Hi Charlene and all . . . >is it possible for mites to get into the brain . . . Factually, I don't know and will not claim to know if it is possible for ear mites to chew through the ear and into the brain. Any vets or pathologist out there know about this? The lab didn't actually send a report to my friend, just called to tell her that they did not find rabies and they saw no reason for her daughter to be treated for rabies exposure. They said they did find ear mites. Kelly can't remember if they actaully said the mites were *in* the brain (I called and asked her)--perhaps her relief over the rabies question overshadowed the rest of what she was told. Does anyone think a pathology report on this animal is available, after a year? I think I would like to see it, now that I have a ferret again. I'll call animal control and see if I can get them to send me a report. I don't think I could have stopped them from destroying her, though, according to the quarentine etc. thingy in this morning's FML. Unprovoke d attack, followed by major behavior/personality change seems to invariably lead to animal being put down for pathology examination. As you can imagine, I freak out at any sign of mites. I think I've been treating Pepper for mites when he just has waxy ears. It's a reddish brown wax, so thick it's almost black sometimes, and looks like what I've always associated with mites. Anyway, I'll try to get that report. It could be simply that there were ear mites in the ears, and the translation from lab to friend to me (and to you-all) may have been misleading. I'm the last person who would want to start a panic for ferret owners, which is why I tried to explain the background story--that I believe human-error had much to do with the ferret's behavior. As I've said, I've never met a ferret that was caged all the time and *wasn't* crabby. They've got way too much energy for constant confinement. --Sherri [Posted in FML issue 1731]