If you are a ferret owner, you will be quite aware of the ferret eye problems that concern you. The unfortunate ferret is not blessed with good eyesight, which is why its senses of smell are so highly developed. Also, due to poor eyesight, they are often prone to many kinds of eye complications and problems.
Ferrets are curious and playful by nature and their active nature is prone to accidents to their eyes, the most sensitive of all their organs. Fighting with cats or a strong blow can cause damage to their eyes. Even a surge of emotion can cause their eyes to bulge and blind them.
I would advise keeping your ferret safely in a place where there is less chance of head injuries and accidents. However, ocular complications in ferrets can be inherent where if the mother had cataracts or glaucoma, she will find the presence of it in the ferret pup. So it may be a case of diabetes causing the disabilities. When diagnosis is quite impossible, the ferret can lose sight or even die within a short time.
Another disease that attacks the majority of ferrets is retinal atrophy, which is a progressive complication of the ferret eye type. The eyes lose moisture and harden and dilate with age. This is a slow killer as the eyes lose sight or visibility over a period of time. It occurs when the pet is deficient in an amino acid substance called taurine.
When there is injury or trauma to your ferret, uveitis is another infection that the pet is susceptible to. However, it is curable and treatment requires the application of an anti-inflammatory ointment such as cortisone. If left untreated, it can cause painful destruction of the retina and subsequent blindness.
Sometimes a tumor behind the eyeballs can cause lymphoma (where the eyes bulge out) or lymphosarcoma. If diagnosed, the ferret must be treated with chemotherapy. Such lymphoma is then treated with surgery and is known as retrobulbar lymphoma.
It is important to carry out periodic controls on your pet to avoid the progression of any of these diseases. It is advisable to take the pet to an experienced and established veterinarian for a periodic examination to prevent the ferret from becoming afflicted with minor or major eye ailments.
