Exotic Patient of the Week

This is Lenny! He’s a ferret, about 4 years old. It’s hard to tell in this photo, but Lenny has quite unusual coloring. He’s mostly white with hints of yellow around his neck and tail. He and his new brother, Waylon, have fun playing and getting into mischief. Lenny’s recent wellness blood work all… Read more

Annual Lupron injections for ferrets

You may already be aware that adrenal tumors are very common in ferrets. Many researchers believe that it is due to the close relationship between the ferret’s reproductive organs and the adrenal glands. Early neutering or spaying may result in a compensatory growth in the adrenal glands that… Read more

Care of Ferrets

Ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) are carnivores in the family Mustelidae, and are related to weasels, mink, badgers, and otters.  Male ferrets are called hobs, females are called jills, and babies are kits.  Breeding age is reached between the ages of 4 and 8 months of age, although most ferrets… Read more

Dental Disease in Ferrets

Maintaining good dental health is very important in the pet ferret. Lack of good oral hygiene leads to plaque and subsequent tartar, which can trap bacteria resulting in gingivitis (gum inflammation) and with time infection of the tooth roots and loss of teeth. Additionally, bacteria from an… Read more

Pet Insurance

Do yourself and your new puppy a favor by enrolling in pet insurance as soon as possible. Most companies won’t cover pre-existing conditions, so the best time to enroll is when your puppy is perfectly healthy! Pet insurance companies and options have expanded greatly in the past few years,… Read more

Medicating Exotic Pets

You may find yourself wondering, “How do I give my _______ (parrot, hamster, guinea pig, rabbit, hedgehog, etc.) medication?” Because we see so many exotics at Olathe Animal Hospital, we are faced with this question a lot. The answer lies in compounding! Compounding is the process of taking the… Read more

Prophy? What’s that?

A prophy is often called a “teeth cleaning,” but I’m afraid that description doesn’t quite do justice to what is included in a routine prophy. A better description is “periodontal therapy”, but even that may still leave you asking, “What?” During a prophy, the heavy layers of tartar and calculus… Read more