To Yuki Busch and her vet -
 
        Concerning your questions on alternative medical therapies for
     adrenal disease in ferrets - I talked with Dr. Karen Rosenthal, who
     has extensive experience with treating adrenal disease medically in
     ferrets - and here is the benefit of her experience:
 
        Lysodren and Ketoconzole have been used extensively in treating
     dogs with Cushing's disease, which is oversecretion of cortisol, a
     different hormone than estrogen, which is secreted in the ferret's
     abnormal adrenals.  Estrogen is secreted in a layer of the adrenal
     gland which is different than that which causes the ferrets problem.
     Lysodren has been used in ferrets, but becasue it destroys the outer
     layers of the adrenal, and not the inner layer, which hypersecretes
     estrogens, it generally just causes additional problems, leaving the
     estrogens untouched.
 
        In her experience, ketaconazole has no effect on ferrets.
 
        Bilateral adrenalectomy is not an option - there is not yet a
     successful drug regime yet developed to keep these animals alive once
     you remove both of their adrenals.  While ferrets can get along on 1/2
     an adrenal, removal of both will shortly prove fatal.
 
       Bruce Williams, DVM                 Department of Veterinary Pathology
       [log in to unmask]         Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
       OR [log in to unmask]           Washington, D.C.  20306-6000
            (202) 782-2600/2602
[Posted in FML issue 1146]