To Mary Allen: >Last night Merritt started to cry very loud. I went in to find him... >making this terrible cry, and was soaking wet from salivating. This is the >third time this has happened in the past few months. Prior to that, he has >never done this... Also, he does seem to be a bit more wobbly when he >first gets up -- He's now about 4 1/2. Do I need to be concerned? Mary , whiel it may jsut be a coincidence - your post lists three of the major signs of islet cell tumros (insulinomas) in ferrets. We often hear vocalization in animals with blood glucose in the very low ranges druing a hypoglycemic cases. In fact these animals often lose consciousness (I have heard it reffered to as going"screaming into a coma".) Hypersalivation is also a sign that we see with hypoglycemic ferrets. As far as wobbliness - ferrets can be wobby as a result of either acture or chronic hypoglycemia - the chronic hypoglycemia can cause degenerative changes in peripheral nerves, which affects locomotion. I thin a blood glucose test is certainly in order for Merritt. -- Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP Department of Veterinary Pathology [log in to unmask] Armed Forces Institute of Pathology [log in to unmask] Washington, D.C. 20306-6000 (202) 782-2600/2602 [Posted in FML issue 1188]