A Ferret’s Life – Life Span, Common Ferret Diseases and Health Issues
Taking care of pets is much like being a parent. Some people think it’s weird to compare these two things. These are obviously the people who has never experienced the joy of taking care of such loving creatures.
As part of being a pet parent, you want to know the important things: what they want to eat, where they can play, what vaccines they need and why they get sick. And for ferrets, there are many diseases that they can get too.
The average life span of a ferret is at most t eight years. But of course, this depends on a number of things.
Now, I’m sure you’re interested to know what the most common diseases ferrets can get. That’s wise. As they say, prevention is always better than to cure.
Let’s start with Insulinoma.
This one has actually reached “epidemic proportions” with ferrets. Which means that it is a very common illness. So what is it?
Insulinoma is a cancer of the cells in a ferret’s pancreas.
Some of you might have first guessed this had something to do with insulin. Well, you’re right! Your little furry friends have extremely sensitive metabolism of blood sugar.
Obviously, this is a dietary problem. Too much carbohydrates can cause a ferret’s pancreas to produce higher levels of insulin. And this is their natural response to the high level of glucose or sugar in their blood stream.
Now, another thing you should be careful about is making sure that your ferrets stay hydrated. They need water a lot so make sure they have easy access to that. This goes with their food too.
You have to be sure that their food aren’t too dry. Many ferret owner even microwave or add a little water to their food to make them soft.
Another health issue you need to know is that ferrets are unable to digest fiber. So unless you want to scoop (if you can!) soft, running mucous bowels, well, be careful with the food you give them.