From:
Sukie Crandall
Date: 2010-02-19 20:28:14 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] abstracts
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
As has been noted in other species: early aging can have genetic=20
causes,
and those of us who have been in the ferret world for decades (almost 30
years in my case) will recall that there were far fewer fancy ferrets=20
and they
got many of the standard ferret illnesses at lower rates and older=20
ages when
they did get them, also ferrets just plain did not seem at all elderly=20
back then
usually until they were in the second half of their 6th year or --=20
more commonly --
older. It was not unusual to run into ferrets who were over 9 years=20
of age.
The problem with genetics is that once you increase the proportion of=20
genetic
variations in a population it is hard to remove them because they can=20
also
remain hidden in single copies or in unexpressed/slightly expressed=20
copies.
There are many breeds of dogs with premature aging just as some of the=20
ferret
lines are having, ditto many other types of animals. All are from=20
breeding for
appearances rather than for health, longevity, and behavior.
So, who is willing to breed for health, longevity and behavior instead=20
and to keep
verifiable records (veterinary) of the vast majority of the offspring=20
to try to
correct such horrid impositions?
On Feb 19, 2010, at 2:34 PM, Sukie Crandall wrote:
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20159545
> > Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract. 2010 Jan;13(1):107-122.
> > The Senior Ferret (Mustela Putorius Furo). Hoppes SM. Department of
> > Veterinary Small Animal Sciences, Texas A&M University, College of
> > Veterinary Medicine, 4474 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-4474, USA.
> > Ferrets are an increasingly popular pet in the United States. They
> > are active, gregarious pets that delight their owners with playful
> > antics. One of the issues that ferret owners and veterinarians have
> > had to deal with is their shortened life span. Although literature
> > cites the life span of the ferret as 8 to 10 years, most
> > veterinarians see ferrets as "old" at as early as 3 years of age.
> > Most information on senior ferrets has focused on neoplastic
> > diseases. This article discusses husbandry and nutritional issues of
> > the aging ferret, more commonly seen geriatric diseases, and
> > diagnostic and treatment options.
> > Copyright =A9 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. PMID: 20159545
> > [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
>
Sukie (not a vet)
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/
http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
all ferret topics:
http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html
HAPPY: http://www.6footsix.com/my_weblog/2010/01/high-fives-for-happiness.=
html
"All hail the procrastinators for they shall rule the world tomorrow."
(2010, Steve Crandall)
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