I just wanted to relate a story of something that happened over the
weekend that I thought would be a good reminder.  Sarah (my silver mitt)
has lived in the kitchen for three years.  When we moved into the house, I
thoroughly ferret-proofed the kitchen including putting in a knee-high
door so she could run free in the kitchen instead of having to be in a
cage when we're not home or at night.  At about 2 am, Friday night, I
heard this awful screeching from the kitchen.  I lept out of bed and
rushed to the kitchen thinking some gigantic rat had gotten into our home
and was fighting with Sarah.  What happened was I had not closed a drawer
quite all the way and Sarah had gotten her paw stuck in it.  She was
screaming and thrashing around.  I opened the drawer and she was fine,
just scared, but that's proof to me that ferret-proofing is a continuous
process.
 
On past posts:
I have never seen ferrets in the wild, but I have seen them hunt.  A
neighbor of ours had a lot of them, both indoor and outdoor (like cats).
The indoor ones were just like Sarah, sweet and loving, but the outdoor
ones were mean and would hiss at you if you bothered them.  They hunted
mice in the sheds and the barn.  One of them even killed a kitten (which
was sad).  They were definitely not self-sufficient because my friend put
food out for them, but I did see a few kills.
 
Tracy - about hiccuping, Sarah hiccuped when she was a kit and has
continued to do so periodically ever since and she's almost four.  The vet
said it wasn't a problem as long as it didn't go on too long.
 
My sympathies to all who have lost their friends recently.
 
Caroline (Sarah's well-trained pet)
[Posted in FML issue 1188]