National Ferret Day 2024 is on Tuesday, April 2, 2024: Who else has a birthday on April 2nd 1968?

Tuesday, April 2, 2024 is National Ferret Day 2024. National Ferret Day 2013! - i heart ferrets National Ferret Day 2013!

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Marvin Gaye,, Andronicus IV Palaeologus(you don't remember him?) Dana Carvey, Reggie Smith, Emmylou Harris, Mahmood Hussain(the worlds best cricketer and now a politician and why not? in california a evil robot from the future was elected the governator), Rodney King, and Victoria Jackson amongst others. I also note that april 2nd is Natl. Kick Butts Day (how would I know? its your birthday.), National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day (and how is this celebrated?) One Cent Day and National Ferret Day. I'm thinking those last two are not connected. Or are they?

Hope this tickles your curiosity.

What Shots Do ferrets Get?

This is the common recommendation:

Vaccines are extremely important for your ferret and should be administered on the following schedule: Canine Distemper booster at 8 weeks, repeated at 11-12 weeks and then at 14-16 weeks; thereafter they should receive any annual shot. The rabies shot should be administered at 12-13 weeks of age (two weeks before/after the distemper, but never at the same time) and then given annually as well. There are two canine distemper vaccines that can be used, Purevax-D (only USDA approved shots) or Galaxy-D. For additional information on distemper, shots and reactions, please see the distemper page

Distemper is an airborne virus that your ferrets can get even though they never go outside. If you have a pet that goes, they can bring it in, you can bring it in on your clothes, shoes, skin, etc. The only way you an protect and safeguard against this is to vaccinate. There is no cure, and is 100% fatal.

There is only one approved rabies vaccine which is IMRAB-3, and though it might not be legally required by law, this is one shot that could save your ferrets life in case of a ferret bite or scratch that gets reported. Unfortunately, there are still a large number of states that will decapitate the ferrets head for testing first, then ask questions later, despite the "2006 Compendium of Animal Rabies Control" (PDF Version) by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians, Inc. (NASPHV), stating the animal should be quarantined for 10 days. It should also be noted that the number of cases of a ferret contracting, passing, or carrying rabies is just about non-existent.

BUT, some owners do not vaccinate for distemper because ferrets routinely die from the vaccinations. You must never vaccinate for distemper and rabies in the same visit. You might say it is OK to not vaccinate your ferrets if they stay in your home and you do not have a cat or dog who can bring in the virus, but if you take your ferret to the vet and it is not vaccinated, the ferret can pick up the virus from the vet if they treated a dog recently who carried the virus. It is a risk you are taking and remember, the disease is 100% fatal to your ferret.

Unfortunately, vaccinating has it's own risks and the most common serious/life threatening reaction your ferret can experience from vaccines is anaphylactic shock, and this generally occurs more frequently with the distemper vaccines. Due to the severity of this reaction if it occurs, it is vital to the ferrets life to remain at your vets office for at least 30-60 minutes as immediate attention could be necessary. If no reaction occurs, it is equally important to keep a close eye on them for at least the next 24 hours, as a delayed reaction is still possible. You should also ensure that your vet is available at all hours or have a back-up if you need to quickly bring your ferret in for emergency treatment.

IT CANNOT BE STATED ENOUGH THE IMPORTANCE OF REMAINING AT YOUR VETS OFFICE FOR AT LEAST 30 - 60 MINUTES AFTER INJECTION, IN CASE YOUR FERRET HAS A REACTION

All states have laws requiring rabies vaccinations.

Is there anything wrong with the re-introduction of the ferret trouser contest?

Well it's hardly 'Animal Welfare Groups Hopping Mad', it's only this James McKay of the National Ferret School who seems to want the monopoly on ferret related activities. He races them through pipes for goodness sake.

Incidentally by drawing attention to this the Telegraph have completely blown their April Fools day spoof about ferrets laying underground cables, they actually did it in the USA, the ferrets layed cables through underground pipes with cameras on them to check the welding of the pipes.

Torygraph can't even come up with an original April Fool's story.......