Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a very common condition in ferrets.  It often starts out as a few days of soft stool or diarrhea about once a month.  Most people don't think that this is a cause for concern because the diarrhea clears up without treatment and the ferret continues to act healthy.  Over time, the episodes of diarrhea become longer in duration and more frequent.  At this point, the ferret starts to lose weight and may develop a rough dull hair coat.  A ferret with IBD may become finicky about what it eats and becomes less playful and sleeps a lot.  Let untreated, IBD may progress to a form of cancer known as lymphoma.

This ultrasound of a ferret reveals a mass that turned out to be an intestinal lymph node that was enlarged as a result of inflammatory bowel disease. (The Left Kidney is also pictured.)

At Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital, we offer a variety of tests to determine whether or not your ferret has inflammatory bowel disease.  We start with a few simple tests of the blood, stool, and even saliva.  An ultrasound will help better assess if there are other problems involved, such as an abnormal lymph node or liver.  Often an endoscopic examination of the gastrointestinal tract is needed to confirm IBD.  Once we have a diagnosis, there are different medications and diets that can dramatically improve your ferret's quality of life.

If you are seeing soft stools or diarrhea with your ferret, call and make an appointment today!

Copyright 2008
Kevin Wright and Jay Johnson
Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital, LLC
744 N Center Street
Mesa, AZ 85203
info@azeah.com