More from the anguished one...
 
We all love ferrets.  We wouldn't be on this list if we didn't.  I generally
pride myself on being so knowledgable about ferrets (although medicine is
NOT my area of expertise!) But if I could be so stupid to let my sweet
darling Patches get to where he is right now, there must be others out there
that can benefit from these words of advice.  Please take them to heart.
For those of you who are wiser than I, you already know this.  But here
goes:
 
Give special attention to every ferret, every day.  Each of us has hectic
lives, and can't always give individual attention all the time.  But I
promise you, if you start to slip, and find that the "outside world" starts
taking up all of your special time with your ferrets, you are going to go
through some serious guilt and pain when the time comes that your ferrets
pass away.  I tell Patches and the others that I love them every day, and I
kiss each one every day.  But there are too many days that I just let them
out for their runtime by themselves, thinking I have more important things
to do.  Our time with these guys is short enough, even without cancers
killing them so young.  Make sure that when their time comes, there is no
question that they were the happiest ferret on the planet while they were
with you.
 
Please, if you suspect disease in your ferret, and someone tells you that
you can wait for treatment, don't do it.  I know that my vet was just trying
to help, he knew of my financial situation, but (1) I could have gone to
another vet that would take payments, and (2) I would so happily, so gladly,
have made credit card and electric bill payments late if only it would mean
that my Patches wasn't going to die on me.  I was so damn wrapped up trying
to fix my credit, that I lost sight of reality.  You just CAN'T wait with
ferret health.  In only a few months Patches went from happy and healthy to
this.  Maybe (I don't know) in a cat or a dog you can postpone, but not in a
ferret.  Tell the electric company to go shove it (sorry for being crass)
tell them that your baby needs surgery.  No need to even mention that it's a
ferret.  They're still our babies.
 
THIS one I preach religiously, and I do follow it as best I can.  But I have
to say it here even though in Patches' case it didn't make a difference (but
it has in other ferrets, trust me!!!) GET A CBC AND BLOOD GLUCOSE TEST done
on every ferret of yours over the age of three, religiously, every year.  It
can give early indication of illness and disease, BEFORE your ferret shows
symptoms, and BEFORE it's too late to treat the ferret.  It honestly can be
the difference between six months with your ferret and another six years.
 
I hope this didn't sound lectury, it wasn't supposed to.  This is all guilt
talking, and I just don't want any of you to go through what I'm going
through with Patches.  This is going to be really hard for me; if any of you
can save yourselves this pain then these words weren't wasted.
 
Love, peace, and dooks to all of you.
 
Kymberlie Becker
Director, Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Association
"Forget Puppy Love...There's nothing Greater than Ferret Love!" TM
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/ferretlady
[Posted in FML issue 1997]