I want to clarify something: my personal suspicion is that when the adrenal endocrinological work is done -- the missing pieces filled in -- which relate the combination of being neutered (at any age) and being exposed to too much light I DO suspect that the hypothesis will prove to be accurate. That is simply because as more is known there winds up being an ever tighter picture. Still, it might not pan out, despite having so much on its side so far. It is easy and safe, though, to provide ferrets with a lot of darkness, so trying it lacks a downside. There are other hypotheses out there with fewer pieces filled in, and more to learn. One is the possible connection of starch levels and other carbohydrates in the diet -- which is in part the brain child of Dr. Jerry Murray, a friend. It is an interesting concept. Yet, JM is keeping an open mind. He is hoping that some of the genetic work can be done in case that has more of an effect or has an effect in conjunction, and he is following possible instances where -- at least for some individuals -- there may be such a things as too much protein and too little carbohydrate, for example in individuals who develop cystine stones or some individuals who wind up needing some starch intake or sugar intake or both to better control blood glucose levels. The point is that as the old saying goes, "It's not over till the fat lady sings." and in this case that songstress gives throat to the final piece in very complex puzzles which may have their pictures change as more is filled in. At least that hypothesis is being carefully investigated. There are a number of things which people too often accept as "truths" which have nothing or next to nothing behind them beyond a pattern which may be nothing more than coincidence. These can sometimes prove a risk to ferrets and other times turn out to be major wins. Often enough they are just in the noise. So, just remember to use a grain of salt when you read about these concepts. There are many reasons; perhaps the most entrancing and exciting one is discovering new information like the recent work into fat which has found that it is very active endocrinological organ which produces an array of hormones as well as inflammatory compounds and other agents. Remember that having some pieces and playing connect-the-dots doesn't necessarily work out. Remember that reading and writing are vastly different from doing the needed experimental work no matter how good an idea sounds. Try things, yes, but always have a grain of salt handy. Linda writes: >The mitt and roaning (increasing white with age) patterns are controlled >by different genetics. Exactly. When the mitts and is combination is complete, bilateral, and evenly margined, without white spotting then the cause is a different genetic one which has not been connected with medical problems. BUT, when there is also spotting or the mitts and bibs are non-bilateral or unevenly margined or incomplete white splotches then think neural crest genetics and possible related medical disorders. If you have seen the ferrets who are the true original mitt and bib ferrets you'll notice a lack of white spotting, socks which go part-way up and are so straight around that they look like the margins of our own socks, bibs which likewise fully and cleanly cover the area there which is darker than surrounding fur in standard markings. That kind of marking set is the one with a different cause rather than a troublesome neural crest genetics cause. Roaning also is separate from white spotting which is present from scratch. Dark Eyed Whites, Marked Whites, and Albinos all appear to have other causes than neural crest genetics, BUT because they are already white they can hide neural crest markings beneath so some may also be hiding something. Melissa writes: >However, I do know some about basic genetics, and it's important, I >think, to point out that no genetic defects are INTRODUCED by breeding. >They are exacerbated by breeding, but they have always been there. Exactly! It is the rate in the population which changes! The neural crest variants connected to medical problems (and KIT oncogene may be a far more likely one than Waardensburg in ferrets) are ancient and you will find them to some extent not only in other mammals but also in reptiles (and if memory serves there may be some in amphibians). What has changed is that these were selected for artificially so they became common in the ferret population instead of being rare like they used to be. (BTW, the definition of evolution is "The change in proportion of genetic alleles in a population over time." Selective breeding is human created evolution and not all of it pans out well.) >There is NO way to breed deafness out of a population, so we cannot >possibly breed it INTO one either. But the RATE of deafness can be increased, ditto other health problems. I am more concerned by the oncogene aspect than others like the deafness probability increase personally. [Posted in FML issue 4668]