I seldom post, but I would like to participate in the "positive" challenge.
I guess it's my way of paying tribute to people like Dr. Williams, Bob C,
BIG, the shelter operators, as well as people like me who are under the
magic spell of ferrets and share their stories.
 
Being owned by ferrets in CA is lonely.  There aren't many people who
understand just how special these little balls of fur are.  I'm sure many
of my friends secretly think I'm just a little "strange"; my family knows
how very precious my little ones are to me and are very good at humoring
me.  Reading the FML has made being a ferret lover seem less lonely.  It's
nice to know that my house is not the only house that is decorated with
clear plastic tubing and bedding in corners where litter boxes won't fit.
It's reassuring to know that other people dread taking vacations because
being separated from the little devils feels like going through what drug
withdrawals must feel like.  Although painful, it helps to know that the
loss of a much loved ferret leaves the same huge, gaping hole in other's
hearts as it has mine.
 
When I think back to what I knew about ferrets 11 years ago when my first
two put the ferret spell on me, I am amazed they survived to be 7 years
old.  Without the FML, I would not know about duck soup which is what saved
little Cleo when she arrived here nothing more than patches of fur and
bones and refusing to eat.  I would not have known that Rusty had adrenal
disease from personality and urinating changes before he ever lost any
fur, which enabled me to have him treated in the very early stages.
 
Without the FML, I would have missed the valuable input regarding deaf
ferrets which has undoubtedly made Pup's life easier.  I would not have
known the proper dosage of Benadryl for his allergies, or even that he
could have Benadryl.
 
Without the FML, I would not have the knowledge I need to seek out a truly
ferret knowledgeable vet in California because here, you NEED to know that
the distemper shot they're getting is Fervac D because some CA vets do not
know that.
 
Without the FML, I would have missed being inspired by the ferret shelter
people who tirelessly work on behalf of the needy little ones.  Without
this inspiration, I might not have added seven refugees to the one furry
household that I had.  At night when I check on them all curled up and
sleeping peacefully in the last home these little ones will ever have, I
can't even imagine what I would have missed had I not made room for just
one more who was lost and needed a home, just one more who bit because he
was "mean" (translation - deaf and misunderstood), just one more who no
one wanted in the divorce settlement, just one more who would not eat and
thrive, and finally, just three more who had been bounced from two homes
due to their "high energy, destructive personalities" (translation --
caged, bored, & ignored).
 
This is just some of what reading the FML has done for me; and more
importantly, what the FML has done for eight treasured ferrets.
 
Let's not deprive one ferret of the benefit of valuable shared information,
knowledge, or insight with ugly human behavior.
 
Posting anonymously to protect the innocent in CA
[Posted in FML issue 3333]