is, we believe, arbitrary. However, we do feel that when the symptoms have progressed to a point where the crusting (see images) and breathing have become labored, that euthansia is a better course of action for the ferret’s welfare. This is a highly personal judgement, of course. But rebouts seem to occur with symptoms not dissimilar to COPD – chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – essentially progressive lung disease with difficult breathing. It is not a good life – but the choice will also depend on the age of the animal and one’s willingness to deal with the after-effects and ongoing cost of treatment.”

From 2nd Chance: Dr. Ron Hines on CDV:

Canine Distemper In Ferrets:

Please read my companion article, Distemper & Vaccine Reactions In Ferrets.

Unvaccinated ferrets are very susceptible to the distemper virus of dogs. Cats get another form of distemper that ferrets do not catch.

The distemper virus is an RNA virus of a type that does not survive more than a half hour in the environment. So to get it, your ferret would have to be exposed to another animal that had the disease. This could be a sick dog or another ferret. You are highly unlikely to track it into the house unless you frequent locations that commonly have lots of animals or sick animals.

Distemper is spread when infected animals sneeze and cough . It has an incubation period of 6-9 days. Ferrets that catch distemper become depressed. They develop a skin rash, nasal and eye discharges and eventually nerve degeneration. There is no successful treatment. Early signs can be mistaken for human influenza to which ferrets are also susceptible.

Many authorities suggest that ferrets receive their first distemper vaccination at 6-8 weeks and a booster vaccination at 10-12 weeks. Some give a third vaccination at 14-16 weeks of age. They are then generally given a yearly distemper booster vaccination.

I do not agree with this. First of all, ferrets do not develop good levels of immunity when they are only 6-8 weeks old. Under 12 wks, maternal antibody prevents the vaccine from working (ref). Also, multiple vaccinations make it more likely that ferrets have serious or fatal vaccine reactions. The risks involved to your pet from too many vaccinations are much higher than the risks of it developing distemper so young. If your pet already has the virus in its system when you purchase it - the vaccine will not help. If it doesn't - just keep it isolated until it is old enough to benefit from the vaccinations.”

Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital on Vaccinating:

“Distemper, the same virus that causes the disease in dogs, is a very serious disease that almost always causes death in unvaccinated ferrets. Distemper virus is common in the Phoenix Metro area. Even ferrets that never go outside should have distemper vaccinations. Contact with an infected dog or ferret is not the only way your ferret can be infected. You can bring the deadly virus into your home indirectly on clothes, shoes, or other items after being in close proximity to where an infected animal has been. There is test that allows you to know if your ferret's previous vaccine is still providing protection. A distemper titer measures the antibodies in your ferret's blood. If the distemper titer is adequate, your ferret can go another year without a distemper vaccine. If the distemper titer is low, then your ferret should have its distemper vaccine as soon as possible. There is some debate about how often ferrets should be vaccinated. Most ferrets receive an initial vaccination by the breeder at 6-8 weeks old. We recommend 2 additional vaccinations at 3 week intervals (9-11 weeks and again at 12-14 weeks old). After finishing their Kit sieries of distemper vaccinations, all ferrets should recieve a booster vaccination 1 year later. The vaccination is labled to be given annually after that.

Some research has shown that some ferrets may not need vaccinations every year after their first year booster.

We recommend ferret do not receive distemper and rabies vaccinations at the same time due to increased risk of reactions when administered together. We recommend splitting up the vaccinations about 2-3 weeks or more apart. This also allows the ferret's body to better process each vaccine and develop the highest possible antibody levels from each vaccine.”

AFA Titer Testing (Discusses a Distemper outbreak)

AFA Titer Letter For Vets (About where to send samples for affordible titer testing, also please note PureVax is being produced again)

https://ferretassn.org/about-ferrets/health/illness-disease/cdv-canine-distemper