In relation to the lost ferret: I just flashed back on what happened
with Ashling. She had adrenal carcinoma and actually lost the fur from
most of the rear of her body in one week. (Not joking.) We had surgery
done promptly -- simply not willing to wait with such an acute set of
symptoms and I still had a great sense of smell then (It was before a
three month antibiotic resistant sinus infection and subsequent sinus
surgery.) and could smell malignancy on her. Later she remained bald
for years. The weird thing was that several years later she regrew
fur. It was never a good coat but her follicles appeared to have been
destroyed and they weren't but were just quiet for an extended time.
So, I think that it would pay to keep in mind that there may be other
explanations but to ALSO find out what the legal options are if there
is Medical Neglect.
Keep in mind, too, that there may be other and more serious medical
problems that you don't know about. In that case finding the ferret's
people may be essential for protecting the sweet furry's health.
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.htmlhttp://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/http://www.ferretcongress.org/http://www.trifl.org/index.shtmlhttp://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
[Posted in FML 5784]