I actually typed in my request to unsubscribe this morning.  I can't
believe how much it hurt!  Yes, I cried again as I typed it.  I thought
I would just take off for awhile, but it was much harder than I thought,
leaving all you guys who understand and share.
 
To the ones who wrote asking why I don't consider adopting from a shelter,
or get another one now, I feel a response is due: There are no shelters
anywhere near me that ever get ferrets.  I have my name in at both (here
in the boonies, and down in the city), in case any come in that I can help
with, at the very least.  It is also our decision to wait until next summer
to get another baby due to our plans of being gone so much in June.  This
stems from our horrible experiences the last two (and only) vacations we
ever took, re: Fang:
 
The first one: we had made arrangements to have my mother in law bring him
home to her house (cage and all, even though he was freeroam at our house),
as she had baby-sat him before.  Fang couldn't go to her home the day we
left for our trip, due to a dozen pheasant eggs in an incubator in the den
where Fang was to temporarily live during our absence.  (They were ready to
hatch) She promised that once they hatched, she would move them out to the
chicken shed, and bring Fang to her house.  I later called to check on him,
and she told me that he was just fine.  Every time I called, same answer.
When we returned two weeks later, I found out that she had never come to
get him at all!  She DID come up to check on him everyday to make sure he
had food and water.  That was it.  A whole five minute contact each day.
 
Her reason was that they had so many people coming in and out (my
father-in-law is a beekeeper and they sell honey and raspberries), that she
decided Fang was better off left at our house.  I was devastated; the only
contact he had with a living thing was the fish in my son's tank.  She told
me she always found him curled up next to the fish tank, but never any
water splashed or spilled, and that he never tried to get at them.  My
thought were that the poor little guy was so lonely that he laid near them
for stimulation and contact.  Two weeks all alone in the life of a ferret
is a very long time.  He was in a state of depression when we got home;
had quit eating for her.  We were devastated, and felt horrendous guilt
when he looked at me (with the look of) "Mommy why did you leave me all
alone for so long?" I never really forgave her for deceiving us (and Fang).
She is still my mother-in -law and I love her, but I will never feel the
same about her again.
 
Then, last summer, we took him with us on our second vacation, because we
couldn't find anyone to trust (we tried),but mostly because he was being
weaned off pred for his sudden diabetes from insulinoma.  We took him, and
he got worse while we were gone.  No need to go into THAT long story again
(lotsa worry, lotsa tears, pain for Fang, lotsa money on vets there that
knew nothing about ferrets), and absolutely no fun for us on our long
awaited vacation.  Fang was more important, so we packed up mid week and
drove the two day trip home to get him to his regular vet.  (for you guys
out there that believe in a Supreme Being: I totally broke down when he was
near death (he was dragging himself when he had to potty and whimpering
almost non-stop) , I laid hands on his little head and from the depth of
my soul, prayed to God to please not let him die there, so far away from
home.  I begged for more time with him, even though I said I knew it was
just a postponement of the eventual good-bye we would soon face).  In the
wee hours of the morning as we headed home, Fang started to revive, and by
the time we got to Colorado to his vet, he was just fine!  It was the only
time his BG was in the normal range for that last year!  We knew in our
hearts that it was a temporary thing, but we were granted more time, for
whatever reason.  We were blessed with seven more months, and we will
always be grateful for that time.  Point is, we will never go through that
again.  Too hard on the heart.  No animal sitters to trust around this
remote area.
 
All that long story just to explain why we are going to wait until we get
back from our trip next summer.  That will give us another year to find
someone we trust to take care of the new one.  Right now, we have chosen
to be ferretless due to our grief.  We are not insensitive to the needs
of others (with or without fur), but for us, this is what we need to do.
Nobody loves a ferret more than we did ours.  The time to get another just
isn't right for us.  Please don't think that I don't care about all those
fuzzies in the shelters...it is something that rips me up apart inside,
just as it does you.  (Since I became a ferret mom and joined this list, I
have turned into a mush, and cried more this last year than I have in my
entire life).
 
Now look at what I just did..I rambled on and on again, as I am prone to
do.  Guess I just felt defensive and apologetic, and sad because I will
miss you guys.  I will be back in the summer to ramble some more.  You
guys be cool and stay fuzzy,
 
love again,
lizzi
[Posted in FML issue 3315]