To Mason Weinrich <[log in to unmask]>, who wrote:
 
> In the past few weeks Slinky will appear to be hiccuping. [...]  It
> usually disappears within 30 seconds - at most, 2 minutes.  Any
> ideas, or has anyone else seen anything like this?
 
Our ferrets sometimes hiccup too, maybe one bout every few months.
The first time it happened to each of them, the affected ferret looked
rather frightened ("What's happening to me?!"), but by the second time
they both took it in stride.
 
For [log in to unmask] (Rebecca Clayton), who asked:
 
> I'm afraid to let the Woozle out of her cage when I'm not in the
> room to supervise.  [...snip...] (she's out for about 2-3 hr on
> weekdays, 5 or 6 on weekends), and see her playmates --human or
> feline. Is this enough time "at large?"
 
Completely ferretproofing a room can be a big job.  It took us nine
months before we had a room well enough done that we felt safe leaving
our furries loose in it when we weren't home.  (Part of that was
training the ferrets, too.)  If you don't have anywhere you can
protect well enough, two or three hours of play time plus more on
weekends should be fine -- ours are rarely awake for much longer than
that anyhow.
 
> To Robert and Lynda Morin concerning Bibitte's tumor -
 
I'd be happy to send you a copy of the excellent article on insulinoma
that Dr. Williams wrote and sent to the FML a while ago.  (It's part
of the Insulinoma FAQ, which should be released soon.)  Just let me
know.
 
====================
 
About travel between the US and Canada:
 
According to the Ontario Tourist Bureau (US phone number
800-668-2746), who looked up the information in the Canadian Customs
book for me, "small mammals, skunks, squirrels, ferrets, lizards and
turtles" as pets, traveling with their owners, don't need any health
certificate to enter Canada from the US.   The AAA (American
Automobile Association) here tells me that dogs and cats, at least,
need a signed rabies certificate to enter the US.  They didn't know
about ferrets, but I wouldn't be surpried.  I guess the best thing to
do would be to "declare" your ferrets at your home-country's Customs
office, to be sure you won't have problems bringing them back.
 
And now, my own question: has anyone put this information to the test?
How did it work out?  I'll be driving from Maine to Montreal, into New
Brunswick, and back through Quebec and perhaps Ontario to western New
York.  Are there any Canadian FFZs or anything else for me to worry
about?  (Does anyone know of a good place to stay near Montreal? :)
 
[Ottawa is only two hours north of Montreal ;-)  There are a couple
of city-wide FFZs, but it doesn't include any of the major cities.]
 
Thanks!
 
- Pam in Rochester, NY  ([log in to unmask])
Ferret FAQ 1.2: rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet/news.answers/pet-ferret-faq/general
 
[Posted in FML issue 0861]