Hi,
 
>I like a lot of what you wrote, Sukie.  I don't see as strong a genetic
>connection as many people do, nor do I necessarily believe the "early
>neutering" theory--especially because early neutering doesn't have negative
>health effects in other species.
>
>What I have seen--and there are no numbers to back this up, this is just
>an observation, an intuition--is that adrenal disease, early and otherwise,
>is much more common in ferrets from neglectful homes...
>
>We have yet to see an early adrenal tumor in an otherwise healthy and
>well-cared-for ferret.  Actually, most of the age-related adrenal cases
>we've seen have also been ferrets in neglectful homes, though not all of
>them.
 
I'm not sure what the age is for "early adrenals", but my (so far) only
adrenal ferret had her surgery at age 3.  Unlike many of the other ferrets
you have mentioned, and presumably most of the ferrets on this list, my
ferret is not in a neglectful home and never has been.  She has a huge 4
(full) story cage, plenty of cagemates, and time out to run in a very large
ferret-proofed room every day.  She eats Totally Ferret, is given hairball
remedy, and few treats (an occasional raisin, Cheerio, or "Pounce" cat
treat, as well as being hand-fed kibbles of TF).  She always has access to
plenty of clean water.  There are 3 or 4 litter boxes in the cage and they
are emptied daily.  The litter used is wood stove pellets.  These are the
conditions of all my ferrets.  Yet, I have had a bilateral adrenal ferret
who was only 3 years old at the time.  Is this an exception?  Or do you
just live in an area with a lot of uneducated (therefore neglectful) ferret
owners?
 
I do agree with you that the early neutering theory may not have much
merit for the same reasons you do - lack of problems in other species.  I
personally think the lack of natural light cycles (the artificial lighting
that we have in our homes) is a more likely culprit combined with a genetic
predisposition which helps explain why I have 9 ferrets and only had 1 with
adrenal problems and explains similar situations in other households.
 
Kim and now 9 healthy, happy, well-cared-for ferrets
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[Posted in FML issue 3100]