Jasmin has always been a little different than our other ferrets.  He
never seemed, well, very bright.  He just never seemed to "get it" when
the others obviously did.  For example: When the cage doors are opened
and we call them to come play, they will come running down the ramps to
come to the open doors.  Jasmin, however, will just stay where he is,
flatten out, and watch us with a sad look, like "why do they get to play
and I don't?" There is a door under our waterbed that the other ferrets
will turn on their sides, scratch at it to open it a slit, then slip in
their paws to get it open far enough to crawl through.  Jasmin will
scratch it once or twice, then flatten out by it sadly.  So we have always
said, "Poor Jasmin...he's the most affectionate ferret we've ever seen,
but he just isn't very smart." Until the other day.  We were playing with
them when my husband suddenly looked at me and said, he's a LOT smarter
than we thought!  He puts on a show of a half-hearted attempt to do
something that the other ferrets can do with a little effort.  Then he
lays down and look sad and pathetic, always looking STRAIGHT AT US, until
we feel sorry for him and lift him out of the cage, or open the door for
him, or pick him up to set him where the others are jumping to, or get
his toy down for him, etc.  This whole time he's had us trained, AND WE
DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT!
 
Shannon (feeling rather stupid and outsmarted by her ferret) Sterling,
Pandora, and Jasmin "you just gotta be smarter than those silly hoomans,
and you can get them to do anything you want...they'll spoil you rotten!"
[Posted in FML issue 3761]