Chris,
 
I have a friend who used to be on the ferret list but who changed jobs to one
where he has no net access.  One of his ferrets (Slinky, a nuetered jill
about 4 years old) recently dropped a lot of weight quickly and started
loosing hair on her back.  She still has a good appetite and is active.  I
think that he feeds her Science Diet with linotone as a daily treat.  Since
we live in a state where ferrets are illegal, getting medical care is
difficult.  I was wondering if you could throw the powers of the net on his
problem and see if anybody has theories as to what might be wrong.  As
usual, I would appreciate it if you maintained my anonymity.
 
[Drastic weight and fur changes is sometimes perfectly normal...  Our
vet has learned not to take a weight variations (within reason) as
primary indication of a problem, he looks for other signs.
You might want to ensure that she's not getting more than a drop or two
of linotone a day, more than that you run the risk of vitamin A overdose
and probably liver and/or kidney problems.  Is she passing normally?
Black tarry or loose stools are indicative of problems.  Though loose
stools are frequently a sign of a ferret eating dairy products.  Her
intake and outtake should be monitored.]
 
On an unrelated note, I just received issue 105 and the previous issue I
received was 097.  Could you mail me the issues I missed?
 
[Done]
                                                                          
[Posted in FML 0106]