From:
Dia Garland
Date: 2002-08-21 23:06:47 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] mites
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-Id: <5.1.1.6.0.20020821180330.009fad10@gpcom.net>
>Could the orange substance be waxy sebaceous gland secretions? Ferrets
>normally produce a waxy substance from glands in their skin that contribute
>to their musky odor. In ferrets with adrenal gland disease we sometimes see
>an increase in these waxy secretions and musky odor as the sebaceous glands
>must be partially under the influence of adrenal hormones.
>I have never seen such mites on a ferret and it would be very unusual if
>mites were the case here.
>Marc Kramer, DVM
I'm not sure. Why would all three suddenly develop these secretions? It
has been unusually hot here this summer. Could that have caused it? One
of the ferrets has already had surgery for adrenal glad disease, but the
other two have not shown any signs of it. I would suspect that for both to
develop it almost simultaneously would be odd, but I could be wrong. When
I bathed the youngest today I noticed that his fur was thinning some, but
again, that could be due to the extreme heat we have had.
Dia Garland