The rate of reactions to vaccines is low.  Meanwhile if you have an
UNvaccinated which bites anyone your ferret is almost certain to wind up
destroyed.  To skip vaccines because you fear reactions in an animal which
has not had a reaction (as opposed to a response) or which does not have
parents or sibs who react in an extreme way is an over-reaction of a
different sort, and can become very dangerous to your ferrets' welfare.  I
think that the shelter was justified in making sure that legalities are
followed, and that a ferret-ward's health and public health are considered.
 
Don't forget with bilateral adrenalectomies, or ones where one adrenal is
so suppressed that it doesn't start up that Florinef can be a lifesaver.
We were there with Hjalmar many years ago when Erno Hollo at the Basking
Ridge Animal Hospital figured it would be worth a shot since Hjalmar was in
the process of dying. We expected to bring Hjalmie home to die (He wasn't
suffering at that point.) and instead the meds worked.  As I recall someone
posted here last year about an elderly ferret which had been through having
both out and the ferret had been well and happy on Florinef for a very
extended period of time.  Was it two years?  How is the ferret now?
 
It would pay for those who watched the Judge Mills Lane show to GO BACK AND
SEARCH THE ARCHIVES FOR PREVIOUS POSTS ON THIS WHILE IT WAS HAPPENING!!!!!!!
There were a good number of witnesses who said that the shelter operator
had evidence that was not allowed to be presented PLUS EVIDENCE NOT
ALLOWED -- INCLUDING PHONE RECORDS AND CALL WAITING RECORDS -- THAT THE
FAMILY HAD NOT GOTTEN IN TOUCH ABOUT THE FERRETS FOR A HUGE AMOUNT OF TIME
BEYOND THE AGREED BOARDING TIME SO JEAN THOUGHT THEY WERE ABANDONED, that
she was REPEATEDLY INSTRUCTED TO INTERRUPT, and several other things which
make it obvious that the outcome was prejudged long before anything was
heard and that Jean was set-up by the show.  In case you don't know
anything about Jean she has been a shelter operator for a number of years
and was the single most essential individual for saving the life of
Phoenix, a ferret accused of biting a baby, who was owned by a couple now
in jail for neglect and abuse.  You'll want to call up those files, too, to
get a full picture of the woman before making a snap judgement based on a
biased tv show.
 
Hangin' 'em high: Jumper finally stopped turding towarding the skies
recently at age 2 and a few months.  Hope your's stops with age, too.  We
never got one as high as you did, though!  Our highest was maybe 8" off the
ground, but they were full poops hanging there like snakes from a branch,
not splotches.  Do not know how he did it.  14"!  Wow!  Make sure something
didn't give him projectile runs, okay?  We used to have Fritter who used to
line her bum up with those plastic over-caps found on non-alcoholic wine
bottles (which they liked as toys) and go completely inside the cap except
for one dot she's leave next to them when she wiped.
 
Sukie
[Posted in FML issue 2589]