That is always a good idea. But, in a fire, you're not going to be
hauling all of those cages.....and you might even have to jump out a
window. Here are a couple of tips:

Keep rope in the room in case you have to lower carriers down (or you
down) if you get stuck in the room during a fire and it is upstairs.
There are also rescue ladders that should be kept in rooms upstairs,
but it's hard to climb down and carry a carrier, so rope is a good
tool. Keep a hook at the end so you can lower more than one if
necessary (once the carrier is down you can loosen slack and the hook
will undo itself if it is a good shape; do a practice run (without a
ferret in the carrier) during fire drills.

Keep as many carriers as you need in the room where the ferrets are.
If you have a lot of ferrets that get along, remember that in a medium
sized cat carrier, numbers around 9 or more can get overheated because
their heat gets trapped (this depends on the temperature outside). In
a 70 degree car, my babies overheated together in one carrier once a
hammock was put in, so I had to take it out.

If you have a large rescue, the cardboard carriers aren't going to help
unless they are already put together. Expect to have a large closet
full of carriers.

OR!~ if you are handy, and the ferret room has a ground level escape
that is fool-proof (such as a patio door, or a door straight to the
outside) you can use a large tote. Drill holes in the lid for air, and
make sure it's the locking lid type. Deep enough so that they can't
jump out while you're putting them in it. That way you can maximize
the number that can be hauled out. Plus, it can hold lightweight toys
or other things that can be dumped out at a moment's notice.

For emergency purposes, have a backup place if you can set up with more
cages. This is ridiculous sounding to most people. Of course, it's not
a good solution, but if you have large groups that get along, extra
midwest cages in the garage or at a friends house, or even in storage,
will come in handy to set up at the place you are staying at
after/during a disaster. I keep one in my car in case we have to book
it. After I bought my ferret nation cages I really wanted to throw it
away, but what happens if I have to live at a hotel? Or leave the
state?

If your carriers are big enough the ferrets can live in them
temporarily by using hammocks and wire/string to put plastic cups and
water cups (cut two small holes in the cup, string the string through,
tie to slots inside cage). Not the best, but most people can find
string and plastic cups at the store after being kicked out of thier
house.

Laryssa

[Posted in FML 5965]