Hey, I don't think what you've experienced is over reactive or
strange at all. Many, many ferret people have described what you
are experiencing. I've owned all kinds of animals in my life -
conventional, farm, wild, and exotics. And none of them truly "spoke"
to me as you described. Mostly I name animals according to how they
look act and I sometimes take the type of species into consideration.
But ferrets are a bit different and I have had a few "tell me" their
names. I wish they all did, because I'm terribly fickle about naming
pets. I really agonize over it if nothing obvious hits me. So, it's
always a relief when a fuzzy little being "says" something to me. And
ultimately, I'm the happiest and most secure with those names in the
long run while others I sometimes regret later on.

Shenanigans. I saw her out of a huge group of DMK rescues, only because
she spoke to me. Hubby wanted this very unusually marked little girl. I
loved her too. But this other shy little girl who was always peeking
out of a sleep sack covered by other ferrets grabbed my attention
repeatedly. Every time I played with and considered another for
adoption, her eyes flashed me from the back of the room through all of
the cages and all of the other ferrets. I checked out her info and she
was one of the very, very few from that rescue that had any. She was
born on St Patrick's day of all things. Oddly enough, as I was deciding
about her other people around her thought of the name Shenaynay! So
weird. So I knew what her name was. And so I picked her. The other
ferret by the way? Ended up to be a real sweetheart and is a very
successful show ferret! lol.

Smoke. My husband never, ever dreams. But one day he woke up and said
that he dreamed that he had a white ferret named Smoke. That week I was
contacted by a shelter that had a ferret that they thought would fit my
family. I've never had a shelter do that before. So it was weird. They
sent a picture of the dark eyed WHITE ferret to my computer dressed up
in a Santa Suit.

I know those examples are not exactly what you are talking about. But
I indeed have had a few look into my eyes and a name pops right into
my head.

Wolfy

[Posted in FML 6466]