From:
Debi Christy
Date: 2001-11-08 12:58:00 UTC
Subject: Re: New hair growth
... and in the interim put him on melatonin. We were really
astounded that in just about 2 weeks he was growing his fur
back! ... ... I guess my question is.....now what?
Unfortunatly, re-growth of hair doesn't mean the problem is gone. It
only means he's had a coat change and the new hair hasn't fallen out
yet. We've seen some that would get a new coat, then lose fur in a
different area, even. The adrenal tumor is still there.
The only thing that gets it out is surgery. We have seen cases where
Lysodren has reduced the size of adrenal tissue left from a bilateral
adrenal surgery, though. However, Lysodren does not work that well
with all cases and should be used with extreme caution in cases with
concurrent insulinoma. Lupron helps with some adrenal symptoms and
can be used with Lysodren.
Melatonin may help, but, as with Lysodren and Lupron, I would not
rely on it as a cure.
The complications caused by untreated adrenal tumors are much, much
worse and more life threatening than the tumor itself. It's always
best (with good surgical candidates) to go ahead and do the surgery
while the ferret is healthy.
Debi Christy
Ferrets First Foster Home
http://www.geocities.com/ferretsfirst