Message Number: YG12665 | New FHL Archives Search
From: Melissa Litwicki
Date: 2002-04-21 14:39:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Bob C: Vets and Veterinary Costs

Bob Church wrote:

> When people ask me how many ferrets should they own, I always tell them
> that in a worst case scenario, a ferret could generate as much as $1000
> per year (average) in vet bills (I've heard some have generated more,
> but I think they are statistically far and in-between). Honestly, I

I excerpt this part solely because a few years ago, I did a financial
calculation on my total cost of ferret ownership - food, preventative vet
visits, meds, and illness-related visits. I keep meticulous records on my
pets, and I found that the lowest per year cost was in the range of about
$400, and the highest was around $1000. Of the five ferrets I've owned,
one died at 3yo, one at 5yo, two at 7yo, and one is still alive. I can go
back through the same records and provide some nice age to cost charts
(having seen adrenal, insulinoma, liver cancer, cardiomyopathy, mast cell
tumors, ECE, kidney disease, hairball removals, among others!) if people
think it would be instructional.

In any case, I wanted to confirm Bob C's estimates from my personal
experience.

Melissa