Howdy, Dr. Williams and whoever else can assist me. I may have a possible problem I'm concerned about. Since it's my first winter with the ferrets and cat, all three of them have been undergoing the fur shedding and change of coat. I've collected enough fur in the last 3 weeks to make a "Kill-NOT" fur coat. Gabby's new fur is twice the length of her last coat and gorgeous to boot. Her sable colourings have accented and the fur is REALLY soft. Only problem is..while her furr mass is getting bigger......so is her stomach. I've readjusted her leash about 3 times over the last month or so. (Mind you....she's nearing 7 months in age....but Mindy never got this big in weight at her age....just size) I'm getting concerned.....she's become a big sausage. When you pick her up over the last two weeks, she kacks...likes she's preparing to puke...but never does. This doesn't persist for too long. However, if you decide to poke her stomach a bit (which has become VERY big.....hangs almost to the ground and feels/ looks like a tight water balloon) she'll kack again once in awhile. She's not in any visible/audible pain....and doesn't get upset when you prod or gently squeeze her tummy. It's just massive! The ferrets both have been pooping. They're eating growth Science Diet cat food (Samson, my cat...is still less than a year old...). Mindy is perfectly fine. Gabby is fine by appearance as well. We went running down the hallway yesterday and she's been playing. Mind you, she's been sleeping a lot more than usual lately too. Is this a normal winter cycle for the furrball? Why hasn't Mindy porked out the same way? We OK here, or should I have her check out anyways? The concerned papa.... Rob Mindy, Gabby and Samson [Posted in FML issue 1385]