>does anyone know how ferrets and birds get along?
 
We know!  We got Snowball because the petstore owner was furious at him
for eating a $150 cockatiel.  Seems Snowball (AKA Houdini) could escape
from *anything,* and he is an unbelieveable climber, so when the pet store
was closed...he had a tummyache for a week, poor baby.  Luckily, I worked
at the petstore at the time, and I had just brought home his cagemate,
Tiferet.  When I got to work that morning, the owner met me at the door
saying "you know you really want 2 ferrets!  Take this one!  Please!" :-)
Since he's been here (3 years), he's only escaped a couple of times,
hasn't eaten out parakeet (whew!), tried to play "ride the rabbit" once
(rabbit still hasn't emotionally recovered from *that* one), and hides
from the cat, who loathes him.  Funny thing is, Snowball will *not* eat
table scraps, raw chicken, cooked chicken, raw beef, cooked beef...only
his Totally Ferret.  Go figure.  I look at him and say "you ate an entire
cockatiel, how can you not like a hamburger???"
 
Regarding human babies...I have 6 children under the age of 12, 3 ferrets,
a cat, a rabbit, a parakeet, and fish.  And a job.  And a husband.  And
I do volunteer work.  And, yes, the demands from all sides *do* get
stressful at times, and they do conflict at times.  Sometimes the ferrets
don't get enough attention, sometimes the kids don't get enough, sometimes
I have to call in sick to work because someone needs to go to the
dentist/doctor/vet, etc....but we all do the best we can, and in the
LONG run, I don't feel that anyone is losing out.  We don't have a lot
of money, but there's a WHOLE LOT of love in this house.  And the kids
have learned the meaning of unconditional love from the animals.
Frankly, I want my kids to grow up knowing that they aren't the center
of the universe, and that other people's and animals' needs have to be
considered.  I make sure they understand the imact that littering,
polluting, etc.  have on the environment and on the animals.  I make sure
they understand that you *can't* drag a ferret by the leash.  I make sure
that the cat doesn't get picked up by his front legs, or that a younger
sibling doesn't get smashed in the head with a toy.  I spend a lot of time
on this, and I'm usually supervising and preventing 3 or 4 accidents and
injuries at the same time!  Yes, it would be "easier" to have only one
child (or one ferret) and keep things simple.  Some days I think, "what
was I thinking?  Maybe I can just run away and hide somewhere until all
the kids are grown?" (That thought is usually interrupted by me screaming
"don't you *touch* that cat with those sticky hands!") But in the end,
it's worth it.  I'm raising sensitive, generous children with a great
sense of responsibility and caring.  It hasn't been easy, and it's not
over yet.  But it's valuable.  Who ever said the important stuff would be
easy?
 
Think about it long and hard before deciding that babies and pets are
mutually exclusive.  Yes, you are right, for the first six weeks or so,
the ferrets will be somewhat neglected.  But you know what?  That's
TEMPORARY!  Eventually, life stablilizes again and GOES ON.  There does
come a time when there's more to life than feed the baby, burp the baby,
change the baby.  And since a ferret lives 7-12 years, one or two months
out of their lives won't dramatically change things for them in the long
run.
 
Also, to get through those first couple of months or so, it's possible to
get a friend, teenage girl or boy, relative, etc.  to help you with the
baby and/or the animals.  When we went through a difficult time here in
1999 (I was totally incapacitated for a while by a back injury), besides
all the teenage girls who came to babysit the kids, we had a girl who came
to clean the ferret cage and play with the ferrets.  My kids could do the
tasks of feeding and changing water, but needed help and supervision with
other things.
 
Just some things to think about.
 
Take care,
Chana Rosen
[Posted in FML issue 3571]