I read Susan Malone's post yesterday about La Donna who wanted to adopt the
hard to place.  It is those people that truly make being a shelter operator
the most rewarding.  As I tell all my potential adopters, the one thing
that I stress the most is to find loving, caring, LIFE LONG homes for those
entrusted in my care.  With me they have a home and will never want for
food, water, copmanionship and love.  Obviously though they would blossom
in a home where they got more out of cage time and were not in such a large
group with such a limited bidget.
 
This is my Once In A Blue Moon Woman:
About 2 years ago I had a woman call me wanting to place her 2 ferrets but
one was completely bald and she did not want to waste the money on the vet
since she was going to get rid of them.  GRRRRR Any way, the little girl
had been bald for over a year and was not getting around to well.  We
arranged to have them dropped off the next day and I made an appointment
for her at the vet in the afternoon.  The woman was by the next morning but
with only one, When she went to the cage to get them out, the little girl
was dead.  I could not help but to severely lecture her as to her failure
in not only commitment but responsibility.  She was very haughty and I
realized quickly that I was wasting my breath.  The boy that came in was
a most pitiful sight.  He had been declawed and was very old.  he was a
cuddler.  It was love at first sight.  (When isn't it?) That night I got a
call from a woman who knew someone that had adopted from me in the past.
She had1 little girl, Crystal and was looking for a companion of her same
advanced years.  The first thing that I did was to call Debbie and ask
about her.  She had wonderful things to say.  I called Kendra back and
described the Old Man that just came in.  I was calling him Bear.  She
asked to see him, and as with me it was love at first sight.  For 2 years
Kendra loved and cuddled Bear (AKA, Old Guy).  When Crystal died 6 months
ago, She loved on him even more.  Bear went blind last winter and developed
insulinoma.  Surgery was not an option because of his age and failing
health.  Kendra worked long days but placed her breaks strategically so
that she could go home and give him his half jar of baby food every 4 hours
in addition to the ferret food he was eating.  She kept this old guy going
without meds for about a year, with love, just pure love.  She called me
last Saturday to let me know that she had Bear put to sleep.  He had grown
very uncomfortable and was not sleeping.  The vet said that there was
little they could do to ease his pain and extend his life so she loved him
enough to end his pain.  She wanted me to keep her in mind if I had another
hard to place or old one that came in.
 
I am privilged to know Kendra and to call her my friend.  Please remember
that when you go looking for that perfect little one year old, that
adopting a 4 or 5 year old ferret can be just as rewarding.  You would be
providing a loving home to a senior ferret, and that in the end love
conquers, because that is all they really need.  Bear and Kendra bear
witness to that.
 
Hug all you old ones today for Bear.
 
Diana and The Ferret Farm
[Posted in FML issue 3050]