Re: The ways in which Kodo's martyrdom saved other ferrets by his
influence on a man who didn't want to destroy him but was bound by
certain hated laws that he would later work to change and therefore help
ferrets.  This is so BEAUTIFUL!  I'd like to send it on to others I know
because I know that even non-ferret people will want to enjoy what you
wrote.  May I, Mary?
 
>Is insulinoma inherited?  Our ferrets who were sisters got insulinoma.
>The third, unrelated, ferret does not have it so far at age 6.  Food and
>living conditions were/are the same for all.  However, the insulinomic
>ferrets came from a private breeder and were spayed late at several
>weeks while the third ferret was spayed early by Path Valley Farms.
 
One of the hopes that many of us had when ferret genetics lists were
begun was that breeders would keep health and longevity records which
could give insight (even though not final conclusions) into questions
like your's of whether genetics might influence susceptibility toward
getting insulinoma, if panda and blaze ferrets actually are more prone
to earlier getting health problems usually seen in old age and to dying
younger, etc.  There are a good number of such questions.  Sadly, the
information was not forth-coming and too few breeders still do not keep
such records.  Such records and sharing could be true opportunity for
learning more.
 
>>Anyone ever note that green and blue lights are especially bad for the
>>body's natural melatonin production and that the green lights that are
>>so omnipresent on electrical electrical equipment and night lights
>>arrived about 12 to 15 years ago?
 
>Hi Sukie ~
>
>You are such a deep thinker!
 
Gosh, no, Mary!  It is just something that was written by researchers
associated with one of the melatonin studies.  It's not my observation
at all and I shouldn't get credit for someone else's astuteness.  I did
the easy thing; I just happened to read it.
 
Melatonin is produced in the body during darkness, and in studies the
more complete the darkness the more melatonin is produced.  The fastest
way to up the body's own production of melatonin is to provide more
darkness.  Melatonin also interacts with some hormones and has properties
which seem to reduce malignancy rates for some hormonal related
malignancies.  This was first noticed due to lower rates of some of these
illnesses for blind people whose blindness was of some types where the
eyes themselves didn't function.  Is this useful knowledge for ferrets?
It may or may not be.  It's hypothetical but we do use night covers and
dark areas to go to during the day as well even though we don't know if
it will pan out.  Certainly, a grouping of approaches for reducing the
symptoms of adrenal growths involves the use of melatonin, and one vet
has publicly mentioned that it might be a useful preventative in some
cases.  (Note the qualifiers since this is till so much under study or
unstudied.)
 
>KITS:  At this age food consumption will be approx. 7% of body weight...
>ADULTS FERRETS: Feed free, but restrict diet to approx. 5% of body
>weight if animals get too heavy...
>LACTATION/FINAL 2 WEEKS GESTATION: Feed free without restriction...
>J.W. is one of the better ferret foods (protein and fat wise) that we
>can buy in the UK and I believe a manufacturer that recommends limiting
>food intake must have done some dietary studies.
 
Sounds to me like they are saying to avoid obesity in ferrets.  That
makes complete sense to me.  It also sounds like they have been
especially careful to make very sure that the amounts mentioned contain
the essential nutrients required to avoid malnutrition and to avoid
other nutrient deprivation related medical problems.  That is also good.
 
It does not sound as if they are recommending a level which calls for
a large deprivation of calories.  The studies to which Bob has been
referring are painsakingly adjusted to have individuals who are not just
thin but incredibly thin (not joking -- very, very thin and you can
confirm this by seeing the photos of some of the researchers who have
been doing this themselves for years to see what happens) while still
providing enough nutrients to maintain health.  It is not an easy thing
to manage.  A registered dietician could do it for a human, a veterinary
dietician could do it for a ferret.  The rest of us (me included!) would
too likely botch it too easily with consequences that might (Note
qualifier.) prove dangerous.  With a specially designed food that is
carefully balanced with very concentrated nutrients while providing fewer
calories it could be feasible.  What effects it would have on either
quality or quantity of life for ferrets remains to be seen.
 
These are not just diets designed to avoid obesity in ferrets.  Yes, it
makes sense to keep their weight below such heavy levels.  Whether it
would be good for them to be thin enough that folks would refer to them
as "skin and bones" although they'd get enough nutrients other than
calories is another question, esp. for an animal type with a high
metabolic rate which is prone to both loss of appetite when ill and to
illnesses that can cause wasting and which may get to some of the things
that have been worsened in other species by caloric reduction such as
osteoporosis.  We've had healthy ones who were thin as long as they were
also very active, we've had more healthy ones who were normal and also
very active.  The worst combo we've seen here in relation to weight for
over-all health prognosis seems to be related to being fat and being very
sedentary.  It may be that a modification would be good -- one which
involves a lot of exercise and a slightly thin ferret, but I don't know
any more than anyone else does.
 
I personally prefer to leave the most tricky things to those who know
them the best: vets and veterinary dieticians; others will differ.
[Posted in FML issue 3971]