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Came to feed ferrets and half of them dead!


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On 20/12/2024 at 22:48, Arry said:

Sorry for your loss mate.

I would suspect Botulism where the Ferrets may have taken meat into the nest box or hidden somewhere. 

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Cheers Arry

Strange you should mention this as I've lost a few from two separate litters a year or two back . I wasn't sure why they died until I clean out the cage and found part of a rotten rabbit hidden in their nest box hidden under the bedding straw. This pointed to the cause in both cases, the older ferrets have a system that can overcome a bad bug, unfortunately the young don't have the same protection until they are a little older. Sorry for your lose ,it's gutting

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Had something similar lost a full litter then older ones started acting all bent and wobbly a few died couldn't get my head round it so I stalked my cage only to see a rat squeezing in straight in food bowl 177 sorted him made a better cage plus moved it never had a problem or lost one since

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Hi Guys

 

I ended up losing all of them in the end. Took the remaining three in last Friday and the vet gave me antibiotics and rehydration fluids. She said she had a bad feeling and she was correct as none of them made it to the following morning. I just couldn’t get the fluids down them without them throwing it back up. 
 

I think it could have been distemper or bird flu. I have a fox that frequents the garden and it’s always around the ferret run and hutches as theirs always food in their (pigeons, rabbit ect) so the fix could of passed distemper onto the ferrets. Also I have bird feeders next to the ferret run and pigeons roosting above so could have been bird flu. I nearly got a post mortem done but it wasn’t going to bring my ferrets back.

 

all I can do in future Is fox proof the garden, move bird feeders away and maybe treat my future ferrets first distemper. 
 

Im just in the process of doing this and disinfecting all the hutches and runs.

 

thanks for all the comments guys. 
I find some relief knowing it’s not just me it’s happened to. 

 

 

 

 

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3 hours ago, Daleside pest control said:

Hi Guys

 

I ended up losing all of them in the end. Took the remaining three in last Friday and the vet gave me antibiotics and rehydration fluids. She said she had a bad feeling and she was correct as none of them made it to the following morning. I just couldn’t get the fluids down them without them throwing it back up. 
 

I think it could have been distemper or bird flu. I have a fox that frequents the garden and it’s always around the ferret run and hutches as theirs always food in their (pigeons, rabbit ect) so the fix could of passed distemper onto the ferrets. Also I have bird feeders next to the ferret run and pigeons roosting above so could have been bird flu. I nearly got a post mortem done but it wasn’t going to bring my ferrets back.

 

all I can do in future Is fox proof the garden, move bird feeders away and maybe treat my future ferrets first distemper. 
 

Im just in the process of doing this and disinfecting all the hutches and runs.

 

thanks for all the comments guys. 
I find some relief knowing it’s not just me it’s happened to. 

 

 

 

 

Bird feeders my pet hate there is your problem always have rats round them was definitely rats with mine sorry to hear about losing the rest mate

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3 hours ago, Daleside pest control said:

Hi Guys

 

I ended up losing all of them in the end. Took the remaining three in last Friday and the vet gave me antibiotics and rehydration fluids. She said she had a bad feeling and she was correct as none of them made it to the following morning. I just couldn’t get the fluids down them without them throwing it back up. 
 

I think it could have been distemper or bird flu. I have a fox that frequents the garden and it’s always around the ferret run and hutches as theirs always food in their (pigeons, rabbit ect) so the fix could of passed distemper onto the ferrets. Also I have bird feeders next to the ferret run and pigeons roosting above so could have been bird flu. I nearly got a post mortem done but it wasn’t going to bring my ferrets back.

 

all I can do in future Is fox proof the garden, move bird feeders away and maybe treat my future ferrets first distemper. 
 

Im just in the process of doing this and disinfecting all the hutches and runs.

 

thanks for all the comments guys. 
I find some relief knowing it’s not just me it’s happened to. 

 

 

 

 

Sorry to hear this. You clearly gave them the best opportunity. It never fails to amaze me how ferrets are so incredibly tough, recover quickly from bites and abscesses, rarely get ill but on some occasions fade out almost overnight. Best wishes in tracking down a new team 

Only suggestion I have is a long way for you but I know Essex ferret welfare in Ongar have quite a few at the moment and some are from working lines. You can find them on FB and website 

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I lost all my ferrets last year so got some kits in mid summer and lost 2 of the 3 recently.. fat as butter but curled up dead in nest. I was speaking with a lad and he asked if I fed them fresh squirrel  I said yes.. that's there main food. He said he'd read somewhere that squirrel can pass something on to ferrets. It makes sense when I think about it.

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2 hours ago, Mr Wilkes said:

I lost all my ferrets last year so got some kits in mid summer and lost 2 of the 3 recently.. fat as butter but curled up dead in nest. I was speaking with a lad and he asked if I fed them fresh squirrel  I said yes.. that's there main food. He said he'd read somewhere that squirrel can pass something on to ferrets. It makes sense when I think about it.

Grey Squirrels carry Squirrel pox and thats what kills the reds in they come in contact. I used to work at somewhere that had a big outdoor cage of chipmunks they reckon the grey Squirrels visited after waste food they all died.

I've no idea if the pox can be transmitted to ferrets mind. I catch quite a few squirrels and they go in the compost lol.

Cheers Arry

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  • 1 month later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Lost nearly all my kits and an adult last year 

Within 5 days salmonella from frozen raw food I bought in over the summer as ran out of rabbits and pidgeons 

didn’t realise ferrets are very  susceptible to it

I was gutted . Hopefully get back what I lost this year .

 

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