I'm very disapointed in SHOWME.MISSOURI.EDU.  I just realized today I had
not recieved the last few FMLs; in fact, I've probably only recieved maybe
25% of all my mail for the last few days based on a quick inquiry to some of
my frequent posters.  Assume you email went to the same places the FMLs
went--ether heaven.  As for the FMLs, I just did the send ferret thingie.
 
I discussed this with my server friends, and I was told it was one of the
problems they've been working on and they hope it is fixed by the weekend.
They have *NO* idea if I'll get the mail late or if it is lost forever.  I'm
about ready to invest in an outside server, but from what I hear, the local
ones are no vast improvement.
 
It sounds to me that they've made the plumbing too complicated.
 
In other news, last night I rescued a wonderful 4 or 5 year old MF male
named Poncho.  Poncho has been a solitary ferret since removed from the pet
store at a few months old, and I have just started teaching him about being
a ferret.  He does not know how to play, but he doesn't bite either, unless
you count the piercing I recieved when he thought my hand was Carbone.  Easy
mistake.  Poncho has never seen a vet, which is a very good indication he
has never recieved rabies or distemper shots; something that will change
today when he gets to met a vet for the first time.
 
Health wise, he is in very good shape; he was fed a farily good quality
kitten food.  He is not fat, and is actually as well muscled as most,
considering he only got out of the cage infrequently.  The only thing I
could find wrong was a slightly chipped canine, probably from a cage battle.
His interaction skills with people are fine; he sat on my lap for three
hours last night, but then, he was totally freaked by the other ferret
smells.  Do you know how *wide* a ferret's eyes can open when they are
freaked?
 
He is a light brown sable with a pink nose and tiny freckles near the nose
and is a male dead-ringer for my Nosette.  I think he needs a home with
fewer ferrets than my own.  I am confident Poncho can be acclimatized to
other ferrets (which I am currently doing), but, stress-wise, it is probably
better if he is in a home with only a few ferrets until he learns the rules.
Since I am a firm believer in permanent placements, if I send him out, it
will be for good.  So if anyone in the Missouri area really wants to work
with a ferret suffering from solitary-confinement-itis, they have just a few
ferrets in the home, and are willing to keep this monkey for the duration,
let me know.
 
Oh yes, I'm a deep believer in the dignity of names, so you will have to
agree not to change his name from Poncho; he has already lost home and
family, he deserves his name.  This is not a situation where the name is not
known.  I readily admit its anthropomorphic, but I believe arbitrary name
changes place the individual into the category of "object" rather than
"individual," and the person who insists on those name changes is
demonstrating power and ownership over objects in their possession no matter
how well it is justified.  I don't own ferrets, I am a caregiver, and names
are sacred to the respect and dignity of the individual.  This is such an
ingrained part of human culture that a universal insult is calling someone
by a name other than their own; remember how you felt when a teacher or
salesman couldn't get your name right?  From a behavioral point of view,
this poor guy has been thrust into a new world against his will, and its
confusing enough without having to learn a new name.  I simply feel
demonstrations of power and ownership are contraindicated in a ferret with
the emotional needs caused by displacement and adoption.
 
If I don't hear something soon, then it will be:
 
Bob C and 21 MO Buttbiters.
[Posted in FML issue 2223]