Medical therapies for ferret adrenal disease

Adrenal disease in ferrets is commonly diagnosed in exotic pet practice. Ferret adrenal disease is characterized by sex steroid production, histamine production, and adrenal tissue neoplasia. While the underlying causes of the disease are being investigated, including the effects of prepuberty gonadectomy on the adrenal glands and subsequent development of the disease, effects of the longer light cycle imposed by keeping these animals as house pets, and the probability of one or more types of tumor suppressor genes aberrancies, this still leaves the practitioner with the dilemma of treating the individual pet ferret, which may present with the disease well under 1 year of age. Surgery to remove one or more diseased glands is often considered the primary treatment option. In those cases where adrenalectomy is not feasible or desired, or as an adjunct to surgery, several options exist for medical management of excess hormone production and control of symptoms.