Put Down Adrenal Ferret?

Question
Hi my names sheena and i have a question about one of my ferrets. my mother and i have 3 ferrets, 2 males and 1 female, and we just discovered that everytime one of the males go around the female the other male attacks the other male and all 3 of them are fixed, it has been going on for 2-3 weeks now but the other day we took one of the males out and put him in his own cage. i was wondering why he would be doing that? the one female and male have been together since my friend had bought them. i was just wondering why he would be doing that? and another question is that the ferret we seperated from the other 2 may have adrenal disease and he's losing ALOT of fur and he has sores on his body and we were wondering if it is adrenal disease. and also we were wondering how much would it cost to put him down because we don't have the money to give him surgery when the surgery may or may not even cure the disease so we were wondering how much do you think it would cost to put him down. he is about 3-5 years old. please write back when you can. thanks

Thanks
Sheena Demery

Answer
Hi Sheena:

I'm so sorry to hear you have a ferret who sounds like he may have adrenal tumors. Adrenal disease will definitely make the ferret more aggressive and will also cause the fur loss you are describing, in addition to sores on his body.  No doubt he is very uncomfortable.

The good news is that surgery absolutely cures adrenal disease.  Once the tumor/s are removed, the ferret will have a good appetite, be energetic and regrow fur before you know it!  I would hate to see you put him down just because he has adrenal disease.  There may be a ferret shelter in your area that would be willing to take your ferrets and get the sick ferret the vet help he needs. Unfortunately, it's not really a good idea to separate the ferrets, so you will probably have to keep all of them together. It is not unusual for ferrets to mourn terribly when one goes away or dies. They are no doubt very bonded to one another and separating them often will cause disease and/or depression and death.

Putting a ferret down will cost under $100, but again, I don't think this is a solution to your problem, as adrenal disease is easily cured.  You may also want to consider putting him on Lupron injections, which do not cure the disease, but they do take away the symptoms of aggressiveness and hair loss and body sores. Lupron is rather expensive tho, and I always think it is better to give them the cure instead of just masking the symptoms.

The cost of adrenal surgery depends on where you live. Here where I live, it can be anywhere from $200 to $2,000 depending on what vet you use.  Vets who do a lot of ferret surgeries have the necessary equipment and don't usually charge as much as a vet who doesn't usually work with ferrets.  After adrenal surgery, ferrets usually go on to live long and happy lives with no symptoms.

If you don't want to get the surgery for your ferret, I hope you will try to find someone else who will take all of your ferrets together and get the necessary medical treatment.  Here is a list of shelters; hopefully there will be one in your area that can help guide you.  PLEASE don't wait - it sounds like your ferret is very very uncomfortable and sick.


SHELTERS - CANADA, GERMANY, NEW ZEALAND
 * http://www.ferretfacts.com/ferret-shelter-directory-international-ferret-shelter...

SHELTERS/RESCUES - UK (ENGLAND)
* http://www.everythingferret.com/ferret_shelters.htm
* http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ferreter/ferretrescues.htm
* http://www.ferretfacts.com/ferret-shelter-directory-international-ferret-shelter...

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

Also, here are some lists of FERRET VETS that you may want to check for someone in your area so you can compare prices:

VETS CANADA:   
* http://www.ferretrescue.ca/start.php
* http://tinylink.com/?TlVyYKa6e0
* http://www.ferrets.org/Veterinarian_Listings.htm   (British Columbia)
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-vets.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/

VETS  UK & IRELAND:  
* http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ferreter/vetlist.htm

VET INFO/ LIST OF FERRET GROUPS/ CONTACTS IN UK, ITALY, NEW ZEALAND, AUSTRALIA, NETHERLANDS, GERMANY & DENMARK:       
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-overseas.html (scroll down page to find the one you are looking for)

PLEASE, whatever you decide to do, don't wait.  Your little one is depending on you to take care of him. He doesn't know what is going on, only that he feels sick and needs extra love and care.  Surgery will cure him and make him like a young, energetic ferret again, once you get him past the recovery from surgery.  IF you do decide to get surgery for him, please write again and let me help you care for him after his surgery. He will need just a little extra love and care for a week or so and I'll be happy to guide you thru the process. It doesn't require much, mostly love and cuddles and just a few things to make him more comfortable while he recovers.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers