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Welcome to our series on Common Ferret Illnesses, and specifically our deep-dive into ferrets suffering from Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis. In this article, you will learn what causes it, the most common symptoms, and which ferrets are most at risk. We will also provide an overview on what steps you will want to take to help your ferret recover.
What is Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis?
Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (what a mouthful!) is caused by your ferret’s cells releasing something called a histamine to attack what they perceive is a foreign body. Think of it like this: It’s the same way your skin might swell if you get stung by a bee. It’s like an allergic reaction. This illness is most commonly found in the intestinal tract -however, it can also affect the liver, abdominal lymph nodes, pancreas, and skin.
Note: More and more veterinarians believe this illness is caused by an allergy to your ferret’s food. We recommend using a more nutritionally accurate food like Wysong FDR
Symptoms:
Weight loss
Severe diarrhea
Loss of appetite
Swollen ears (severe cases)
Skin sores (severe cases)
Painful belly (severe cases)
Most at Risk:
Ferrets of all ages can suffer from this illness.
How Do You Treat Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis?
The best way to treat this illness is to recognize it early and take your ferret to the vet. After they provide medical care, some vets recommend you switch to a ‘hypoallergenic diet’ without common allergens (chicken, egg, wheat, grains).
I believe my boy has this. The vet wants to do biopsies, but he is 7! No way and he is already so fragile. He went from looking super healthy in January to skin and bones now. For a year and a half, all the vets kept saying he has an ulcer but he has all the symptoms of this. Going to try a food change to lamb. He has eaten rabbit for a long time along with his kibble so I don’t know which one would have caused this.
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Your Ferret May Have Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis
Welcome to our series on Common Ferret Illnesses, and specifically our deep-dive into ferrets suffering from Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis. In this article, you will learn what causes it, the most common symptoms, and which ferrets are most at risk. We will also provide an overview on what steps you will want to take to help your ferret recover.
What is Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis?
Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (what a mouthful!) is caused by your ferret’s cells releasing something called a histamine to attack what they perceive is a foreign body. Think of it like this: It’s the same way your skin might swell if you get stung by a bee. It’s like an allergic reaction. This illness is most commonly found in the intestinal tract -however, it can also affect the liver, abdominal lymph nodes, pancreas, and skin.
Note: More and more veterinarians believe this illness is caused by an allergy to your ferret’s food. We recommend using a more nutritionally accurate food like Wysong FDR
Symptoms:
Most at Risk:
Ferrets of all ages can suffer from this illness.
How Do You Treat Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis?
The best way to treat this illness is to recognize it early and take your ferret to the vet. After they provide medical care, some vets recommend you switch to a ‘hypoallergenic diet’ without common allergens (chicken, egg, wheat, grains).
3 replies to “Your Ferret May Have Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis”
Tory
Did moose have this?
Haley
Moose had something else relating to his GI tract, called ‘Helicobacter’. Here is a link to that: https://www.themodernferret.com/helicobacter-in-ferrets/
Rachel
I believe my boy has this. The vet wants to do biopsies, but he is 7! No way and he is already so fragile. He went from looking super healthy in January to skin and bones now. For a year and a half, all the vets kept saying he has an ulcer but he has all the symptoms of this. Going to try a food change to lamb. He has eaten rabbit for a long time along with his kibble so I don’t know which one would have caused this.
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