BIG wrote:
 
>Recent research seems to have located cells in the eye that exhibit
>circadian rhythm totally distinct from circadian rhythms in the brain
 
Yes, BIG, Judi has mentioned before that a ferret's breeding cycle is
controlled by the amount of light that enters the eye.  If you want to keep
your ferret out of season, then in the long summer days, it is best to put
them in a dark room around 5 PM and leave them there until the next day.  I
tried this with Libby the 2 years I bred her, and it worked for me; I also
plan to do this with Halo once her present litter is weaned to prevent her
from coming back into season this year.
 
It seems that Judi may be onto something here with the high incidence of
adrenal disease and artifical lighting many of us tend to subject our
ferrets to.  Especially when you take into consideration our lifestyles-
many of work or go to school, and probably don't play with our ferrets until
evening - when of course in the winter, it is dark by 4:30 or 5 PM, thus
disrupting the normal biological rhythm/day-night cycle one would find in
the wild.
 
Judi said something about neutered ferrets having no other glands but the
adrenals to pump out hormones, causing them to overwork, leading to tumor
growth - or something to that effect.  I may not have this statement
entirely correct - does it make sense to any of you biologists?
 
Debbie Riccio
WNYFLFA
Rochester, NY
[Posted in FML issue 1569]