# Ferret - Spaying & Neutering?



## GazEmm

Picking up 2 ferrets in a couple of weeks and have 2 simple questions on the above...firstly, at what age should the above be done and also how much have people paid for each? thanks, gary.


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## BassFerret

Get them both done in about December - you'll catch him before he gets the 'spring stinkies' and her before the reproductive system starts to power up! You could leave her until late January, but I wouldn't recommend it any later - her uterus will be preparing itself for her season and she stands a greater risk of bleeding to death.

As for cost, price varies so much between different practices and parts of the country that your best bet is to call round a series of surgeries in your area and ask what they charge.

Hope this helps!


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## PendleHog

Personally when keeping male/female pairs together I prefer to just vasectomise the hob. This prevents all the problems associated with oestrus in the female as the male will still service her without it resulting in kits. 
Of course if you are neutering him to reduce the smell and other associated male behaviours a vasectomy is no good!


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## saxon

I've paid anywhere from £15-£45 for castration and Between £20-£60 for female spay. I paid £45 for one of the hobs vasectomised.
I would shop around it is amazing how much the costs vary. Also ask for the male to be castrated as would be done for cats. This is a lot better for the ferret.

If they are to be pets then I would neuter both as this helps with the smell, although doesn't eradicate it altogether, Only if there are a number of Jills would I use a vasectomised hob as vasectomy's don't alter the musk of the ferrets.

I no longer have ferrets as my last one died in March, he was 12yrs old, but when I was involved in the ferret rescue in my area I have upwards of 50 at any one time.


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## GazEmm

Cheers for the replies...although i should have mentioned that i dont yet know what sexes we will be getting, i asked for both so i was covered no matter what sex they are.

While im here mind are there preferences to what sexes can be kept together ie. 2 females, 1 male 1 female etc? or is this just personal choise??

They are both going to be from the same litter so indroductions should be easy :lol2:

P.S. Just so ive got this straight then before i phone around...Jill is easy, get her spayed and then the male should be castrated right??

Thanks again.


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## Robbie

It's far easier and economical to have the male vasectomised. 
I may have looked over it but you have not mentioned the age of yuur ferrets. In my experience I would wait a year (from birth offcourse) before having a jill go under any surgery. Need to remember that although anesthetics have gone a long way in a few years, ferrets seem to cope fairly poorly under them. Its not uncommon for a ferret to die whilst under.
Also, there are problems with animals who have undergone surgery in season. I've never had such problems myself but I've been led to believe from trustworthy contacts.


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## saxon

I've had upwards of 50-60 ferrets neutered and although I've had friends lose ferrets under aneasthetic I've never lost one when castrated or spayed as a cat. Also aneasthtising as a cat and not a dog.
I only use vets that are aware of the problems that can be encountered with ferrets and the like.
My friend even had her meerkat neutered and had no problems.
Vasectomising is only a good idea if you have a number of jills, maybe in rescue etc, and need a hob to take them out of eosterus. A vasectomised hob acts exactly like an entire hob.
I used to use a vasectomised hob to bring the rescue jills out of season then get them spayed asap. It is not advisable to have them spayed during a season but unless there is a vasectomised hob to bring them out then the season itself can cause problems. A Jill will not come out of season unless mated she will remain in season until around October time, unless she gets septiceamia before that and dies. There are some that have never been bred or spayed and they seem to suffer no adverse effects but this the exception to the rule.
It is quite safe to spay a female ferret the winter after her birth (providing she is 5months+). She should be spayed before the end of February. If you wait any longer she will come into season around March and will have to either have a litter or be visited by a vasectomised hob.

As for keeping ferrets together.
If you have two male siblings they will normally be fine as long as there are no females to fight over, although sometimes one may bully the other, likewise for females.
If bought as pets then I would advise taking hobs and having both castrated as they are a bit bigger and can manage the rough and tumble that kids sometimes inflict on them. Jills are 'usually' quite a bit smaller than hobs and a lot more fragile.
I had a mature female that weighed only 250grms and was only 9 inches from tip of nose to the tip of her tail.

My little girl is the one on the left she was 7 yrs old in the pic. The one on the right is an average sized, 5month old, silver hob. Just to show the difference that be apparent.


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## BassFerret

robnissmith said:


> In my experience I would wait a year (from birth offcourse) before having a jill go under any surgery. Need to remember that although anesthetics have gone a long way in a few years, ferrets seem to cope fairly poorly under them. Its not uncommon for a ferret to die whilst under.


I don't know what vet you're using, but if it's 'not uncommon' for them to lose ferrets due to complications with anaesthesia then I would suggest a change.

The practice I work for neuters probably fifty ferrets a year - and thus far we've never lost one. And neither have we ever lost one in for emergency surgery - one of my own had adrenal tumours removed, and he flew through. 

If your practice is tight fisted enough to be still using halothane, then perhaps that's your problem - as long as an effective gaseous anaesthetic is used (isoflourane or sevoflourane) is used and the vets and nurses have experience with ferrets you are very unlikely to have a problem.

The reason I suggested the first winter - December, which puts a lot of kits at six months - is because the reproductive systems are mature enough to remove, and the young ferrets are strong enough to bounce back very quickly from the surgery.

Yes, if you intend to breed from your jill at some point then a vasectomised hob is a great idea - but if you just want a pet, then go for a full neuter. Plus it does make a difference to the smell - I would hate to have an entire hob in the house in the spring!

Sorry if I've come across a little fierce, but to see a post like this when there are a lot of us in the veterinary business trying to make things better for the ferret is a bit depressing.

Good luck with your ferrets, whatever you decide!


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## Robbie

I've never had any of my own die in surgery. I've heard of some though. Perhaps it is a rural thing.
No idea what compounds they use either.


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## saxon

bassferret,

A vasectomised hob is a great benefit in ferret rescue also. As I said we used to use the vasectomised hob to bring the jills out of season so we could spay asap. Obviously most of the jills were either pregnant already or in poor health due to extended seasons so we would have them spayed as soon as they were well enough and out of season.

Gaz,

Here's a good forum I used to visit when I had my ferrets.

Mercia Ferret Welfare (Powered by Invision Power Board)


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## GazEmm

Thanks for all the replies, been a great help!!

Will get pics up as soon as i pick them up and let them settle


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