From:
Ann Barzda
Date: 2008-07-08 19:37:32 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] Re: Diarrhea...again
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
I hope he gets better - if you suspect coccidia at all, it's worth treating=
for it.=A0 The parasites are very difficult to get in a single stool sampl=
e, you usually have to do multiples.=A0 Fortunately, the medicine they use =
(Albon?) is really ferret-tasty, and when I had to give it to my group a co=
uple years ago, they thought it was treat time!=A0 Worked good, though some=
times you have to repeat the treatment a couple times.
=A0
Coccidia does usually affect young kits, as most adults seem to develop a r=
esistance.=A0 However, like any other parasite or stomach issue, any critte=
r having any sort of immune problems (such as fighting off some other infec=
tion, disease, etc.) is going to be more susceptible to what in a healthy c=
ritter wouldn't be a problem.=A0 If you haven't tested, I certainly wouldn'=
t rule it out.
=A0
Coccidia has nothing to do with living in a clean or dirty environment - th=
ough to eliminate it once you've had it is close to impossible without an i=
ncredible amount of cleaning with bleach.=A0
=A0
From the veterinarypartner.com website (same basic thing is on a number of =
sites):
"To be more precise, coccidia come from fecal-contaminated ground. They are=
swallowed when a pet grooms/licks the dirt off itself. In some cases, spor=
ulated oocysts are swallowed by mice and the host is infected when it eats =
the mouse. Coccidia infection is especially common in young animals housed =
in groups (in shelters, rescue areas, kennels, etc.) This is a common paras=
ite and is not necessarily a sign of poor husbandry."
=A0
It could come from nearly anything that contaminated fecal matter touched.=
=A0 So, just in case, and because treatment is SO easy, it wouldn't hurt to=
try.=A0 I'm not saying it is or isn't, I'm just pointing out that many peo=
ple rule out coccidia for the reasons you said, when it actually is a cocci=
dia problem.
=A0
my two cents,
ann
--- On Tue, 7/8/08, Sheryl wrote:
...
From what I've been reading it sounds like Coccidia mainly affects
younger ferrets and not the geriatric. Plus, he definitely does not
live in unsanitary conditions...
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