Before you all get mad at me for this.  Is it necessarily wrong to keep
a ferret outside.  I'd heard of people keeping ferrets like rabbits in cages
in the backyard in the cold and the heat.
        I have a balcony and don't have much room in my apartment.  I know I
can ferret proof the balcony so that my ferret, Elmer can have free run of it.
I'm sure he'll like the 5' X 8' balcony over the occasional times that I'm home
to let him out of his cage inside.  (I'm afraid he'll bite into an electrical
wire or something if unattended - I don't have a room I can dedicate only to
him.)  I've heard alot obout heartworms being spread by mosquitoes and that
heat for a ferret is awful.  I've had him out there a lot lately but it's
getting warmer and I'm getting worried.  He hasn't seemed overly thirsty or
anything - he just keeps knocking his food over and doesn't have anything to
eat.
        Should I be worried about temperatures over 90 degrees Fahrenheit?  I
mean it's not like he can't got into the closet on the balcony where I have his
cage, bed, water, food, and litter.  It's much cooler in there and in any case
the balcony is never in direct sunlight - it has a roof.   Then there's the
question of the mosquitoes.  There aren't any ponds, slow creeks or any other
standing water nearby but although I haven't seen any mosquitoes I'm sure
they're around.  By the way I live in Nashville, TN.
        What do you think about it?
 
                                -Clint, Ginger and that dopey ferret, Elmer
 
[Posted in FML issue 0868]