Twinkie, our one year old male champagne colored ferret has a very dry coat,
small blach heads on his tail which has resulted in hair loss on his tail.  He
had the most beautiful coat as a kit but it seems as he got his adult coat his
fur got much drier and he began scratching more.  In addition, his coat color
has changed somewhat with the addition of more black guard hairs.  He is feed a
mix of Iams kitten and lamb and rice.  Our vet has him on fatty acid
supplements and is waiting to see if they help.  During his last bath I noticed
small red spots on his back where it looks as if he has been biting to help
scratch himself.  (We bathe the ferrets about three times a year.)  I went to
the pet store to buy some coat conditioner and got into a discussion with one
of the employees.  She tried to get me to buy their ferret specific food
(Marshalls, I think.) and said that his coat problem is due to diet- probably
an alergy to corn which she said was common in ferrets who are feed cat food.
 I found this a bit hard to believe as our vet did not recommend any of the
locally available ferret foods but suggested a high quality kitten food.  Here
is my question- are corn allergies common?  And if so, why has this developed
just recently when he has always been feed on a diet with some corn fillers.
 
Heather and Twinkie with the ragged looking coat.
[Posted in FML issue 1205]