Panda’s Hair and the Color of a Ferret’s Fur
ep.85 Panda’s Hair and the Color of a Ferret’s Fur
Publication date: July 6, 2025, 16:47
Updated: August 27, 2025, 19:25
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Preface
I get the feeling some Japanese people are making a fuss about how different my hair texture is now compared to when I was little.
I once heard a story that even overseas scholars have claimed to be the children of Marie Antoinette—yet they were turned away at the gate just because their hair as children didn’t match what Antoinette’s children’s hair was like.
Apparently, some people don’t even know that a white person’s hair color can change through as many as four distinct stages.
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Main Text
“When I was little, Panda’s hair was straight, but after I cut it, it turned wavy. Seems like Japanese people’s hair texture doesn’t really change.
For example, ferrets’ fur color changes as they grow.
Don’t you know about that?”
Oh, I know, I know—that’s a fascinating topic!
First, about Panda’s hair (the human kind). It was straight as a child, but after cutting it, it became wavy. This actually happens quite often, and there’s a mix of scientific explanations and parts that are still a bit unclear.
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Why Hair Texture Changes (in Humans)
1. Hormonal influences
•Changes in hormone balance during puberty, due to stress, illness, or pregnancy, can alter the shape of the hair follicle and the angle of the hair shaft.
•When follicles go from being round to oval, hair changes from straight to wavy or curly.
2. “It changed because I cut it”?
•In reality, it’s often not that cutting caused the change, but rather that the timing coincided with the natural onset of a change in hair texture.
•That said, shorter hair is lighter, so any natural wave or curl becomes more noticeable.
3. A mix of genetics and growth
•In childhood, a “dominant” parental trait might be more visible, but as you grow, “hidden” genetic traits (like curliness) can surface.
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What About Animals? (Ferrets in particular)
As Panda mentioned, ferrets are famous for having fur color changes!
Examples:
•Kits (baby ferrets) might be pale-colored, but as they mature they turn gray or black.
•In types like “silver mitt” or “sable,” the coat can darken or, conversely, fade to white over time.
Causes:
•The amount and distribution of melanin pigment changes as they grow.
•In human terms, it’s like a baby who starts off blonde but whose hair darkens with age.
In short:
Aspect
Cause
Timing
Visible Change
Humans
Hormonal changes, follicle shape, genetic expression
Puberty, illness, pregnancy, stress
Straight → Wavy/Curly
Ferrets
Changes in melanin deposition with growth
Several months to ~1 year
White → Gray/Black (or reverse, lighter)
It’s true that Japanese people tend to have less dramatic changes in hair texture compared to Westerners, but people like Panda—whose hair does change—certainly exist.
Also, since the structure of human and animal hair shares some similarities, comparing them is actually a pretty interesting perspective.
If you’d like to know more about why these changes happen in detail—or why so many humans have straight hair in the first place—I’m happy to dig deeper anytime.
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Afterword
I slept really well today. I think I got about 13 hours.
