Very Itchy Ferret

Question
While I was at work three days ago I found this poor little guy at the mechanics shop next door.  He's VERY thin, and missing A LOT of hair. Ive never owned a ferret before but I couldn't let him stay out in the cold.  I brought him in, got a cage, ferret food, High calorie vitamin supplement, and some treats :-).  The vitamin supplement is called FarretVite.  The cage is roughly 2x3 feet.  I put a hammock in there with a small towel.  He likes to borrow into the towel and cover himself to sleep.  He eats well, and seems to poop fine.  The first two days I had him the only thing that seemed to be wrong was how skinny he was.  Today however my little brother let him out and he went nuts itching himself.  When I came home from work, I tried the same thing.  I let him out in my room. As soon as i set him on my bed... He went nuts, and he couldn't stop.  I hadn't bathed him since i found him, so i did.  I cleaned him with Ferret-sheen, which claims to condition there skin as well.  It didn't seem to help much.  He just kept scratching his whole body.  He was VERY itchy head to toe, and couldn't make the itch go away. I put him back in his cage, and after a while he was able to settle down, stop scratching, and go to sleep.  He has no redness, or sores.  He has plenty of energy.  As I said before he is missing A LOT of fur.  I can't see any bugs on him.  

I read up on some of the more common problems, one in particular sounded a bit scary... worst case scenario adrenal disease.  Is this an expensive problem to fix?  I just want to be prepared for the worst.  He's such a nice little guy i want to make sure hes healthy.  

Answer
Hi Adam:

What an angel you are for picking up that little guy before the elements got him. Ferrets don't fare well in the outdoors and usually die within a day or two. They are just too domesticated and live off kibbled food , so wouldn't have a clue to kill something to eat, even tho they are 'obligate carnivores' (meat eaters). Hopefully you've gotten a high quality ferret kibble like Totally Ferret, which is basically pelleted meat with a few other things to help hold it together and preserve the meat.

Now. to your question - yes, I think for a new ferret owner you are a pretty good diagnostician. Sounds like your little guy definitelly has adrenal disease. Adrenal disease *can* be fatal, but it doesn't need to be. It is 100% curable with surgical removal of the adrenal glands. Depending on the doctor, fees run from $200 to $1000.  It is definitely worthwhile to compare prices, call around not only to vets in your area, but to ones within driving distance. I  live in a small town and a larger city about four hours away would do the surgery for $200 several years ago - saved us enough money that we could afford a motel and take a day to drive up for the surgery.

One good way to find a cheap and well experienced vet is to check with ferret shelters in the area - they have to find cheap vet services.  Therefore, I will put lists of vets and also shelters below for your convenience.

Here is some additional information about adrenal disease. If you want to make him comfortable between now and surgery time, you can soak him through to the skin with virgin olive oil regularly. It won't really hurt him if he licks it, but it will help the frantic scratching. I had a ferret I rescued in the condition you are describing and he loved to get his oil rubs. Just put a big towel on your lap and start pouring and rubbing it in :-) to every little crease and itchy place.

ADRENAL DISEASE:  http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/med/adrenal.html

SHELTERS/RESCUES - U.S.
* http://www.ferret.org/links/shelters.shtm
* http://www.everythingferret.com/ferret_shelters.htm
* http://groups.msn.com/Ferret/yourwebpage5.msnw
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-products.html
* http://www.ferretfacts.com/ferret-shelter-directory-us-ferret-shelters.html

VETS USA:
* http://www.quincyweb.net/quincy/vet.html
* http://ferrethealth.org/vets/
* http://www.ferret-universe.com/vets/vetlist.asp
* http://www.ferretsanctuary.com/vets.shtml
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-vets.html
* http://ferrethealth.org/vets/

And here's some great information for new owners. Especially read the part about ferretproofing and making your house safe for your new little friend; and the importance of a healthy diet - no sweets or junk food. Things as simple as a rubberband or pencil eraser can cause an intestinal blockage and they can go from bouncing and happy one day to death's door the next: www.thechipster.com/fert-man.html

If your ferret turns out to be too old for surgery, there is an injection called LUPRON DEPOT that you can get and give every six months and it makes them just like normal on the outside, but the tumor continues to grow inside until the ferret finally dies. If your vet offers a Tennessee Panel for diagnostic purposes, I'd recommend not getting it - it is very expensive and less than half the time accurate - safer, quicker and wiser to put that money to surgery, even if it turns out to be exploratory and turns out not to be adrenal (not likely). There is no other disease that causes these symptoms, so adrenal disease pretty well defines itself with no diagnostic tests and most vets just recommend going into surgery asap. If you run into other questions, please don't hesitate to write again.  

P.S. Cut the Ferretone 1/2 and 1/2 with virgin olive oil so he doesn't get too many vitamins from the Ferretone.  Dribble a puddle of it on his belly and while he's busy licking it off, use human fingernail clippers and clip the curved part off his nails so he doesn't get them stuck in blankies or towels. They don't mind as long as you stay calm and just do it. I sing to mine while I do it and add more Ferretone on the belly if you have to. Once the nails are trimmed, I think since he has lost so much fur, he'd probably really appreciate a few extra warm blankies. A ferret's NORMAL BODY TEMPERATURE is 103 degrees....so keep him in a warm place, but never put him in a place where the room temperature is 80 degrees or more. They do better in cooler, but with lots of blankies as long as their nails are trimmed.

Also, IF it looks like he has a bellybutton, it is a he (that's his penis). Ferrets with advanced adrenal disease can have swollen prostate glands and difficulty urinating, so watch him in the litterbox and if he is straining or returning to the box and unable to go, feel for hardness in tummy or swelling and if it is and he isn't peeing, please get him to the vet immediately to be catheterized. That's the greatest concern with advanced adrenal disease so pleasle do keep an eye on him for that. His bladder can rupture and cause horrible pain and death. Once the surgery is done, though, about 5 days afterwards, you have a brand new ferret and new  fur starts growing back in - it's just amazing to watch !  

Please update me soon?  I will keep your little guy in my thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers