I was heartbroken to read the story about the ferret killed by an ignorant
jogger.  I can't believe the ignorance of someone who takes tameness as a
sign of rabies, and I can only hope that as more people learn about
ferrets, this kind of thing will be less frequent.  My heart goes out to
the poor fuzzy's owners as well; I'm sure you're crushed.  The sad thing
about this is that collars aren't even a sure protection against this kind
of mistake, because they can slip them so easily.
 
Something funny (and a bit disturbing) Scooter did last night:
 
I was sorting my laundry, and had a huge pile of clean socks in front of
me.  Scooter, the sock thief he is, ran up and stole one.  I didn't feel
like hunting all over the apartment for my socks, so I grabbed the sock.
He wouldn't let go.  I picked him up and asked him nicely to let go.  No
dice.  I told him firmly to let go.  Nothing.  I went to tap him on the
nose gently (this sometimes reminds him) and he shook his head violently
at me, making me think he might bite if I pushed him.  Then he started
hissing at me.    Eventually, I got the sock back, and Scooter got a long
lecture about talking to his father that way, but I was surprised.  I had
no idea they take the hoarding instinct that seriously!
 
Chris and Scooter
the Defender of the Socks
 
[Posted in FML issue 0848]