Its been said here many times, that fans aren't adequate for keeping
ferrets cool.  I have found this statement to be rather misleading and
hope to provide a less-expensive way to cool your little furry-bunches
than purchasing (they ain't cheap, ya know?) an air conditioner, as well
as paying all that money (as well as draining all that electricity!) for
running the energy hogs.
 
Firs, let's examine how most people (virtuaily everyone I've ever seen who
uses a fan) put fans to use in their homes.  They open a nearby window,
place a fan in it (facing towards them) and turn the fan on.  This is as
far as their thoughts to, as far as cooling off.
 
What most people don't seem to understand is that, if the air outside is
hot and/or humid, then your fan isn't going to accomplish much more than to
pull that hot and/or humid air into your house, making things miserable, in
the end.  The benefit of a fan isn't from getting air blasted into your
face.  The object of the fan is to get air moving in a beneficial manner.
Here is how you can do this.
 
First, determine where the most shade is outside your home (if possible...I
realize some of you live in an apartment where only one side has windows).
Next, walk through your home and find out where the hottest rooms are.
Once you've determined these two things, cooling your home down becomes
easy.
 
In the hottest rooms, clear everything away from one of the windows
(tables, chairs, boxes, toys, statues, mummies, jet aircraft, etc.).  This
also includes pinning up any draperies to keep them completely off the
floor.  You will need these draperies later.  Next, provide a high-capacity
fan (a standard box fan of at least 20" is good) that will fit in that
window.  A small window is not a good choice here.  Open the window as far
as possible and remove the screen (if any).  Place the fan into the window
FACING OUT.  Push the fan all the way to one side, then use the drapes to
cover the open area.  Use thumb tacks to fit the drapes over the entire
open area, right up to the fan.  If you don't have drapes, use an old towel
or pillow case.
 
Be sure that the plug reaches comfortably to the outlet.  If it doesn't,
use an extention cord (I recommend buying a new one--they typically only
run a dollar or two at discount stores) to keep the cord from being
stretched or stressed.  Turn the fan on to medium (on hot days, dry days)
or high (when the humidity level is high).
 
Now, open one (only one!) window on the shadest side of the house.
Open/close doors accordingly, to allow the path of airflow to be pulled
through all of the rooms of the house.  If using two fans in hot rooms,
the airflow will be higher.
 
Now that you have a cooler airflow through the house, you can place small
personal-sized fans in strategic areas to move air from corners or other
areas where you can't get airflow.  You can also use a fan set on low to
oscillate across one or more ferret cages.
 
The trick here, is that you are creating a cool breeze, rather than a hot
wind.  The smaller fans can then used this "breeze" to further cool an
area.  Your ferrets don't have to sweat to take advantage of a cooler area.
As long as their is circulation of the air, the temperature can be reduced
and your flumpy-ferts will be much more comfortable.
 
For other tips on how to have really cool ferts, drop me a line and I'll
be happy to send you more ideas!
 
Todd and the Fuzzbutt Rodeo Clowns!
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[Posted in FML issue 3504]