In our group I've seen many different adrenal hairloss patterns ranging
from only the ankles, a small patch between the shoulder blades or on
the chest, to a reversed mohawk on the back or head, including the
tummy pattern in the picture. I've also seen a few cases of hairloss
caused by what our vet believes was malnutrition and stress(because
after they came here they regrew their coat without future hairloss).
I've also seen hairloss on season then regrowth with hairloss the
following season and we've done a couple too early surgeries where
both adrenals looked fine but when surgery was done again 4-6 months
later the diseased adrenal showed signs. One of the common signs in
our group is thinning hair and hairloss on the feet or ankles.

I have noticed fewer adrenal hairloss patterns since I started adding
melatonin to their recipe a few years ago, though I'm not sure if this
could be age-related (for several years I had mainly 5+ yr olds and now
there is a wide age range).

If the ferrets that are experiencing hairloss are male, it is a good
idea to monitor closely for urinating problems since adrenal issues
might cause prostate issues in males.

tle
www.ferretfamilyservices.org

[Posted in FML 5729]