I'm posting the following note sent to me by Gloria Jouppien (with her
blessings of course!), who is the "mom" of  Sable, Whitey, and Tipper the Manx.
It's about some of the interesting things people say you when you're out with
your "kids." I thought the story was kind of special since although ferrets may
not have the same notoriety as search and rescue dogs, seeing-eye dogs,
sled-dogs, or any "working" animal, it does mean that they have not made any
less of a significant contribution to some people's lives. One such story
follows. Thanks Gloria! :)
 
-kim, mike,
Squirt,   "Whatta you mean I'm getting fat??!? It's relaxed muscle."
and Pippi    "The Thief of Sock-dad"
 
 
  Kimberly Burkard          |              _     Everything I needed to know in
  Xerox, Rochester, NY      |       _____C .._.  life I learned from my ferret:
  [log in to unmask]   |  ____/     \___/   Be flexible and go with life's
  [log in to unmask]  | <____/\_---\_\     twists and turns.
 
----------------Included Message------------------------
 
From: [log in to unmask] (Gloria Jouppien)
Subject:  ferret list contribution
 
Re posting:
 
I imagine we all have stories about outings with our little fuzzy kids
where some of the things people have said about them are truly "amazing."
 
 
My favorite outing was the day I met this older gentleman from Britain in a
park while walking Sable & Whitey (or, should I say while Sable was walking
me and Whitey was stopping me?) Anyhow, it seems when he was a boy, he and his
family used to keep them during hard times (had up to 15 at one point). He said
his didn't have such nice markings, and though he was fond of them, he and his
family didn't tame them too much, since it would be
counter-productive to why they had them in the first place. Food was very
scarce, so besides being their pets, their ferrets were also their
saviours. They'd take them to grassy knolls and fields, and let them track
down wild hares and rabbits for them. He said it was amazing how they could so
quickly zoom in on them, and how they could dig and dive into burrows with
exceptional speed and agility. Many families kept ferrets and thus benefitted
from their skill and smarts, avoiding starvation. He had such a
look in his eyes (nostalgia) and asked if he could pet them. I could tell
he must have loved his fuzzies very much.
 
Of course there are other good & funny run ins with people, but I don't
wanna bore you! Sorry this is so late. I've only lately found the time to
respond to all the ferret lists that have been literally piling up on my
hard-drive. Happy New Year to you and your family.
 
Sincerely,
Gloria Jouppien, Sable, Whitey, & Tipper the Manx.
 
P.S. I was ROTFL when I read this:
 
and Pippi   "hsss...yummm....sock...munch...hsss....run...sock....hide"
 
Read you later...
[Posted in FML issue 1071]