Rochelle,
        My vet charges $25 for a neuter and $35 for a spay which is
double the price for cats but still extremely reasonable. There's another
ferret vet in town that charges $80 for a neuter and >$100 for a spay. We
had a vet in Southern California charge $80 for a neuter and descent.
Prices vary widely.
 
 
Rebecca,
        Have you tried putting toys in your ferret's cage? I just picked
up a cat toy (ferret safe) that dangles from a bouncy cord.  I suspend it
from the ceiling and 8 inches from the floor.  They love it. Try rotating
toys into the cage since ferrets get bored so easily.
        Another cage toy is sewer piping (the flexible black stuff - 10
feet for $3.50 at Home Base.)  Cut it about a foot shorter than
your cage (it cuts easily with a serated knife.)  Punch a hole in each
end with a pointed knife and suspend it with wire from the side of the
cage about 8 inches from the floor. Make sure the wires cannot poke the
ferrets eyes.  Better yet, find a circular holder of some sort that
doesn't have any sharp edges. My ferrets race thru the tube sometimes on
their backs.  Some of the ferrets think that is the only way to get from
one end of the enclosure to the other! The remainder of the tubing can be
run behind your couch, out of your sight but still a great toy for the
kids when they are out. Good luck.  Now, if I can only find something to
keep Riker entertained (7 months old; almost 4 pound male - you know the
rest) ........
 
        -Carla-
[Posted in FML issue 1011]