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Category: Exotic
Epizootic catarrhal enteritis
Green slime disease, green diarrhea disease
AffectedAnimals:
Ferrets.
Overview:
There are not many infectious causes of gastrointestinal disease in pet ferrets. However, epizootic catarrhal enteritis, or ECE, has become common in certain areas of the United States since 1993. Because ECE has appeared so recently, very little information has been published about the illness, which is sometimes called "green slime disease" due to the green-colored diarrhea that infected animals often produce.
A highly infective disease, ECE spreads rapidly among a group of ferrets. Frequently, infection occurs when a new ferret carrying the disease is introduced into a group of ferrets. While the new ferret will appear healthy, within three days to two weeks the other ferrets in the group will become sick. Typically, the new ferret will have come from a pet store or a shelter where there is a high exposure to ferrets that may carry the infection.
The agent that causes ferret ECE, probably a virus, appears to be stable in the environment. Inadvertently, owners can carry this disease on their clothing or hands and bring it home to infect their pets. It is more common for older ferrets, those over the age of one year, to become ill from this condition; younger ferrets tend to be asymptomatic carriers.
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