Vaccine reactions are more common in ferrets than in dogs or cats. Luckily most tend to be very mild and respond well to treatment.
Clinical signs can occur within 10 minutes of vaccination and can include but are not limited to tenderness at the injection site, itchiness, restlessness, vomiting, diarrhea, redness, hives, high body temperature, seizures, collapse, and even progressing to coma and death.
If your veterinarian suspects your ferret is having a reaction to their vaccines they may give Diphenhydramine as an injection if it was not given as a pre-treatment for the vaccines. Otherwise, your veterinarian will give an injection of a steroid, an antiacid, and either give subcutaneous fluids or in more severe cases, intravenous fluids. If a very severe reaction called anaphylaxis is suspected, epinephrine is given and hospitalization will be recommended to monitor them closely until they have recovered.
The prognosis depends on the severity of the signs at the time of diagnosis. If caught early, the prognosis is good to fair.
Recheck recommendations will vary depending on the severity and resolution of clinical signs.
Many veterinarians will pre-treat all ferrets with diphenhydramine at the time of vaccination as a way to try to prevent reactions. It may also help to only give one vaccination per visit. Ferrets who have just been vaccinated should be monitored for 20-30 minutes following to watch for a reaction.
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