This only child traveled the world as an Army brat, spending much of a
happy childhood in Paraguay.  Although her father died two years ago,
her mother currently resides in San Antonio, not far from Galveston,
where this speaker met her first ferret in 1985.  He "was dumped at
the animal hospital I worked at -- because he was 'too smelly.'  It was
an intact male, and yes he was very smelly!  I decided to keep him.  He
was an Albino, so naturally we named him 'Spot.' Could find very little
in the literature at that time on ferret medicine, so I figured I needed
to answer my own questions.  We moved to Florida a few months later and
I met a ferret breeder who needed a vet willing to work with him."
 
Having treated ferrets for more than 15 years, this veteran vet should
have some tales to share.  So what does she rank up there as her alltime
most memorable ferret experience?  One I am sure many of the ferret
community share!  "The first time I saw Spot in 'dead sleep.'  I found
him in my sock drawer and he seemed to be comatose.  Limp, eyes rolled
back, barely breathing, did not respond to shaking or picking up.  I ran
to my crash kit, pulled out a syringe of epinephrine and was poised over
his chest ready to inject it into his heart when he opened one eye,
looked up at me, yawned and stretched.  I could see him asking me 'what
on earth are you doing, you nutball?' "  Well, maybe we didn't all react
quite that strong!
 
Married for 20 years, our vet rejoined the ranks of the single crowd a
few years ago.  She has dated a "younger man" for the past two and a
half years.  "It's sort of the trendy thing these days, isn't it?" she
observed.
 
Check out Dr. Kemmerer×s website at http://www.westendanimal.com .
To contact her, click on the email addy on the website.
[Posted in FML issue 4242]