Two years ago on Good Friday (and I didn't see anything good about it...)
my Renate, who had been sick for some time, passed away.  A few weeks
later, foster girl Sparkle came to me quite sick with lymphoma, and
passed away after a very short time with us, and my little Shannon died
this past October.  Please check on them all-they were all very
independent little girls, but definitely part of the crowd here.
 
Renate was the boss of everyone, including all my big boys, and was a
momma's girl who followed me everywhere and would sit at my feet and wait
for me while I did anything, like wash dishes.  She was usually only
about 370 grams, which made her spunk and command over the boys even more
impressive, but when she was feeling okay, she had the strength to drag
a 5-pound bag of potatoes across the floor every chance she got (I don't
know what she was doing with them!).  She was quite the fighter and a
very spunky girl despite her dire illnesses; she was definitely a
princess in every sense.
 
Sparkle was a very sweet girl who gave lots of kisses and was pleased to
have a place of her own even just to stash treats.  She came from a bad
situation where she wasn't given the love, time, attention or care she
deserved.  Her last weeks at least were filled with attention and love
and happiness despite being so sick, and I hope she knows she was loved.
To this day I feel awful because the pictures I took of her before she
died didn't come out and her former owners never took any.
 
Shannon was taken from us very quickly and unexpectedly, and it was hard
for us all; when I brought her into the ferrets' room so everyone could
say goodbye to her when she died after a tricky surgery, all five of my
remaining ferrets, even my independent Cora who almost always sleeps
alone and isn't usually a big snuggler, climbed into Shannon's favorite
little bed with her and laid their heads across her and stayed with her
for a long time.  For me that is the end of the debate about whether or
not animals love.  Shannon was my quiet girl who liked to find odd places
to sleep and preferred to explore on her own rather than roughhouse, but
also enjoyed running through the tubes, even by herself.  When she first
arrived at our house, she would cluck to herself in running commentary,
like a crazy old lady in the park, when she was exploring-I called her my
little crazy bag lady.  Her fur was the softest.
 
They didn't know each other, but I hope they've all been introduced and
know we miss them and still think of them often.
 
-April and the current Auburn Five (Marley, Cora, Nicodemus, Finnegan
 and Bandit)
[Posted in FML issue 4482]