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ECE and Ferrets - Page 2

© Pam McInnis

I sobbed in my vet's office. But even as my heart grieved for Timmy, I had to come to grips with the fact that my entire ferret household had been exposed to this highly contagious virus. ECE spreads rapidly among ferrets. It is not airborne, but can be spread through contact with food, litter, objects and humans who have handled an infected ferret.

By bringing home this poor little girl, we had exposed all of our pets to this illness. Even though they hadn't yet interacted with her, we had handled her and then played with them. She had shared their playroom.

Sure enough, my five adult ferrets began showing symptoms of ECE, one by one. They stopped eating. Green, slimy or grainy stool appeared in the litter boxes. They slept constantly. Two of them lost noticeable amounts of weight over a two-day period.

Our vet gave us amoxicillin and medication to curb the symptoms - the equivalent of a ferret ammodium. For a week and a half, we medicated and force-fed all five ferrets twice a day.

We are coming out on the other side of this now. All but two of my ferrets seem to have fully recovered. And even these too are eating normally again, but they are still a bit lethargic. Even though my gang is recovering, they will be carriers for up to six months. And I, as a human who has contact with them, could transmit the disease to other ferrets.

We learned the hard way that this is one downside to integrating a new ferret into your home. Here are a few tips and things we've learned along the way.

Symptoms of ECE

Lethargy, weight loss, dehydration, stool that is either green, slimy or birdseed-like (sometimes all of the above), and watery eyes that resemble those of a human with a bad head cold. Some infected ferrets will throw up for a few days.

Treatment

ECE is a viral infection that seems to pretty much have to run its course. The medication our vet gave us helped along recovery, but it does not eliminate the virus. If you believe your ferret may be infected, you should see your vet immediately. But understand that medication is only part of the cure.

The most important thing you can do for your ferret is to make sure she takes in enough food and water while the virus runs its course. This is easier said than done. Ferrets with ECE feel nauseous. If you've ever had food poisoning and tried to eat while recovering, you can sympathize with a ferret struggling through ECE.

The copyright of the article ECE and Ferrets - Page 2 in Ferrets is owned by Pamela Hawley McInnis. Permission to republish ECE and Ferrets - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.