Dear Anonymous: >I posted a question a few weeks ago asking about why the poor babies tails >brush up when passing and got not one response. I assumed it was just >because it was a very sensitive topic. But now that we are on the subject >again, I'm going to ask again...does anyone have any idea why this >happens? The likely reason for this phenomenon is simply a contraction of the erector pili muscles which are attached to follicles in the tails of ferrets. These small muscles are not distributed diffusely throughout the body, but many species have them - and when they contract, the attached hairs "stand on end". Dogs have them along the dorsum of the neck and back, so when they get angry - "their hackles stand up." In ferrets, the largest follicular muscles are in the tail, so they can have that bottle brush effect. These muscles are composed of smooth muscles and contraction is generally involuntary. Thus, the reaction at euthanasia is an involuntary one, as is defecation and urination - smooth muscle contraction. I have never considered it a pain or fright reaction. With kindest regards, Bruce Williams, dVM [Posted in FML issue 3304]