When I bought Bobbin I thought she was going to be a silver (at 6 weeks she
had white fur with a some black guard hairs).  Over the years, her black
guard hair gradually disappeared until she looked like a black-eyed white.
Bobbin was completely deaf from birth, apparently (and was blind during her
last two years of life).  Misty is a badger/shetland with a very white face
and wide stripe.  She also appears to be completely deaf.
 
For both of these ferrets, being deaf did not seem to be too much of a
problem.  It was a little harder to toilet train them, however, because they
did not respond to yelling "NO!" or clapping if they backed into the wrong
corner.  Also, the deaf ones can be more difficult to locate because they
"sleep" so hard and do not respond to the sounds of your coming home or
calling them.  Misty responds to light -- when I come home I flip the lights
on and off, and then she wakes up and comes to see me.  Also I turn on the
light before entering the food closet and then I don't scare her when she
has her face buried in the bowl.  (I used to walk up behind her while she was
eating and suddenly she would shriek and race off at warp speed to hide, and
then look out and go "oh -- it's just you!")
 
Anyway, despite the minor shortcomings above, being deaf certainly does not
seem to bother the FERRET at all.  I think humans attribute more problems to
the condition than necessary.  I love all my little ones just the same!
 
- Erika (and Misty, Sasha, and Lizzy)
[Posted in FML issue 1142]