Hi,
 
I'm not sure if there is a way to see if this is true, but I think my
ferret Zama maybe blind or have bad eyes.  I remember reading somewhere
that ferrets really can't see all that well anyway.  I always thought it
was cute that when he played with the kitten and she would go still (even
if she was 1/2 a foot infront of him) he couldn't find her - he would
cock his head to the side and listen, and as soon as she made the tiniest
sound he was off attacking her.  He also gets frightened if you walk
toward him with out talking.  I thought it was normal at first.  Then my
mother adopted the two ferrets from the shelter and they can see a 1000
times better then him.  I never see them cock their heads to the side, or
get frightened when you come close to them without talking ... and they
can attack anything moving from way down the hall... where as my ferret
doesn't even notice.  If he is blind, he is obviously getting around just
fine, but I am curious to know if he is.
 
As for PetStores - At the mall where I live I went into a pet store that
normally sells dogs and cats and exotic animals and so on.  I have always
hated the store because it smells really bad in there and I have seen
puppies with obvious health problems (one puppy's stomach was so bloated
it touched the floor and it was really lathargic) - and the kittens
usually have the worst eye infections etc.  When I was looking around to
see how much the ferret mansions were I found out they had a ferret in
there.  He was a very large albino ferret and was in a 10 gallon aquarium
with mesh on top.  There were no toys, no food, no water and no litter
box and he was in shavings.  It was so sad, so I thought about buying him
- but then I thought - maybe they do this on purpose so people will buy
them.  If I bought him then they will say - hey this guy sold good lets
get another one... and there would be a never ending cycle.  So instead I
called the Humane Society who is now doing an investigation on the store
due to all the complaints they have had and until it is finished they are
not allowed to sell animals :) which worked out way better.
 
I bought my ferret from a petstore.  SuperPet.  I think that is the
greatest pet store ever!  They have employees who have a wide variety of
knowledge and specific types of pets they know of.  The lady I talked to
had 3 ferrets at home.  I had to fill out a form with all these questions
about ferrets and she recommended a bunch of different books to read and
even lent me some the store was out of.  She insisted that I research
them more then I did (which I did a lot of) and wait a couple of weeks to
make sure I was really ready for the commitment.  All the ferrets were
walked around the store daily, very used to people and had one of those
$1000 cages that were taller then me!  All had their shots, great coats
and smelled clean.
 
When I brought him home she gave me the vet they use in the area and her
card along with her home phone number.  The first week I brought him to
the vets where they gave him his shots (he already had them but I did
have a problem with the documentation they gave me saying he had his
shots, apparently the place where they get the ferrets from just sends
along a paper saying that the batch of ferrets (up to 10) has had their
shots - and he was still young so when I went to get him checked out -
the vet said i shoudl have better documentation and should get them done
again as it shouldn't be a problem because the ferrets had been done a
month prior - and they usually get multiple shots and he was the age
where he would get his last set for the year)
 
Sometime along the third week I had him he had managed to get into my
bedroom where I have all my plants and decided to go digging, he ended
up with a lot of soil in his nose and everytime he sneezed black stuff
would come out.  I panicked and the emegancy vet in the area didn't know
anything about ferrets!  So I called the lady from the pet store who said
he should be ok and that is normal but if I notice any problems with his
breathing to bring him to the vets the next day.  Of course he was fine.
 
Twice a month the ferret comes with me to the pet store where we pick
out some new toys and treats for him and everyone at the petstore seems
ecstatic to seem him.  Even when I was scared to cut his nails - I
brought him into the grooming section to get it done..  they showed me
how to do one foot and I did the rest and they didn't charge me anything.
I do not shop anywhere else - even tho their prices are higher, it is
definately worth it.
 
Well thanks in advanced for anyones thoughts on my possibly blind ferret,
Mahlyssa :)
[Posted in FML issue 3952]