>He can only walk a few steps before his back legs fall out from under him.
>My husband believes the little boy is suffering and should be let go. I am
willing to try anything short of prolonging suffering to give him a chance.
 
I think it is nearly impossible to tell without having a vet look at him.
There can be many reasons why this is happening--he may or may not be fine.
One of my guys, Prince Charming, is a few years old and has some kind of
back end weakness.  He was in several homes before he landed in a shelter,
so what might have caused this is unknown--being in a cage too long, an
injury, something at birth?  Two vets have looked at him and were unable to
diagnose anything, and he gets around okay except for some limping.  I would
definitely check with your vet to see what he/she says--it could be one of
many things.  Good luck!
 
On deafness in ferrets:
There have been numerous posts on deafness lately.  Deafness seems to occur
in several color patterns in ferrets (but not always): dark eyed whites,
blaze, panda, and some others.  There was a very good article on deaf
ferrets a while back in Modern Ferret (issue #10); you can order back issues
from their website: <http://www.modernferret.com/>
 
Also, Lorraine Tremblay posted recently that she has compiled fml posts
about deafness in ferrets for anyone who is interested <[log in to unmask]>
There is some very interesting info in these posts.
 
I have one deaf guy (Merlin the Maniac, DEW) who enjoys life immensely.  It
isn't that deafness in itself is a problem.  HOWEVER, I think problems
sometimes arise for a couple of reasons:
 
1) Many times, people do not know--or do not want to know--that their ferret
is deaf.  This can lead to real problems if the person yells at their ferret
and then thinks the ferret is deliberately not responding (I know someone
who had a little kid with serious hearing problems and was convinced for
quite a while that the kid had behavior problems).  My personal feeling is
that deaf ferrets CAN be at risk for abuse, if they are in the hands of
someone who does not take the time to find out why their ferret isn't
"listening" to them.  A DEW ferret I had a while ago, Norman, had been
severely abused in a pet store.  I am convinced it is partly because he was
deaf.  Unfortunately, deafness in ferrets is not all that uncommon.  (I
would be very interested to see some percentages on this.)
 
2) If your ferret gets lost, it makes it harder for you to find him, since
he cannot hear you calling for him, using a squeaky toy, etc.  Also, he
would not hear a dog, car, etc.  coming up on him.  So it is even more
important that you know your ferret cannot hear.
 
3) In my limited experience, I find that deaf ferrets can be somewhat
skittish because they don't hear you coming, and they startle easily.  I
imagine in a household with little kids who might grab at a deaf ferret,
this could be a problem, possibly leading to nipping.  I find that Merlin
tends to beat up any ferret he doesn't know, probably because he can't hear
them crying when he hurts them, and also in part to defend himself because
he is a little more skittish than my other guys.  So, it's good to let your
ferret know you are there, and teach your kids to do the same.
 
Again, I don't think deafness in itself is a problem.  I do, however, think
it's very important to know if your ferret is deaf so you can change YOUR
behavior to accommodate your little one.  Norman, my DEW who had been abused
and was at one time serious biter, turned out to be an extremely sweet,
loving, vulnerable ferret (as are abused ferrets in general).  And Merlin,
the DEW who lives with me now, is a big, goofy, happy-go-lucky guy who loves
life and plays harder than anyone.
 
Here are some things to look for if you suspect your ferret may be deaf:
 
Color: these ferrets are often--but not always--deaf: dark eyed white,
blaze, panda, and some other colors.
 
Skittishness: does your ferret seem startled when he sees you come into a
room? (if you have other ferrets, you can compare their behavior)
 
Heavy sleeper: I sometimes find Merlin still sleeping after his 3 roommates
have crawled over him to get out of bed and are running around playing.  And
yes--deaf ferrets do make noise, just like other ferrets.
 
I would be very interested to see more education about deafness in ferrets.
Perhaps an FAQ (does one exist?)
 
-- Ronnie DiComo
Ralphie, Harry, Prince Charming, Merlin the Maniac, Roxanne, Petunia and
Epcot the Shoeweasel
[Posted in FML issue 2251]