From:
"Joanne D'Amico"
Date: 2004-08-26 22:45:10 UTC
Subject: RE: Desperately seeking advice
To: "Ferret Health Digest" <ferrethealth@smartgroups.com>
Message-ID: <002801c48bbe$57c98c10$230110ac@OFFICE>
This is a bit of a long shot, but my favorite ferret, Dooker was like that =
at that age. Severe biter, bit to the bone - then looked like "why did I do=
that?". Gorgeous thick coat of fur, huge tail ... we finally noticed matin=
g behavior and had the vet send off a Tennessee panel - his testosterone wa=
s 2.5 times the upper limit for an unaltered male .... he had adrenal surge=
ry, had tumors on both adrenals. He lived for several years after that, and=
after 2-3 months, when the hormone level died down, he became the sweetest=
smartest, most lovable ferret I ever had.
Most adrenal tumors produce estrogen, which causes thinning of the fur, but=
testosterone does not - gives them a lush, full coat. It's been several ye=
ars, and Dooker is gone now, and I recently acquired another little fellow =
who exhibits the same signs - my usual methods of teaching them not to nip/=
bite (bitter apple, rewards for stopping when told "no bite", time outs) ha=
ve been unsuccessful, and despite the heat here in So. Florida, he has the =
most amazing thick coat ... so we are awaiting the results of a Tennessee p=
anel on him, before deciding what to try next ....