The AVA Annual Conference is the nation’s premier veterinary event, covering all fields of veterinary science and in 2017 brought together over 920 veterinary professionals and 115 exhibitors.
This is the story of denial, disbelief, acceptance and action. The players are an unsuspecting vet, a devoted, self-funded ferret rescuer and a cast of 57 unvaccinated ferrets, either homeless and rescued or owned and boarding (timing was just before Easter). These ferrets had been potentially exposed to the highly contagious and deadly Canine Distemper Virus in an environment that could allow rapid spread. Action had to be fast and decisive and included a site visit, immediate quarantine of infected ferrets and individual cages within the facility, stopping ferret traffic in and out of the facility indefinitely, protocols for daily cleaning and disinfection, vaccination of the population, targeted and preventative treatments of individual ferrets. This was achieved within 36 hours and we were able to save 50 ferrets. The facility has remained Canine Distemper Virus free for 18 months.
