Oriental Color Mink is primarily milk white and brown, with white, light white, and bright white body fur. The boundaries of the leg, tail, and body colors are relatively clear, with the leg and tail being light (dark) brown. Stray hairs are allowed on the back.
An Angora pet mink, like a cat, is clean and likes to curl up to sleep. It is intelligent and clever. At the same time, it is close to people like a dog and likes to follow the owner around. Especially, it is curious about everything, not afraid or depressed, and full of exploration spirit, adding infinite joy to the owner's life. Like cats and dogs, minks can accompany their owners for more than ten years. Generally, the lifespan of a mink is between 8 and 12 years. Young minks are playful and active. After the age of 5, they will become more calm. But even when they are calm, they still like to play with their owners and seek more love from them. They will crawl onto your lap while you're watching TV, allowing you to stroke their bellies as they fall into a deep sleep.
Oriental Angora Minks are pets that are originally from Denmark and are now commonly seen in China. The most distinctive characteristic of Oriental Angora Minks is their curiosity and cheerful personality, as they enjoy playing with people. Because of their endless curiosity and adventurous spirit, they are always on the move and often explore new things by crawling into furniture or hiding underneath it. They collect anything they like and hide it in secret places. They also establish their own territory and are affectionate, playful, and intelligent, making it easy for them to bond with humans. They always want to accompany their owners on outings, so they can be taken for walks just like dogs by putting them in a harness or taking them outside in a cage.
The domestication of pet minks began over two hundred years ago. However, as far back as 3000 BC, domesticated minks were already seen in Egypt, where they were raised alongside European Persian cats. Later, during the Crusades in the 11th century, minks were brought to Europe as a species of practical value. In the 16th century, minks were shipped from Europe to the United States to control the growth of rodent populations. They were released from their cages to chase and capture field mice.
Today, minks have become the third most popular pet after dogs and cats. In particular, mink keeping has become a fashionable trend in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Currently, there are over 8 million mink owners in the United States alone, and minks have not only their own clubs but also regular "Olympic Games" for pet minks.
It is recommended to raise the small pet-loving crowd. They are smart and lively, with a playful and curious nature. They have an elegant and slender body and curl up when they sleep, which is very cute.
Maintenance Tips: Regularly trim the nails, bathe, clean the ears and brush the teeth of pet ferrets. Do not feed them raw meat or foods such as biscuits or chocolate. Pay attention to preventing heatstroke in the summer.
Infectious Diseases
1. Canine Distemper
Ferrets are highly susceptible to canine distemper virus (CDV) and can be infected through various routes.
Canine distemper has four common symptoms:
1) Respiratory type: manifested as dry nose, chapping, purulent nasal discharge, occasional scratching of the nose, purulent secretion from the eyes, severe cases can lead to eyelid fusion, occasional coughing and dry cough.
2) Digestive type: decreased appetite, vomiting, dehydration and weight loss, passing loose stools or bloody stools with mucus.
3) Neurological type: affected ferrets suddenly fall down and convulse, displaying symptoms similar to epilepsy (i.e. motor epilepsy), foaming at the mouth, limb movements, lasting for several minutes to more than ten minutes, then regain consciousness, stand up, and appear confused.
4) Dermatological type: thickening and hardening of foot pads, sometimes cracking.
Prevention and treatment:
Administer CDV vaccine on time, avoid contact with dogs and cats infected with canine distemper.
If symptoms of canine distemper appear, timely detection using detection kits is necessary. Once confirmed with canine distemper infection, early administration of high-dose canine distemper serum is recommended. Due to the small size and narrow blood vessels of ferrets, it is relatively difficult to administer intravenous fluids. In cases of dehydration, subcutaneous injection of 5-10ml of physiological saline on both sides of the abdominal fur is recommended until rehydration is achieved. If diarrhea occurs, it should be treated with antibiotics (such as enrofloxacin, ceftriaxone sodium, or penicillin-streptomycin combination), and supplement vitamin C to prevent complications.
If severe dehydration, difficulty breathing, frequent and prolonged convulsions, or worsening condition occurs, it is generally difficult to cure.
2. Parvovirus Infection
Caused by parvovirus, it is most susceptible in canine and mustelid species, manifested as enteritis and myocarditis.
This disease is more common in winter and spring and can be triggered by improper feeding or sudden changes in temperature. The main route of transmission is through the digestive system.
Symptoms: 1) Enteritis type: initially loss of appetite, rapidly progressing to frequent vomiting and severe diarrhea, with foul-smelling stool resembling soy sauce or tomato juice (caused by intestinal hemorrhagic lesions), followed by sunken eyeballs, loss of skin elasticity, coarse and disheveled fur, dehydration symptoms. The ferret's body temperature drops, ears and nose become cold, spirits become depressed, eventually leading to shock and death.
2) Myocarditis type: rare, mostly seen in the early stage of an outbreak or after recovery from enteritis type. Symptoms include groaning, dry cough, cyanosis of the mucous membranes, extreme difficulty breathing, rapid heartbeat, and often lead to death within a few hours.
Prevention and treatment: This disease relies mainly on immunization to prevent infection. Due to the rapid deterioration after infection, many cases result in death before treatment can be provided. Therefore, it is important to carry out vaccine immunization on a regular basis, regularly injecting CPV fire extinguishing vaccine, and avoiding contact with infected dogs and cats.
In the early stage, injection of canine parvovirus monoclonal antibodies or canine parvovirus antisera, as well as the use of sugar salt solution (to increase strength), hemostatic agents, vitamin K1, and vitamin K3 (for blood clotting), Gaofu'an and Huoxiang Zhengqi water (for antiemetic), gentamicin, kanamycin, and sulfonamide drugs for symptomatic treatment are recommended.
Immunization
Mainly immunize against canine distemper, parvovirus, and rabies.
It is recommended to vaccinate with InterVet's dual vaccine once per ferret per year, and administer Meria or Revac rabies vaccine once per ferret per year.
Oriental Color Angora Ferrets are sociable animals. Although they like to be close to humans, they prefer to play with their companions. As long as there is enough space, there is no problem in keeping multiple ferrets together. Keeping a ferret alone for a long time or reducing its activities can cause it to become inactive and overweight, and even sick. Therefore, don't keep the ferret in a cage all the time. Let the ferret come out and play regularly. Because of their lively and active nature, there are various pet ferret toys available on the market to keep them entertained.
The digestive system of ferrets is completely different from that of cats and dogs. Their digestive tract is very short. For this reason, owners should not feed them cat or dog food for a long time. Ferrets are carnivores, and meat should account for more than 90% of their diet. The meat must be fresh and not spoiled. Because of people's love for ferrets, specially formulated ferret food has been developed, which not only ensures the nutrients necessary for their physical development but also meets their appetite. In addition, providing them with clean water to drink at any time is also crucial and should not be overlooked.
Because ferrets have been domesticated by humans for a long time, they have lost the ability to survive in the wild. As responsible owners, we should keep them indoors and prepare for the fact that they can't dig any holes. Because these little guys are experts at tunneling and they are eager to explore long and narrow passages. However, sometimes we cannot determine whether there are dangers on the other side of the passage or whether it leads outdoors. For safety reasons, we still seal the entrance of the hole and give them some tube-shaped toys, which will make them equally happy.
The ancestors of ferrets originally lived in underground caves in cooler climates, so they cannot tolerate hot and humid environments. Even today, they are still sensitive to heat. Generally, 25 degrees Celsius is a comfortable temperature for them, and the maximum temperature should not exceed 30 degrees Celsius. High temperatures can cause heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and even death. Owners should try to avoid placing the ferret's cage or nest near exhaust vents or in direct sunlight. They should also not be placed near air conditioners or heaters. For ferrets, the appropriate humidity should be maintained between 50% and 70%. In most areas of the country, the humidity is within this range, so it is not a problem for ferrets with strong vitality.
Ferrets should receive immunizations between 8 and 12 weeks after birth. According to national regulations and animal protection principles, ferrets should be vaccinated against rabies at least. If you want your ferret to be healthier, it is also a good practice to vaccinate them against canine distemper and canine infectious hepatitis. After that, regular vaccinations should be given every year to ensure the ferret's immune level.
1. Angora minks can eat ferret food. It is best for the owner to bathe it once a week, clean its ears every half month, and promptly clean its excrement every day. In order to ensure the health of the Angora mink, it needs to be regularly taken to the veterinarian for parasite checks, receive vaccinations for canine distemper and rabies, and also pay attention to preventing heartworm disease. Angora minks are afraid of heat, so be careful to prevent heat stroke in the summer.
2. Angora pet minks will molt in spring and autumn. They should be fed pet mink hairball paste during their molting period, with a length of 1 centimeter per feeding.
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