Distemper vaccination of farmed fur animals in Finland

Abstract The most important farmed fur animal species in Finland are the American mink ( Mustela vison ), blue fox ( Alopex lagopus ), silver fox ( Vulpes vulpes ) and raccoon dog ( Nyctereutes procyonoides ); all are susceptible to canine distemper. The only distemper vaccines currently available are for mink, although they also have been used for fox and raccoon dogs in emergency situations. The efficacy in eliciting neutralizing antibodies and the safety of three mink-distemper vaccines were studied under field conditions with mink and silver fox. Two of the vaccines were also studied with raccoon dogs and blue fox. All three vaccines elicited a satisfactory antibody response in mink, whereas the response varied in the other species. No side effects were observed in any species tested. One of the vaccines was safe and immunogenic in all four species.