David Whiteman wrote:
> We have a female pink eyed white about a year old who has a little hair
> loss on her tail.  There also some black spots on the skin of the tail.
 
There's a brand new question in the FAQ about this:
 
| Subject: (9.3) What are these little (black oily)/(red waxy)/(orange
|                crusty) spots on my ferret's tail/skin?
|
| Reddish-brown wax or black spots on the tail
|
| Ferrets sometimes get tiny black spots on their tails, often
| accompanied by a reddish-brown waxy deposit and hair loss.  They look
| a lot like blackheads, and in fact that's probably pretty much what
| they are.  Gentle cleaning, perhaps with a medicated cleanser that
| your vet can recommend, should help, though it may take many weeks.
| Often this is a seasonal problem that clears up on its own in a few
| months.
 
Rick Lemker asked:
> What are your techniques in restraining the weasels for the vet [for
> vaccinations] WITHOUT scruffing?
 
It helps a lot if your vet will give the vaccination in the ferret's side
rather than the back of the neck.  (One of the other vets can surely
describe the proper location better than I can.) It seems to be a less
painful spot, and it's definitely less stressful to the ferret (and his
two-footed friend!).  Personally, I set the ferret on the table, facing me.
I point a source of Ferretone at the front end of the ferret (generally a
bottle, not a finger, just in case he, startles and chomps down) and either
I or the vet (or both) puts a hand around his shoulders and front legs to
hold him still against the table.  Needle goes into the flank, vet presses
the plunger, needle comes out, ferret looks up and wonders why the
Ferretone just disappeared.  For a skittish ferret, the hand around the
shoulders can easily become a scruff-hold, and the Ferretone and different
injection site will still help.
 
--
- Pam Greene
Ferret Central:
   <http://www.optics.rochester.edu:8080/users/pgreene/central.html>
No WWW?  Use anon FTP to ftp.optics.rochester.edu and look in pgreene/
         or send INDEX FERRET in email to <[log in to unmask]>
[Posted in FML issue 1304]