Hello Andria: We adopted a ferret to a woman who said she had just lost her ferret. Of course we always ask, "Oh, how old was she?" When she said she was a baby I immediately thought the mystery disease, but she said that after she passed away the vet told her she died of Aplastic Anemia because she had apparently not been spayed. She was purchased from a large Pet Store chain, no names. She slipped through the cracks. That is the only story of someone's "personal experience" that I was told. So, to me it appears to be true. I have never had a vet say that it was not true. I believe most vets will say that it is about a 90% chance that if a female ferret is allowed to go into heat without being bred she will die. That is a big chance. It is called Aplastic Anemia. I would discuss this with your vet or several vets before I would take a chance with a female and not spay her. There are many sites online for more information on this subject. Just type in Aplastic Anemia ferrets into a search on Google and there are 850 sites to read. Hope this helps, Fran C. Freedman, President & Co-Founder Morning Starr Animal Sanctuary "A New Beginning..." www.morningstarr.org You may contact us at: 928-821-2420 or email: [log in to unmask] or mail: P.O. Box 1363, Cornville, AZ 86325 [Posted in FML issue 5196]