Dry, bloody looking tail

Question
Hello, i recently noticed that my ferrets tail has little red dots (maybe blood) on the skin of it and the fur near the skin is slightly discolored orangeish. The skin feels rather dry. I tried to find information about this on the internet but I couldnt find anything. He seems fine otherwise, no change in behavior or anything, just his strange tail. is his skin just dry or should i be concerned?

Answer
Hi Lisa:

The orangish dots and color change on your ferrets tail is very common. It is caused by increased hormone production (possibly a harbinger of adrenal disease) that causes increased oil production in the skin on the tail, much like a teenager with pimples from over production of hormones. The solution is a few good scrubbings with a soft toothbrush and a facial acne cleaner like Clearasil, etc. Be sure to rinse well. He probably won't like it very well, but if you are gentle and do it about every other day for a week or so, it should be gone in no time at all.

Don't be surprised if he comes down with adrenal disease in a year or so - this is common. Just educate yourself about adrenal disease and know the symptoms so you can get him help if/when he needs it. Here is some information on adrenal disease for future reference:

   * http://www.petcarevabeach.com/adr.htm

Hopefully this will take care of your problem in no time at all.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers