I've had to put to sleep nine ferrets in the last six months. Four in
particular have just ripped my heart out. I have another precious baby
that won't make it through the week and another with a month or two to
go. Someone asked me why I keep putting myself through this.

A ferret came in today about seven years old and nearly hairless with
just some tufts of hair on her head and sides. Her vulva is distended a
good half inch. She has red marks all over from scratching with nails
that were way too long. She has cataracts so badly you can actually
clearly see them. She had a stool that looked like it could be black,
so she may have a bleeding ulcer. Gratefully, she's not starved. She
was being kept in one of the tall Super Pet cages, only without any
shelves. So she was confined to the small square area of the bottom
of the cage and being kept on cedar shavings. I gave her children's
antihistamine right away to alleviate the itching and trimmed her nails
of course. I put her in the top level of the Ferret Nation cage. She
curled up on the bottom shelf by the litter box because she didn't know
how to climb the ladder to get to the next shelf. She is absolutely
adorable though. When I let her out, she was bouncing all over and
trying to play with me, and so very, very happy.

As hard as it is to lose these little guys, especially so many, it is
well worth the joy I get when I've been able to make them this happy.
She may only live a few more months or even weeks, but at least it will
not be a miserable time and I've done what I can to make this time
probably the best of her life.

Debbie,
Kindness Matters Ferret Rescue

[Posted in FML 7156]