From:
ferrethealer@aol.com
Date: 2007-10-21 17:05:47 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re:Rabies vaccination reaction
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
I'm sorry your ferret had a reaction, I know from personal experience both as
an owner and as a vet how hard that is.
A couple of issues I have with what you posted -
Personally, I no longer premedicate with Benadryl. I have heard of several
ferrets having a reaction to injectable Benadryl, actually, and I was still
seeing a fair number of reactions in ferrets that were premedicated with it. The
one exception to this is kits under six months of age, which I still do use
Benadryl in.
What I do use in almost every ferret that I vaccinate is dexamethasone, given
subcutaneously fifteen to twenty minues prior to vaccination. I use 0.5 mg
per lb of ferret, and have seen a vast reduction in the number and severity of
reactions since I started doing that.
I also separate the vaccines by at least three weeks, and have my clients
remain in the office for at least half an hour, preferably longer. A ferret that
has a reaction is given epinephrine and fluids in my office, by the way.
The other concern I have is that you state that the rabies vaccination was
given IM, or into the muscle. This is an incorrect way of administering the
vaccine, which should be given under the skin. Whether that had anything to do
with the reaction, I can't say, but it does not follow the label guidelines for
vaccination.
Grinding the teeth may be related to the reaction - the inflammation caused
in the gastrointestinal tract may simply be irritating to him, in which case it
should resolve fairly soon (carafate may help) or it may be related to an
ulcer.
And unfortunately, having a rabies titer will likely mean nothing legally, as
the accepted levels are not established.
Hopefully he will continue to improve.
Dr. Ruth
*****************************************
Save lives - spay or neuter your pet.
************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:ferrethealth-digest@yahoogroups.com
mailto:ferrethealth-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
ferrethealth-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/