http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24739114

VERIFICATION of what much of the ferret community has long known, that
deafness in ferrets in strongly associated with colorations caused by
Neural Crest Genetic Variations, just as so many other mammals are.
Perhaps in the future they will look at other things associated at
times with Neural Crest Genetic Variations such as increased rates
of other deformations, GI innervation problems, increases in
cardiomyopathy (both dilative and hypertrophic forms), etc.

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J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2014 May 1;244(9):1047-52.
doi: 10.2460/javma.244.9.1047.

Prevalence of deafness and association with coat variations in
client-owned ferrets.

Piazza S1, Abitbol M, Gnirs K, Huynh M, Cauzinille L.

Abstract
Objective-To evaluate the prevalence of congenital sensorineural
deafness (CSD) and its association with phenotypic markers in
client-owned ferrets. Design-Epidemiological study. Animals-152 healthy
European pet ferrets. Procedures-Brainstem auditory evoked response
tests were recorded in ferrets during general anesthesia. Phenotypic
markers such as sex, coat color and pattern, coat length (Angora or
not), and premature graying trait were assessed. Results-Overall, 44 of
the 152 (29%) ferrets were affected by CSD; 10 (7%) were unilaterally
deaf, and 34 (22%) were bilaterally deaf. There was no association
between CSD and sex or Angora trait, but a strong association between
CSD and white patterned coat or premature graying was identified. All
panda, American panda, and blaze ferrets were deaf. Conclusions and
Clinical Relevance-The ferrets in this study had a high prevalence of
CSD that was strictly associated with coat color patterns, specifically
white markings and premature graying. This seemed to be an emerging
congenital defect in pet ferrets because white-marked coats are a
popular new coat color. Breeders should have a greater awareness and
understanding of this defect to reduce its prevalence for the overall
benefit of the species. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2014;244:1047-1052).

PMID: 24739114 [PubMed - in process]

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