Mira update - 9/24/97 - Mira continues to heal, and, we just recently
noticed, has begun to grow some hair around the edges of her burns!  How
much hair she will regrow is uncertain, but it appears that Mother Nature
may be very forgiving with Mira.  Her back is fresh with scarred but healing
white skin.  Some red, mosit skin remains under her front legs, which has
been slower to heal.
 
We have carefully observed how she manages to climb, considering her shoulder
damage is roughly equal to having her arms glued into their sockets (you can
get a rough idea of how Mira moves by keeping your shoulders stiff and
imagining the arm cannot move in the socket.  She can move her elbows, but
her walk is suggestive of a wind-up toy moving side to side).  When she
wants to get up into a basket or up onto the top of a toy, she rears her
entire body up similar to a rearing horse!  It is truly amazing to watch how
persistence and perseverance, not to mention determination, serves the
physically challenged.  I have learned to respect the body's capacity to
heal!
 
Each day we bring her into a larger room without any other ferrets to bother
her so she can walk around and exercise her muscles.  It is encouraging to
see how active she is!  And I can say I do not believe she is in any pain.
We are, of course, cautious when handling her so as not to aggravate her
shoulder injury.
 
We wish to thank the readers of the FML and those visitors to our website
who have sent donations on her behalf.  FACT is holding all donations in a
special "Mira Fund" for her eventual reconstruction surgery.  At this point
we do not have a veterinarian who has volunteered to do the surgery.  We'll
cross that bridge after her skin has thoroughly healed.
 
In the meantime, Mira comes out to "play" daily and loves to settle in a
warm lap after she tires herself out - which can take a while.  She is still
a ferret and all nooks and crannies must be explored, even if she is a bit
slow!
 
We will continue to post periodically of her progress and hope to update her
photo on our website in the next few weeks.  Thanks, again, to all, for
their words of encouragement and concern over little Mira.
 
Ann Gruden
FACT, Inc.
http://www.ferret-fact.org/
[Posted in FML issue 2079]