To Dr. Williams: I am very interested in your upcoming posting about a
possibly reliable test for estrogen levels indicating adrenal disease.
My little Espie may have some slight thinning of hair, and I worry about
that based on Dr. Weiss's postings, but it's so slight it's hard to tell,
and my vet doesn't really think she's a likely candidate because she's
so young (not even 2 yet) and appears very healthy. Sometimes she has itched
a lot, but that could be from the dry air from the heater. It's pretty
hard to contemplate sending her to major surgery without better
information. I still need to take her back for another CBC, but the last
one didn't show much. When she seemed depressed before, she could have
been sad about losing C-pi. Anything a little more definite would be most
helpful.
 
How much hair is normal? Are there other ferrets out there whose
lower abdomens have a thin pink area in the middle where there's not much
fur? Could this be a scar left over from being spayed, or is this
something I should worry about? What about the back legs? Are there
other ferrets with downy white fur showing through that makes the hair
look thinner because there's fewer of the darker guard hairs? Is this
just a difference in color or is this something I should worry about?
These are tough questions, it seems to me. And I don't know how to answer
them.
 
Thanks in advance for more info.
[Posted in FML issue 1094]