Hi all! My experience is only with one ferret, but... Weehawk's tail started getting covered with blackheads, and some orange crud in May last year. I scrubbed, and soaked, and scrubbed with hydrogen peroxide, and alcohol, and Dr. Bonner's peppermint, etc. and I could get it surface clean, but it would look just as bad in a day, and no hair grew back. He had no hair and no amount of cleaning I did seemed to help. In the Fall when his winter coat came in, his tail hair did too! It turned blue (he is a dark sable) and then there was a little fuzz, and by the end of Oct. he had the thickest, most luxurious tail of my herd! So I guess my advice is keep it clean, and wait for a coat change cause that is probably when the hair will come back. Also, I just gained another ferret, it is true that there is no going down when working with ferret math! I had four as of feb. and someone just called me a couple of weeks ago, had a very sweet ferret that they couldn't have when they moved, so would I take him...well my husband had said that 4 was way too many, so I told them bring the guy over so he could meet my guys, and if they all got along, I would keep him until I could find him a good home, figuring this would keep my husband from going through the roof. Abu liked my guys and they thought he was great fun to sniff, sooo....The first night I introduced him to David (husband) and they clicked like none of my others have been able to do, when I asked david the next day about another friend who might want Abu, he said, "He's ours isn't he? I don't think he should go anywhere!" And this from the guy who thought 2 was too much! So it is true that there is a ferret for everyone, you just don't always find him/her on the first or second or third try :) krystal in vermont with Weehawk, Silk, Herman, Havoc and Abu! [Posted in FML issue 1657]