Hello Everyone:
 
Initally, when I read the post two days ago I leaned toward agreeing with
Melissa and I felt as she does - that if people really would like to give
their ferrets a good home then why sell them?  But after reading Jerry's
post yesterday I got to thinking about what he had to say regarding the
fact that some people may need the $$ and his example of the young couple
that contacted him made sense to me.
 
Several years ago I purchased a Great Dane ($250.00).  At the time when I
got her she was 2 months old and somewhat nervous and very shy.  For years
I had wanted a Dane as they are my favorite breed of dog and I was finally
in a financial position where I afford one plus I lived in a house with a
huge yard.  I named her Senna and I worked very hard to research about dogs
and Danes, to bring her out of her shell (she was afraid of EVERYTHING) and
to train her.  She became a very outgoing dog and people used to always
comment about how well behaved she was.  Big secret is she was very
responsive to training and easy to train.  I had Senna for 1 year and I
bonded strongly with her because I spent so much time with her and put so
much effort into making her a well rounded and happy dog.  She even went on
the bus and subway (stares galore with a 120 pound dog in tow) with me and
went to horse shows and to the hair dressers!  In that year I cannot even
begin to estimate what I spent on food, toys, treats and vet bills
(expensive for a big dog).  The only problem Senna had was she could not be
left alone or she would destroy her surroundings and turn that destruction
on herself.  I told my vet about the problem and he told he she had classic
"Separation Anxiety Disorder" and he gave me some tips to counteract it and
suggested I contact Guelph University as well.  I did all of the things he
said and Guelph was kind enough to fax me loads of info on this disorder
and how to best counteract it.  I even went so far as to hire a girl who
was going to Guelph to become a vet to come in each day and walk my dog and
spend time with her while I was at work.  (more $ spent)  The point here is
that nothing worked.  Nothing and believe me people before anyone tries to
tell me what I should have done...I did everything and I spent all of my
free time with my dog.  If she could not go where I was going, then
ususally I did not go either.  (with the exception of work)
 
I finally had to face the fact that Senna needed to be in a home where she
would be with people all of the time.  It took me a long time to accept this
fact.  I loved my dog and wanted her in my life.  I had waited a long time
to have her.  To make this long story as short as I can...I finally found a
home for her where she would never be alone and where the people were like
me..they had always wanted a Dane.  She had some special medical needs that
would cost $$ and they could afford it.  The first winter they had Senna,
they went out and bought her a foals sheepskin blanket because they felt
when she was in the barn with them that she was getting too cold!  I am
still in contact with these people and Senna is doing wonderful.
 
How does this relate to ferrets?  Well I gave Senna away free with all of
her stuff because I COULD AFFORD TO.  I did not need to recoup my $$ and my
main focus was to get her the best home possible.  Having said that however,
had it been 5 years earlier I too might have asked for some $$ for her.  I
might have wanted to get some money for her because I was not in the same
financial position.  I know when I was in University, my roomate and I had
2 cats and the cats ate before we did.  They got cat food, we got Macaroni
and Cheese!  Money was tight but we still had cats because neither of us
could imagine living in a home without a pet in it.  Maybe, if we were
forced to give up those cats, we would have done the same thing.  We were
young and broke.  This is why I agree with both Jerry and Melissa and I
think that each case must be looked at individually.  Yes I hate to see the
words "Good Home and $" in the same sentence....makes me suspicious too,
but maybe they are people like Jerry said that just need the extra money.
Without knowing the facts how can we pass judgement?
 
This is just my opinion based on what has been presented in this forum and
my own experiences.  We all feel very protective of ferrets in general...I
know it drives me up a wall to hear of a new ferret coming into the shelter
here that has been abused or neglected.  I wanted to string up Oki's former
owner.  But until we have all of the facts regarding an individual who is
selling a ferret, how can we know what their motives are?  And perhaps that
individual thinks, as some here do, that by asking for money for the ferret
they will find a better home.
 
Cindy, Doug and the terrible tag-team twosome,
Footsie and Oakley
Missing Oki
[Posted in FML issue 2310]