Remember the Casper movie ghosts - Casper, Stretch, Stinky and Fatso?  Well
here is the story of the Casper family ferrets.
 
The beginning is unclear but for the last year these 4 lived in a Midwest
cage with pine shavings in the bottom, one hammock hung from the top of the
cage and one shelf on the top wire.  The only way to the hammock or shelf
was to climb the side of the cage and boy could these little ones climb.
There were 2 empty food bowls in the cage and no food was given when they
were picked up.  I cringe to think how long they had been out of food or
how they had been fed (or should I say not fed).  They lived mainly in that
cage, in constant view, with a family of 6 children, 7 dogs, and some cats.
The family decided they wanted to sell the ferrets for whatever reason
(perhaps the soon arrival of another child or as the man told me he was
tired of paying $10 a month for their food).
 
When I first saw this group I thought Casper was a girl.  He was a tiny
skinny albino male.  Stretch and Stinky (now named Snickers) were skinny
little girls and Fatso had weight but it was oddly distributed.  Their
nails were very long and they were all very frightened of being held as if
they were afraid they would be mishandled or they would be dropped.  Fatso
was, and still is, the laid back one.  Snickers is a loving kissy girl
and Stretch is full of playfulness.  Stretch quickly found our outside
enclosure and delighted in running out in the cold dark morning hours only
to run up on my bed to roust me up at 4 a.m.  with a cold nose to the legs
and gentle ankle nibbles to get me to move my feet so she could chase them.
 
Casper was the worst of the group.  Fortunately I've been sick so I was
home on sick leave and could spend extra time with these little ones.  My
primary concern, after making sure everyone was eating well and enjoying
our recipe, was to work with Casper to get weight put on him.  Each time
Casper awoke I was standing ready with another dish of warmed recipe, which
he loved.  He must have eaten the recipe, and a hefty amount, at least 10
times a day (I even fed him when he awoke at 1am).  It was as if he was
afraid that there would come a time that the food would be gone and he
would get none.  He seemed a bit different and I watched as he cautiously
roamed our home, one room at a time for a few days before he'd venture to
the next.  Something wasn't quite right.  The first few days I studied him
then I started testing.  I'd clap my hands behind him with no response, I'd
jingle keys and no response.  When he'd walk it was slow but his head was
held up.  When he came to a cage he'd sniff around the outside but never
quite seemed to find the door going in.  I 'thought' he might be deaf and
I 'thought' he might not be able to see but his actions weren't quite the
same as what I'd observed in others, except for the no response to sound.
 
After a few days I sat down and gave his ears a good cleaning.  They were
gunky and afterwards he seemed to hear a bit.  But waving my hand directly
in front of his adorable little face never elicited any response.  Casper
appeared to be blind or partially so.  Yet he had become so confident in
our home, walking with his head held high and climbing cages (on the
outside as he still didn't find the entry doors).  He had already put on a
noticeable amount of weight and was filling out quite nicely.  The others
too had gained and Fatso was now filled out in proportion as well.
 
Casper had become my ferret.  Each time he'd awaken he'd search me out and
we'd play hand/mouth wrestle on the bed after each feeding.  His first
dance brought tears to my eyes.  Instead of big bounces, he did little
hops then he'd roll over on his bag and grab his back legs with his front,
wiggle his little body with mouth wide and head moving.  He loves going
under the towel and biting through.  Oh when he first came he bit hard but
with only a few days of gentle playing, lots of recipe and plenty of tlc he
was no longer a hard biter and gently nibbled my hands as we played.
 
Monday we went to see Larry (our vet).  Casper had doubled his weight (he
weighed barely a pound a week before and was well over 2 now), his ears
looked fine and he could hear some if not completely, but he is totally
blind.  His pupils were unresponsive to light and stayed dilated.  Still,
as we watched him explore the exam room you wouldn't know he was blind.
Casper aptly wrapped his little paws around Larry's heart and brought a
smile to his face.  So much confidence for one that had been through so
much.  And Casper continues to capture the hearts of all those he meets.
He is a very special little one.
 
My heart aches for these little ones, and especially Casper for his
handicaps and near starvation.  To be blind and partially deaf can be
deadly in some households and for Casper it almost was.  I don't know how
this group had been fed but my guess is it was a handful now and again and
if Casper was sleeping or didn't hear the bowl being filled there may not
have been any food left when he was able to get to it.
 
I can't make up for their past, but I can work on their future and give
them all the love, care, and feeding they can stand (and then some). :-)
 
Hugs to all. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart
Ferret Family Services
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/
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[Posted in FML issue 3303]