I wrote these lines after rescuing my boy Taz from a bad situation in a
pet store.  I had already decided that I would never buy another pet store
ferret then saw this huge silver ferret trapped in a small round cage
with baby ferrets.  When he saw us looking at him he kept bashing himself
against the lid of the cage.  When I picked him up he immediately laid
my hand open with slashing bites.  He had been returned several times and
God alone knows what he had endured each time.  He is safe and secure in
a permanent home with us now and no longer draws blood.  He is still
exceptionally skittish but is slowly learning to trust us.
 
Free
 
Pleading eyes, dancing body
"Please set me free
Ferrets weren't made to be caged"
Excited decision, eager homecoming
Bouncing exuberance, reveling in freedom.
"No, I won't go back in a cage!"
"You are not my saviors,
You are as false as every other human"
Anger, fear, betrayal of trust,
"I must hurt them as their trickery has hurt me!"
"Yet, they hold me gently as I bloody them"
"They release me from my cage each morning,
There are treats and toys, quiet voices and soft touches
Could they be the ones, is there hope for me?
I still doubt and yet yearn for the chance to live as I deserve
Free of fear, free of pain, free of broken promises,
FREE!
 
dedicated to Taz and to all ferrets still looking for a home
[Posted in FML issue 3520]