Regarding Mark Zmyewski's post that I dismissed Aleutian disease as being
rare:
 
Several years ago, one of my ferrets was dying of kidney failure.  I, too,
spoke to Dr. Williams at the time.  He explained that Aleutian mink disease
can cause kidney failure.  So can chronic urinary tract infections and so
can certain antibiotics.  I had not seen any evidence of UTI (nor had my
vet) and the only antibiotics my ferrets had received were amoxicillin,
Clavamox, and in one case, Baytril.  Those were not the culprits.
 
So I proceeded to have tests run for Aleutian disease in all of my ferrets.
Fortunately, the tests were all negative, because if one of them had been
exposed, that meant that all of them had been exposed and my grief would be
multiplied threefold.  I still lost C-pi to kidney failure, but she had
another 2 1/2 months or so of quality time this side of the Rainbow Bridge
before she died.
 
Aleutian disease, which is a short name for Aleutian mink disease, is a
slow, wasting disease in ferrets.  In mink, it is rapidly and violently
fatal.  Apparently, ferrets are genetically similar enough to mink to be
susceptible to the disease, although it takes a different course.
 
If you are indeed seeing an outbreak of Aleutian disease in Alabama, that
is sad news indeed.  The statement that there is still no vaccine being
developed suggests to me that a lot of researchers are still not familiar
with the disease in ferrets.  Unlike, say, adrenal disease, lymphoma,
insulinoma, ECE, distemper, and other conditions that we read about on
this list all the time.
 
It does not, however, follow that in trying to help you I was dismissing
this disease.
 
Linda
[Posted in FML issue 2789]