Ferret Interleukin-8 (IL-8), also known as CXCL8, is a potent pro-inflammatory chemokine that plays a central role in innate immune responses in ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) by mediating neutrophil chemotaxis, activation, and recruitment to sites of infection or tissue injury. Produced by respiratory epithelial cells, macrophages, and endothelial cells in response to viral and bacterial stimuli, ferret IL-8 signals through CXCR1 and CXCR2 receptors to promote neutrophil migration and amplification of local inflammatory responses. IL-8 is strongly upregulated during respiratory infections such as influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2, where increased expression correlates with lung inflammation, airway pathology, and disease severity. Because ferrets are widely used as translational models for human respiratory diseases—including influenza, COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and other airborne pathogens—characterization of IL-8 is critical for understanding neutrophil-driven immunopathology, cytokine and chemokine cascades, and host responses to vaccination or antiviral therapies. As both a biomarker and functional mediator of inflammation, ferret IL-8 supports studies of viral transmission, airway immune responses, and therapeutic modulation of excessive inflammatory signaling relevant to human respiratory disease research.