Hi, Shelly. We live on the North Side (Edgewater), and take our two to
Dr... um... I can't remember her name but she's at Niles Animal Hospital,
which is a bit out of the way for you, probably. That might not help much.
 
Shelterwise, there's the Greater Chicago Ferret Association shelter
somewhere out in the SW 'burbs. Roger McMillan on this list could give you
more info. But I believe they've had ECE there and don't like to adopt out
to homes with other ferrets who haven't had the disease. I could be wrong
about that, though. Roger?
 
Finally, a topic I can help out on is introducing a "helpless tiny little
girl" to a "big strong brute of a guy." Alexander (3 lbs + and gaining
every day, it seems) is twice Moxie's 1.5-lbs-soaking-wet size, but when
she and Alexander are wrestling, she regularly kicks his lazy ferret butt.
Her basic tactic is to run circles around him, then jump on his back and
bite the heck out of him, then just when he thinks he has her pinned into a
position where he can bring his bulk advantage to bear, she twists free and
goes back to running circles around him. Granted, he occasionally does the
"caveman" thing, grabbing her by the scruff of the neck and dragging her
around the apartment, but (a) she's never seemed the worse for wear, and
(b) it helps with the dusting.
 
So, the bottom line is, our tiny delicate little flower Moxie easily holds
her own against her pal Alexander who's twice her bulk. So, don't judge a
ferret by her size! ;)
 
JC
[Posted in FML issue 1479]