Coffee is home safe and sound, if rather smelly and dirty.  We think she
must have spent the day sleeping in moldy leaves, because that's what she
smells like.
 
Anyway, we were doing a final neighborhood sweep at about 10:00 pm last
night, and by this time both Kirk and I were attempting to prepare
ourselves to either never see her again or find her dead body.  I had
looked everywhere for what seemed like the millionth time and was heading
home, depressed, and my flashlight passed over a small foodbridge, and
Coffee.  I called her name and apparently scared the crap out of her,
because she darted back underneath the bridge.  I don't know if that's
where she spent the day, because I had checked it every time I left teh
house, she might have been curled up in leaves where I couldn't see her or
just heading home from someplace else and it was a convient bolt hole.  At
any rate, I went down on my hands and knees and reached under the bridge,
and she immediately cuddled into my hands once she recognized me.  The
poor baby was pretty tired, she went to sleep as soon as Kirk and I were
finished kissing and hugging her.  Didn't eat or drink much though, maybe
she caught a mouse or something while she was out.
 
I'd also like to publicly thank Stephanie of Ferrets, Etc for being
understanding, supportive, and willing to listen to me cry on the phone
several times during the day, as well as offer suggestions and help for
finding Coffee.  It was a stressful day, but you helped me get through it.
 
Michelle
 
--
Meet my pets.  The ferrets (Taz, Coffee, Daphne, and Tia), the gerbils (28
permanent residents and various babies), the zebra mouse (Racer), the rats
(five of them), the budgie (Sky), the cockatiel (Summer), and the fish
(various).
[Posted in FML issue 1235]