Q: I have a 1 year old male ferret and ive noticed today that in his litter box he had tons of little white worms. Could fly maggots have grown on the poop (from sitting there too long) or do you think the worms are inside him? If they are in him, what did he get them from & how much would it be for the vet to treat him?
Answer: Ferrets get worms from eating raw, infected meat, from coming in contact with the stool of an infected animal, fleas or other intermediate hosts, or from the larva of a parasitic worm burrowing through their skin.
Here is a old school remedy for worms: Take a U.S. penny and a file shave off some fillings off of it (just a very small amount is needed.) Add these copper shavings to his/her food for the next week. The worms can’t stand the reaction of stomach acid and the copper and will evacuate the ferret.
Signs of Worms in Ferrets
Some symptoms that your ferret might have worms:
- dry, brittle fur
- bloating; ferrets that have worms appear to be skinny, but bloated around the middle.
- weakness or lethargy
- itchy butt
- diarrhea, mucousy or bloody poops; in severe cases, you’ll be able to see worms in the poop
- increased appetite with weight loss
- increased gas
- tender belly
In your ferret’s bowel movements, you may notice that there are specks of white string-like “somethings” in them. If there are no worm eggs (small white specks about 1mm long) signs in his poop or on his butt, then it’s probably not worms.
If he’s not licking his butt furiously, or not wiping it across the floor, i wouldn’t worry about it. If you notice him doing any of that, than a vet visit might be good, but until then, i wouldn’t worry about it.
Bloody Stool in Ferrets
If you are seeing RED Blood in the poop the bleeding is in the later half of the digestive tract (after the stomach) which means Serious Infections are possible as the tear/laceration is in the intestines.
This means all that poop is exposed to the blood stream allowing infection to spread rapidly. Black Tarry poop is a sign of digested blood which means the laceration is in or before the stomach, BOTH are serious BOTH need VET attention.
Prevent Hearworm in Ferrets
Heart worm is fatal in ferrets because it can’t be detected soon enough and surgery isn’t an option. Using a preventative is the only way to care for heartworm in ferrets along with not taking them outdoors.
If you do take them outside just try to avoid areas where pet’s treval a lot. The less exposure an outdoor area has had to cat’s and dog’s the least likely it is that your ferret would get exposed.
Prevent Worm Re-Infection
Thoroughly clean your ferret’s cage with a bleach and water solution. This should get rid of any chances of them getting re-infected.
Do your litter pans too but be prepared for them to miss the litter pans for a while cause you had to rid the pans of the lingering poo scent. I’d also wash their bedding ie: hammocks and cuddle beds if you use them.
What Do Ferret Worms Look Like?
Ferret parasites include heart worms, flukes, tapeworms … but you will not see a bunch of live ones in the poop unless your ferret is half dead. These are the differences in appearance of intestinal worms:
- If they are very tiny and active they are probably fruit fly maggots. Have you noticed those bitty fruit flies around the cage and maybe in the kitchen? Fly eggs can take a few days to hatch! (housefly larvae only take a day tho)
- If the worms look like rice and hardly moving, if at all, they are tapeworms. They need to be treated with cestoved, get it from a vet
- If they look like spaghetti they are heartworms or roundworms, treated with strongid, get it from a feed store.
- If they look like tiny “seeds” in the stool, they could be fluke eggs.
Vet Treatment
Ferrets are very unlikely to get intestinal worms because they are almost exclusively inside pets. The only way a ferret should be able to get worms is if it is A) kept outside (which is a big no-no) or B) taken out for a walk.
If you’re not sure if your ferret does have worms or not, just take a sample of poop to your vet, he/she can easily check for them. Make sure you grab more than one pile of poop.
If there are worms, they might not show up in every pile. The vet will test it and give you de-worming pills or liquid antibiotic medicine to treat it if there is need, like a dog or cat. It shouldn’t be very expensive as it’s a very common problem!