Hi,
 
If you have no AC and you're faced with the problems of keeping ferrets
cool in your house, you could try what I do.
 
Michigan only gets a few days above 90 a year.  I've found that my ferrets
tolerate temps up to 90 perfectly fine; they sleep more when it's in the
80's, but they're still all curled up in a big (warm) pile inside their
hammock until it hits 90.  At 90, they start stretching out on the cage
floor and shelves...anyway.
 
Overnight, I open all my windows and use 2 or more fans to blow night air
into the apartment.  Usually temps get down into the 70s at night even when
it's 90+ during the day.  At 8 am or so, or whenever the sun gets over the
trees and starts heating things up, I drop all the blinds and curtains,
shut all the windows, and try to lock my apartment up into a nice dark cool
(hopefully) cave for the day.  This works to keep the place a good 10-15
degrees below outside temps until about 6 or 7pm, at which point I give them
all cold fresh water and let them out so they can find the coolest spots in
the house for themselves.
 
Yesterday it was in the mid-90's here with 62% humidity making a 100+ degree
heat index, and all the ferrets were bright and chipper all day.  It stayed
about mid-70s in my apartment until the mid evening.
 
Take especial care that the windows on the sides of the building where the
sun hits are very well covered; I've found that simple things like turning
the blinds louvers the wrong way allow enough sun to come in to heat my
apartment up quickly.
 
Melissa
 
<> <> <> <> <> <>
<> melissa litwicki               [log in to unmask]
<> i'd like to meet a spaceman who's got it goin' on
[Posted in FML issue 2378]