My new ferret scratches, bites, and shakes. Is she sick or stressed?

Thanks for reaching out about Sally. Itchy skin can be due to fleas, bacterial or fungal dermatitis, adrenal or other endocrine problems and more. A veterinary visit is recommended to assess and provide a diagnostic/treatment plan. Falling over and wobbly, could be a low blood sugar, possibly an insulinoma. Good luck.

Hello. A ferret that is pruritic ( itchy ) without signs of ectoparasites ( fleas, lice ) is adrenal gland disease until proven otherwise. It is not uncommon for very itchy ferrets to have no obvious signs of hair loss. Occasional, cutaneous mast cell tumors can be very pruritic. These are almost always benign in ferrets & removal is curative. I would encourage you to have your ferrets evaluated by a veterinarian & have some diagnostic tests done to find the underlying cause of the itching. Then appropriate treatment can be started. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello, I'm sorry to hear Snowflake is feeling unwell. Scratching in a young ferret can be a sign of external parasites, such as fleas, scabies or ear mites. I would suggest taking her to a vet to check for the above, and perform a skin scraping test to check for scabies or demodex mites. I hope this helps, and your ferret is feeling better soon!

Hello, Ferrets do scratch more than normal dogs and cats! They tend to be itchier creatures, and this very well may be normal behavior. :) They can get fleas, mites, and skin infections that make them more itchy though- usually hair loss, redness, and scabbing is associated with these (and obviously, if you see fleas!). If they are particularly focused on their ears, ear mites may be a concern. If you notice any hair loss, scabbing, or excessive black crusting in the ears, these would be signs to go to the veterinarian. These conditions are generally easy to treat with a course of medications, so nothing to panic about! I hope this is helpful! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

It is important to find out why they are itching first before putting anything on them. They could be suffering from a mite infection, a fungal or a bacterial infection. All of these cause serious itch and each of these is treated differently. Please take your ferrets to your vet for an exam to determine why they are itching. Mites itch terribly, the skin gets scabby and fur gets lost. Mites are easily treated with avermectin injections. A fungal infection may need oral medications or antifungal shampoo or both and a bacterial infection is usually treated with oral antibiotics.

Hello, and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. The very important first thing we need to do is make sure Stanley doesn't have fleas, as that would be the most common reason a ferret his age would be scratching. I typically advise applying Revolution - the product labeled for cats is safe for use on ferrets. If Stanley is still scratching, you should have him seen by your vet to determine the source of the scratching. Hope this helps!

Hello there, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am concerned about Stewart. While this interesting biting behavior may be simply that - a strange behavior - I strongly suggest that medical conditions are ruled out by a veterinarian before chalking it up to a weird idiosyncrasy. If Stewart is biting at the air above his head, as if trying to catch a bug, I worry about a secondary condition called "fly-biting," which is essentially a type of seizure. Fly-biting is most common in dogs, but there are certain diseases that can cause seizures in ferrets as well, like an insulinoma (a mass on the pancreas that messes with glucose regulation), a vitamin deficiency, or toxin ingestion. These are unlikely considering Stewart's young age, but I always feel that a physical reason for strange behaviors should be eliminated first. If he's biting the air towards your hands only, I'd feel better about calling it a behavioral issue, but biting the air randomly doesn't sound normal. If everything seems okay after the vet visit, you can talk to him or her about behavior modification. There is a veterinarian that sees exotic animals near you: Mercury Animal Hospital 2500 W Mercury Blvd, Hampton, VA 23666 (757) 826-4951 Good luck, and I hope that Stewart is indeed a healthy ferret!