Lisa wrote:
>I have to admit that once my ferrets go I will not be getting anymore.
>But only because I will be responsible and admit I cant pay the vet
>bills it takes to keep them dooking.
 
Well, we have been on the FML since its earliest days so have a bit of
feel for this.  Some do just stop having ferrets, and it seems to most
often be due to the 7-8 years life span being too short for them to deal
with emotionally, or due to cost.  Either of those hit especially hard
when people who don't know ferrets well yet get several (or more) in the
same age bracket so they have more than one sick at once and dying close
together.  A number of folks who "stop" wind up getting ferrets later
(months, years) when they are more settled.  What seems to be more common
is that folks who aren't hoarders but really had an unrealistic view of
how many ferrets they could care for reduce their numbers, or people do
not add more during times that are hard in terms of time or money
available so that the households become smaller at times due to natural
attrition despite care.
 
Not many people who have had ferrets for over 5 years have huge numbers of
them, compared to newbies, and that seems to be even more true after 10
years.  The more feel a person gets for what can handled in terms of time
or money the more the number of ferrets reflect that knowledge (except for
the few who are animal hoarders).  If someone has been around for a long
time and has many ferrets then the person has either found ways to do so
that are fair to the animals (the usual situation) or the people need to
break a hoarding compulsion.
 
There is a solution for you.  You could have future ferrets be shelter
fosters.  Many shelters have fostering agreements in which the person
caring for the ferret handles day-to-day care while the shelter handles
medical care.
 
As you have so well illustrated, it's best for folks to have not more
than about 3 for the first 5 years or so; not only best for the people
but especially best for the ferrets.
 
Brandy wrote:
>Now I am worried.  He has recovered so well.  He is losing his hair again.
>Not the shedding, or black heads on the tail, bit real hair loss, with dry
>itchy skin....
 
Well, first off, are you sure that it was "cancer" (the MOST commonly
misused word among ferret people, I think)?  MOST adrenal tumors are NOT
malignant; they still need treating to not continue to grow but most
aren't.  What did the pathology on the removed tissue say?  The next
course of treatment will depend on that.  If one of the usual benign
neoplasias then you will be looking at surgery for the other side or for
stray tissue, or maybe Lupron (though that is not optimal).  It
adenocarcinoma then it's pretty much the same since they very rarely
spread.  If lymphoma then the approach is much different: at least Pred
and possibly harder hitting chemo approaches.
 
Re: lick, lick,  lick chomp:  Donna wrote:
>It has nothing to do with sweetness, in my opinion, it has alot to do
>with how much pain they can cause.
 
Naw, what it really has to do with are people who don't observe animals
well enough YET.  It simply is NOT something we have here.  Just plain
don't.  Hasn't been for a long time.  Now, early on we had it, but over
the 20 years we've gotten used to them and more effective (as well as
increasingly more gentle in training methods) and we just have NOT had on
who does that for so long that Steve and I can't even recall which ferret
was the last one who did it here.  Over and over again I have heard from
expert animal folks that training problems are far, far, far more commonly
a problem with the people needing to learn than the animal, and i have
to agree.  Is it do-able?  Sure, we did it, so anyone can.  Everyone was
new -- first 5 years -- at some point.  Then eventually you get to the
point where this doesn't happen but can't put your finger on anything
specific other than that you and ferrets understand each other better now.
[Posted in FML issue 3770]