Chester is a 2-yr old shelter ferret, a real sweetie. His cagemate Simon had surgery several weeks ago for a possible blockage, and now Chester has had his turn. Shortly after Chester and Simon first came into the shelter, we noticed a growth along the side of Chester's neck. It almost felt as if there were a piece of string under the skin. We weren't sure if it had been there when he first arrived, and our vet Dr. Turner suggested we just keep an eye on it for a while. It became clear it was getting larger, and the vet was concerned it might grow around his jugular, so Chester went under the knife today. Dr. Turner removed something about 3 1/2" long, flat and about 1/4-1/2" wide. He said it resembled a fibrous carcinoma, which he's never seen in ferrets before, though it is not uncommon in snakes. A sample has gone off for biopsy. Has anyone seen anything like this in ferrets before? Poor Chester looks like Frankenstein now, with stitches from his shoulder along the side of his neck. Linda Iroff The Raisin Retreat North Coast Ferret Shelter West Oberlin, OH http://www.oberlin.edu/~liroff/ncfs.html [Posted in FML issue 2434]