Got in from Orlando last night with a hurt back - not too hurt, but enough
to give me a few days off and some killer muscle relaxants.  I noticed a
couple of posts on the FML about ferrets chewing on electrical cords and
this stirred me to consciousness enough to post this warning and, hopefully,
helpful information.
 
I've been messing around with electricity on a professional level for thirty
+ years and have seen all too often the results of pets chewing on cords -
they can be disastrous for critters and people alike - everything from
critters going 'Over the Rainbow Bridge' to serious fires and human
fatalities.  If your fuzzy or any other beastie has a penchant for chewing
on cords, DON'T LET THEM DO IT!
 
Especially with Christmas coming on, please be aware of just how dangerous
electricity really is.  Christmas lights are pretty and nice but they can
look mighty ugly when they lay dark, and shattered, in a burned out house -
and somebody has been seriously hurt or killed by their misuse.  I know that
"It could never happen to me", but it can.  Should you find that your
critters cannot be dissauded from chewing on those cords, even after you've
done everything possible to hide them, reroute them and make them taste
disgusting; you need to go to your nearest home imrovement store (Home
Deopt, Lowes.  etc) and go to the electrical Dept and ask the salesperson
for wiremold.  Wiremold is made by the Wiremold Corp.  (Imagine that!) and
comes in a variety of materials and sizes.  What it is is a surface mount
raceway for electrical wires which is approved by the UL and permitted for
use by the National Electrical Code.  It snaps together, is easy to install
and will keep your critters out of the wires.  Ask your salesperson for a
catalogue of the stuff and you will see how versatle it really is and how
many ways it can be put together to protect wiring.  If you don't think the
wiremold is good enough for your problem (I'm sure it will be), go to your
local electrical supply house and ask for a Panduit catalogue.  This is the
heavy industrial stuff.  (No, BIG, this is not an ad for either of these
companies - I personally hate the stuff.  I've only installed enough of each
over the years to know that it's pretty good doodoo.)
 
WORD OF CAUTION: While both of these products can be installed without
exposure to any live wires, please, please call a licensed electrician to
help you if you experience any doubts or fears about doing it yourself.
(Don't forget, 'That there 'lectric causes cancer and can make a body
sterile.') Seriously though, protect yourself and your loved ones from
electrical wiring.  If fuzzies want to chew on it, they will unless you make
it impossible for them to do so.  Whoever said that cats are stubborn had,
obviously, never met a ferret.
 
'Nuff preachin' for now.  Think I'll take another happy pill and go crawl
into Tater's bed for the night.
 
Peas and carrots,
 
Michael (Paw Paw)
 
[Moderator's note: And please use the little bushings made for the ends of
the Wiremold.  I've seen many a melted wire because they were left off!  BIG]
[Posted in FML issue 1396]