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Heatstroke in FerretsAs ferrets have poorly developed sweat glands, they are very susceptible to high temperatures. Never leave your ferret caged in the car with the windows up during the warmer months. Ferrets which are suffering from heat stress will begin to pant with their mouths open. Should they become hotter still, they could develop heatstroke. Symptoms include:
If left untreated, the ferret could go into shock or, worse still, fall into a coma. If you see your ferret looking like it is suffering from any of the above signs, make sure you move it to a cool location and get the temperature down gently with cool water. Do not use cold water as it might make the temperature drop down too quickly. Get your ferret to the vet as soon as possible. If your ferret is caged indoors and the temperature begins to climb, put a fan near (but not close) to the cage to keep the ferret cool. If your ferret is kept in an outdoor cage and you are concerned about the weather being warm, you could put water in 2L soft drink bottles, freeze and wrap them securely, then place them in your ferret’s cage. You could also look at fixing up a sprinkler system which just lets a very fine spray out over the cage. It could be set up with a timer switch so that it comes on once every hour or so for about 10 minutes, just to keep the ferret cool.
There's a very informative article about heatstroke in ferrets at the PetEducation website. DISCLAIMER: The information contained on this page is not meant to replace seeing a veterinarian if you think your ferret is ill. It’s only meant to supply general information on a particular illness which was obtained either from personal experience with my sick ferrets, or from books and/or the Internet. Return from Heatstroke in Ferrets to All About Ferrets
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