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Small Mammals + Cancer & Tumors

  • Common conditions of pet ferrets include diarrhoea, intestinal foreign bodies, parasites, heart disease, and various kinds of cancer.

  • Common conditions of pet rodents include respiratory diseases, anorexia and lethargy, overgrown teeth, and tumours.

  • Common conditions of pet rabbits include snuffles, gut stasis, abnormal caecotrophs, parasites, dental disease, uterine cancer, and sore hocks.

  • A mouse's lifespan is only 18-36 months so ageing changes and natural fatal conditions such as tumours are fairly common.

  • A rat's lifespan is only 18-48 months so ageing changes and natural fatal conditions such as tumours are fairly common.

  • Adrenal disease describes tumours or hypertrophy (excess growth) of the adrenal gland(s). Tumours may be benign (adenoma) or malignant (adenocarcinoma).

  • The main skin diseases in ferrets are associated with parasites - fleas, mites and ticks - with bacterial skin disease and tumours such as mast cell tumours.

  • As with any animal ferrets can suffer from a wide range of tumours from benign cancers of the skin to aggressive malignant tumours of internal organs.