To John:
 
>I posted about a year ago that I had noticed 4 small dots on Buddy's
>right ear that I hadn't previously noticed. At the time I figured they might be
>a tatoo, and that they had just been too small to notice previously, but now I
>think maybe they hadn't been there before, because they are definitely larger
>now. They are a dark brown color, and somewhat irregular. They don't seem to be
>sensitive at all, and there's no swelling or anything else unusual associated
>with them; they're just dark spots. Are these just age spots, or might they be
>(gulp) skin cancer? Should I have my vet run any specific tests?
 
        Skin cancer doesn't generally appear as four dots...anyway, the vast
majority of skin tumors are benign, so it's really nothing to get extremely
worked up about.  Ferrets don't get age spots.  It sounds like some form of
tattooo, but without a picture, I can't be sure.
 
        The best wayt o find out exactly what they are would be to have your vet
       Bruce Williams, DVM                 Department of Veterinary Pathology
       [log in to unmask]         Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
       (202) 576-2453/2454                 Washington, D.C.  20306-6000
remove one and send it in for analysis.
 
[Posted in FML issue 0963]