Just my $.02 on the caging issue.
 
We moved to a two bedroom apartment a while ago and I posted a question
about whether or not we should continue to cage them - I was going to throw
the cage away - I planned on giving them free roam of the 2nd bedroom at all
times, and letting them have full roam of the rest of the apartment only
when we were home.
 
The best piece of advice I got here on the FML (and I'm sorry, I don't
remember who's advice it was!!) was to KEEP THE CAGE.  They said that you
never knew when you'd need to cage....and they were right.
 
So during the day while we work, the ferrets have access to the second
bedroom only.  Their cage is in the second bedroom, but it is open for them
to come and go.  They use it for the oversized hammock on the second floor
only.  Since we have 6 ferrets, it wouldn't be fair to them to cage them all
of the time because of the size of the cage - it was meant for 2 or three
ferrets tops, not 6.
 
When we come home, we let them out of the room and they have full roaming
until bedtime.  9 times out of ten, they get caged for the night because
usually around 2 or 3 am, one of them gets up and digs at the door.  We put
carpet liner down, but he just tugs it out from under the door, jamming the
door in the process.  Hmph.  So for the night, they get caged and when I
wake up the next morning, I let them out for an hour or so before I leave
for work, then they get put in the room for the day.
 
I think this situation works best for us.  Its a little of both worlds.
 
- Mish
 
MICHELLE Z MATTA
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Carnegie Mellon University......Athletic Dept
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http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/mish/home.html
[Posted in FML issue 1599]