I accidently left on my signature line (my old one, too, with the old
FHL addy) under the post about the Ferret Health List moving, but it is
from ALL of us: MIke Janke, Pam Sessoms, Dr. Bruce Williams, Troy Lynn
Eckart, and me.

So, for a while I get to have the signature lines like the one below.
Then I can shorten them once again. The recommended resources are STILL
THERE for those who use my signature as a linking mechanism (and many
have told me that they do) but are near the bottom.

On the rates of aging and malignancies: yes wild animals often die
young enough to not be able to look at rates of aging but in zoos one
could. Also, ironically -- by entirely different mechanisms --
malignancies increase with *advanced* age.

BTW, if we consider humans to be domesticated apes (Some here won't but
I do.) we DO typically have very different and slowed rates of aging
compared to those apes who share almost all of our DNA. (One of the
greatest changes, but not only between humans and chimps is in which of
those shared genetic material are turned on in the different species.)

It would be interesting to see if neotany does tend to be accompanied
by slower rates of aging and more non-elderly time of life
malignancies.

Anyway, the recently found link between slowing rates of aging and
increasing rates of early malignancies is an intriguing one which may
prove a useful route to new approaches.

If nothing else at this stage it can make those of us who complain
about thickening waists, greying hair, and faces sliding south onto our
necks feel better about ourselves and our health.

Sometimes careful scientific study packs some real surprises; I think
the link between slowed aging and increased malignancies outside of
extreme old age is an example of that.

Shirley,
Yes, ferrets are resistant to several dangerous food borne pathogens.
They *can* still get them, though, and when they do those illnesses can
be fatal, in fact, some of them, like bovine mycobacteria, always are
fatal one way or another. It's just that they usually don't get the
sicknesses.

Bill, I loved your note explaining the difference between the FML and 
FHL which included
>Ferret Health List is all about ferret health (duh!) and ONLY ferret
>health. It's a great, focused, electronic list and highly recommended.

Thank you so very, very much. Thanks, too, for thinking about those who
might confuse the FML and FHL.

Sukie (not a vet)
Reminder:  THE FERRET HEALTH LIST IS MOVING.
To join, click on the joining link at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth
and then follow the directions.
OR just send a blank mail to the automated joining address:
[log in to unmask]
and then follow the directions.
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/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/

[Posted in FML 5418]