>RE: William Killian - Zen and the Art of Ferrets <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Re: Ferret Adversities  - open eyes are worth  everything
 
There are some things in your post that I felt compelled to comment on.
Granted, some of us may be relatively "new" to ferret ownership.  I, like
many others, am coming up to the 3 year mark.  However, I have taken in and
treated handicapped animals for over 15 years, both feline and most
recently, ferret.  I have interacted with feline breeders and CFF judges
during that time.  Many of the issues we face today are not that far removed
from issues I've encountered within the cat fancy.  Therefore, I don't
consider myself totally ignorant in matters of animal health.
 
A mill is a mill is a mill.  Period.  Be it a puppy mill, a kitty mill or a
ferret mill.  It is impossible to consistently raise healthy, disease-free
animals with well-socialized personalities in such a situation.  This is why
many people buy animals from breeders where they can view the parents, see
the pedigree and know the personality of the animal they are purchasing.  We
have been handicapped with ferrets, since for many the pet store ferret is
the only game in town.  This is starting to change, which is good, since it
is pretty well documented that closed breeding colonies of any type
eventually run into genetic problems.  I would also believe it's fairly
logical that if it's common practice to neuter a kitten or puppy at 7-9
months, neutering a ferret at 4-6 weeks is going to cause some problems,
even if you factor in physiological differences and differences in growth
rates.  It's plain too early.  It also isn't out of the realm of possibilty
that there is more than one cause of adrenal disease in ferrets.  Geriatric
medicine is a field unto itself.  Diseases in old age are not uncommon.
Diseases in 1 and 2 year old animals are.
 
Marshall Farms is a business.  What help they are giving to CA legislation
is most likely being given with a nod to future business in the state.  MF
is following a business model, MF needs to make money, and MF is most likely
not going to change their business practices unless a compelling financial
need for them to do so appears.  Knowing that, it might instead be more
worthwhile to expend some energy to change the laws that say these animals
have to be neutered at such a young age in order to be sold, since I'm
willing to bet that MF could very quickly be convinced that it's cheaper for
them to have you pay for the neuter and spay :-).  This, unfortunately
creates new issues around "backyard breeding".  There are no easy answers.
I agree that "we don't know" is often the answer to questions about adrenal
disease origins, however, I'd like to see a little better reception to "we
might try...".  Most accepted treatments started out as someone's theory.
 
My animals are housed in much the environment you describe.  They have there
own room.  They are not subjected to large volumes of artificial lighting
(In fact, if you wanted to get real picky, you could argue that the benefits
received from artificial lighting may vary according to the spectrum used,
since even humans respond differently to artifical light).  They have a
separate heating zone and their room temperature is regulated.  They are fed
Totally Ferret exclusively.  They are played with and handled daily.  They
follow an established routine, as I have found that animals respond well to
consistency.  I have two adrenals, one of whom is bi-lateral and one
possible early stage insulinoma.  Unless I need to get them a nanny, I've
ruled out environment as the cause of their diseases.  They are all MF
ferrets.  I have two other MF ferrets who are currently very fit and
healthy, and one 4 month old currently unneutered male which I purchased
from a breeder.  The differences between this ferret and my others in terms
of weight, muscle mass, energy level and overall size are very apparent and
astounding.  I don't need a scientific study to tell me the difference early
neutering makes.  I can see it very plainly.
 
The jury is still out as far as ethoxyquin is concerned.  The feline
community has been dealing with this issue much as we are now, and they
haven't come to any conclusions either, although many will not feed foods
with ethoxyquin to pregnant or lactating cats.  The "other" preservative
most often used is vitamin E which is not used at anywhere near a toxic
level.  Regardless of how "scientific" the research has been, many pet
owners avoid ethoxyquin.  The studies don't matter to a lot of them, what
matters most is what happened to the dog or cat or ferret down the street.
While that may not feel right to you, most people make their decisions with
their gut, not the latest pet food study they surfed off the Web.
 
What I am afraid of is that through publication of these debates, we will
succeed in driving people away from ferret ownership and, more importantly,
from ferret adoption.  The truth is there is a problem.  Any one who denies
that has their head in the sand.  When someone adopts a cat or a dog, you
don't have to warn them it may need major surgery when it's 3 or 4 years
old.  These cancers and tumors show up often enough that people are going to
start classifying ferrets as "fragile" animals unless we find out the cause.
Any information we can find out is useful.  Any information may help put
enough pressure on to encourage scientific study.  Waiting for science is
ludicrous.  The damage is already being done now.  For the sake of all those
little fuzzies who, through no fault of their own have two blue dots, we
need to act now.  If MF isn't responsible, we have an obligation to clear
them.  If MF is responsible, we have an obligation to make them see the need
to changes their practices.  Otherwise, we will risk creating a sub-class of
unadoptable ferrets.
 
Mary-Michael Scanlon
[Posted in FML issue 1760]