Just a quick note to alert people to a possible danger I recently
discovered.  This concerns wet/dry vacs; I use one to wash and clean out
my cages and liter boxes.  They work great, and I don't have to think
about what is going into the household sucker.
 
I had the cages disassembled, and had sucked up the loose liter and
bits-o-meal, and started washing the walls and floor.  I was, of course,
being helped by several furry friends, but since they hate the smell of
the cleanser, I had no problems in that regard.  I usually end the
cleaning proceedure by pouring a weak bleach solution into the liter box,
then sucking it up (I replace the box with one that has been airdryed for
three days; I use four liter boxes, and recycle them each time to allow
all chemicals to dissipate prior to their being reused).
 
I reached down to pick up the hose with one hand, and was turning to flip
the switch when I saw a pair of beady little eyes staring up at me.  Daye,
the smallest of my beasties, was in the tube, tail first and wanting to
play.  Well, I rushed her into the house and gave her a weak vinegar bath
(to neutralize any basic solutions on her skin) while giving her a stern
talking-to. She normally loves to swim, but thought the vinegar was a bit
too much, so scolded me the entire time.  We made up with a raisin, a
piece of ferret jerky, and a bite of tuna.  I resolved to never let the
beasts around the wet/dry again! I hate to think what might have happened
had I turned that sucker on.
 
The truth is, Racy saved Daye's life.  After reading about her tragic
accident, I was being extra careful not to squash any of my beauties
and so glanced down at my hand to make sure I wasn't putting it where
they were.  I was actually thinking of Racy when I saw Daye pearing at
me. I want to thank you Kelleen for sharing your story with us; I might
not have been so carefull....
 
Bob
Moose, Stella, Daye, Tori, and Bear.
Daye says, "I'm sorry.  Can I have more tuna? This time with some of that
white stuff, OK?"
The Gang says, "THANK YOU RACY AND KELLEEN!!"
 
PS: Could someone please forward this to Kelleen? I've been having a sad
mac problem, and haven't freed up my memory files yet, and her address is
behind a corrupted password. Thanks.
[Posted in FML issue 1367]