Page 120 - Zoo Animal Learning and Training

104 Tasks for the Veterinary Assistant

(a) (b)

FIGURE 6.14 Ferrets: (a) polecat color pattern and (b) albino. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Used under CC BY‐SA 3.0, https://commons.
wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coco_4074.JPG, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ferret_2008.png.
Pocket Pets (a)

The pocket pets that we see in the clinic include ferrets,
rats, mice, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, chinchillas,
and rabbits.

Ferrets
Ferrets are part of the weasel family and in certain states
they cannot be kept as pets. Female ferrets are induced
ovulaters and if not bred when they come into season
can become extremely sick. This is considered an
emergency and they should be seen immediately. Ferrets
come in two colors: natural or polecat and albino
(Figure 6.14).

Rats
Rats are used in research and kept as pets. The Long– (b)
Evans or hooded rat is the variety most people keep as
pets as they are usually gentle, highly intelligent, and
seem to appreciate companionship. They come in a
multitude of colors, thanks to manipulation by humans.
As rats age they can develop cancerous growths on
their bodies which some clients will ask to have
removed (Figure 6.15).

Mice
FIGURE 6.15 Hooded rat. Note the tumor on the hind quarter
Large numbers of mice are utilized in research every day. (b), you can barely make it out in (a). Source: https://commons.
There are numerous types of mice that have been devel- wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Twinkle_the_brown_hooded_rat.jpg,
oped to facilitate research; however, we will not be cov- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brown_hooded_rat_
ering those varieties of mice. There are mouse fanciers with_a_large_tumor.jpg. Public Domain.
in the world and because mice produce quickly and
often, their phenotypes have been manipulated. We now Gerbils
have a myriad of colors and hair coats; they call all these
mice “Fancy”! Unfortunately, mice don’t live very long so Native to the desert, gerbils are nocturnal, meaning they are
we don’t often see them in the clinic (Figure 6.16). active at night. They are voracious diggers and rearrangers