On Feb 12, 2009, at 2:00 AM, Ferritsofall wrote:
>it just really struck me hard today to read that someone would
>deliberately WANT and HOPE to move to a no pet apartment and be
>thinking about maybe sticking ferrets in a garage like so much
>garbage.. ...Thank you for letting me vent.

Let us be kind to one another.
Let us not condemn in ignorance.
Let us recognize differing circumstances.
Let us also realize that eternal truths are not within our ken.

You hear the word garage and think 'garbage'. "Seering (sic) heat or
bone chilling and deadly cold". Some garages, yes. Change the word to
"barn", and what associations do you make? Barns have no heat or air
conditioning. Change the name, and all of a sudden an unheated
structure becomes a suitable place for livestock.

Perhaps the garage is perfectly adequate. I've lived in houses that
had neither heat nor air conditioning. That didn't make them bad places
to live; depended on the climate. In this case, the climate is cold,
but it's easy enough to set up a heater. Many attached garages stay
relatively warm due to heat leakage from the house (the wall between is
less insulated than exterior walls). Some garages are actually in the
basement of a house, and stay pretty warm.

I've kept ferrets in the cellar. In the summer it's much cooler than
the house; I've been known to set up a cot and sleep down there myself.
In the winter, it's cool, but warm enough, and I can allow the kids to
have darkness, even though I myself ruin my circadian rhythms by using
artificial lights until midnight or so. Yell at me for keeping ferrets
in the cellar, and I will yell at you for endangering their health by
keeping them in the artificially-lit living areas of your house.

Some people make outdoor playgounds and pens. These are lauded, while
outside cages are condemned. Some people condemn keeping ferrets in
cages at all. But stop and think a moment. How big is the cage? How
active the ferret? Are we talking five ferrets stuffed into a one-level
2'x3' cage, or two ferrets living in three three-level cages connected
by thiry feet of tubing? It makes a difference. You can also be
condemned for exposing ferrets to the dangers of free-roam.

It's JUST like raising human kids, but few of us would outright condemn
our neighbors for their child-raising. Take food - Ohmigosh! These
parents feed frozen dinners and let their kids eat twinkies! They must
be bad parents, they don't deserve to have kids! Those others are
vegetarians and don't let their kids eat packaged food! Don't they know
that kids need amino acids; those must be bad parents and don't deserve
to have kids! These parents are too strict; those are too permissive.

We DO NOT KNOW what is best! We have theories, we have studies of one
sort or another. We each create a model of how the world works, what
is best for our kids (human or fur), but none of us knows the ultimate
truth. Advocate your theory, persuade others if you can, but do not
condemn others for their theories.

In this case, we have someone in a bad sitution (a divorce) who is
trying to keep things together. We don't know if there is abuse going
on, or just heartbreak. She has human kids who have to be her priority.
(Sorry, fellow ferret-lovers, but that's just the truth). The kids need
to stay in the same school, in the same neighborhood if possible. Kudos
to her if she has found a place to live that will make that possible.
Now she is -very responsibly - looking for help with her furkids. She
suggested a possible compromise with her husband; maybe not ideal, but
maybe workable.

Please do not, in your desire to "vent", make a terrible situation
worse.

To anyone who has had to give up a beloved pet due to changed
circumstances: Thank you for recognizing your limits. Thank you for
putting the welfare of the ferrets first, despite your heartbreak.
Thank you for not being a hoarder, who feels that they and only they
are capable of properly caring for their furkids.

And please, let us once again be kind to one another.
-Claire

[Posted in FML 6243]