Debbie/Sunshine asked about prednisone and how much people consider the side effects when deciding to use it on their ferrets-- a good vet should discuss that with you when the need for prednisone arises. When Cully's diagnosis of insulinoma and lymphoma came back, my vet (enthusiastic plug here for Dr. Tracey Ritzman at Angell Memorial in Boston)(and her tech too :) told me that prednisone can cause long term damage, and that eventually it will become ineffective anyway as the body builds up a sort of tolerance to it. We agreed that given Cully's age and medical history that long term damage was not a high risk for him, and that given a ferret's natural life span, the pred would have time to do a lot of good and not enough time to do any harm. It shouldn't be a casual decision to use any drug or herb, and I think a good vet should talk out all the pros and cons with you. I am not seeing any negative effects on him now that I could attribute to the prednisone-- if anything, he's a little less neurotic and his coat is plusher, although that may be due to his adrenal removal. So far, I haven't seen anything to make me doubt that prednisone was the right choice for him. Regina Regina Harrison [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask] http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Lofts/1083 -somewhat messed up as I rennovate Electra the Brujah's page: http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Labyrinth/8096 Wrapped in my mongrel wings, I nearly freeze In the howlin wind and drivin rain All the trash blowin round 'n' round [Posted in FML issue 2807]