My ferret has a swollen genital area, is she in heat or could this be an infection?

Question

I have 2 ferrets, both un-desexed, male (seth) and female (summer), i noticed this morning that summer had a very pink swollen genital area, i am hoping she is just in heat, will the swelling go down once seth mates with her and she becomes pregnant? i will take her to the vet however i would like some other ferret owner's opinions. thanx

Answer 1

It could be an infection or she may be coming in heat:

Female ferrets are polyestrous, meaning they usually come into heat more than once a year. For rhose down under, that means they usually come into season around September and again in December. For those in the northern hemisphere, that’s around March and August. But like anything, it’s not a hard and fast rule.

Intact female ferrets must be mated, spayed or given the hormone injection to take them out of season otherwise they are very likely to die.  Hob in rut! Their hair gets very greasy and they smell and they piddle and drag their stomachs through the piddle puddle, marking their territory, and they also get really aggressive with other males so have to be kept on their own.

When the female goes into season, her v***a pops out and looks like a garbanzo (chickpea).

When this happens, wait for 14 days before putting her with the hob. If the jill isn’t ready, she won’t take kindly to having a bully grab her by the scruff so will fight and it could end up with her getting hurt.

Most breeders feel it is better for the jill to be brought to the male’s territory for the union to take place.

When put together, the male (the hob) will aggressively grab the female (the jill) by the scruff of her neck and drag her around the cage, mounting her several times, and even causing the jill to scream with pain. At least it certainly looks like it’s pain! Even if the jill goes limp and allows herself to be dragged around, it’s still a very distressing sight for the jill’s owner!! It’s almost like you’re waiting for the hob to bring out his wooden club!

Tip – don’t watch! Just let the two of them get on with it.Incredibly, this whole drama is essential for ovulation to occur. The hob has a j-shaped "p***s bone" and once he is locked into the jill, there is no way you'll separate them without causing damage. (So don't try)

The whole process can take several hours to complete and once finished, the pair will usually stop to clean themselves up and eat and drink before the hob starts on the female again.

If you want to be sure that your jill has conceived, leave her with the male for a whole day. That should be sufficient time for pregnancy to take place.

Once finished and the pair have been separated, make sure you inspect the jill’s neck to make sure there aren’t any deep punctures which need attention and also check that there are no signs of vaginal infection in the days following the mating.

The v***a will usually start to decrease in a week, sometimes two. If the v***a has not gone down within 14 days, the jill will have to be taken back to the hob for another session. Lucky girl…

Glad to hear she has a Dr appt.