552 Journal of Small Animal Practice • Vol 52 • October 2011 • © 2011 British Small Animal Veterinary Association

BOOK REVIEW

BSAVA Manual of Rodents and Ferrets

Edited by Emma Keeble and Anna Meredith

Published by the BSAVA, 2009, paperback, 350 pages, Price £75.00 (BSAVA Members £49.00), ISBN-13: 978-1905319084

The BSAVA Manual of Rodents and Ferrets is an excellent addi-tion to the library of the veterinarian who sees small companion mammals in addition to dogs, cats, and rabbits. It is arranged in two sections, Ferrets and Rodents (hence the obvious choice of title), and each taxa is further arranged in chapters by field of study (e.g. biology and husbandry, diagnostic imaging, soft tissue sur-gery, etc.) or organ system (e.g. dermatoses, respiratory and car-diovascular system, ophthalmology, etc). Full colour illustrations are abundant and of generally high quality. There are many helpful tables, ranging from the essential biological data for a given species (e.g. weight, dentition, lifespan, etc.), algorithms of clinical signs and suggested tests and treatments, and taxa-specific formularies.

The downside is that some clinical signs are not listed in the index. For example, a bloody or blood-tinged vaginal (vulva) dis-charge is a common presenting complaint for many rodents, such as hamsters, rats and guinea pigs, and neither discharge, vagina, or vulva are in the index, and there is no table in the relevant chapter of clinical signs to help the reader narrow down the read-ing options within the chapter. Some topics, such as the one I just mentioned, are not covered in the depth I would hope. Many of the drug dosages are unattributed, even as to noting whether they are empirically- or pharmocokinetically-derived.

This Manual is a quick reference that is more logically arranged than many of the other relevant textbooks in my library, so much so that it is either the first or second book I search for when faced with a puzzling ferret or guinea pig case. My copy of the book is already becoming thumb worn from the times it has been refer-enced by the veterinarians, technicians and veterinary students.

Kevin Wright

Kevin received his DVM degree from the University of Florida. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Professionals specializing in Reptile and Amphibian Practice and is co-founder of the Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital, USA.

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