My little furry one Samantha has been having funny things with the hair on
her tail, so I want to ask all you knowledgeable people out there a few
questions.  Basic History:I don't know how old she is (adopted 3 years ago,
mellow, junky teeth tartar - maybe 6 years??) and when I first got her she
was *scraggly* lookin'.  Good food and pampering, pampering, pampering and
she got softer and fatter (and stopped biting!).  Never any sign of major
coat changes, shedding, the like.
 
About 3 weeks ago, she lost about 1 1/2 inches of fur along the base of her
tail on the bottom only.  No hair loss anywhere else, and within a week baby
hairs were starting to grow in but sparsely.  I have been cleaning her tail
4-6 times a week with noxema pads since this started, and she's got one
dirty tail!  Lots of the orange oily dirty stuff - builds up in like 2 days!
The bare spot is now moving out her tail - still on the bottom side, and a
little bigger - towards the tip.
 
What is going on?!?  Is this a coat change/dirt & oil problem?  Should I go
back to panicing about adrenal?  We're off to the vet later this month, but
I wanted to ask y'all first!
 
Please reply to me or post to the list as appropriate. My email:
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THANK YOU!!!
 
Tara the human (you two play nice!)
Denko the cat (what's that furry little thing?  can i have it's food?)
Sam the ferret (i guess this cleaning thing beats a bath)
[Posted in FML issue 2180]