I am about to introduce a six week old puppy into my house.  Max and Psycho,
the resident 3-1/2 year old ferrets, will not be too impressed with their
new brother.  Are they doomed to dwell in their cage the rest of their days
or can I teach these different creatures to cohabit ?  Will they be a danger
to the little Shiba-Inu pup the first couple of months?  At present the
ferrets get to terrorize my house 3-4 times a week, running loose overnight.
The dog will eventually spend his time between the back room and the back
yard via a doggy door but for the first months he will have to be in the
house.  If anyone has been through a similar situation I would appreciate
some advice.
 
Incidently I recently remodeled my bathroom and exposed the treasures of
three years of the ferrets hard work.  They were able to weasel their way
under the bathtub through a generous hole for the plumbing.  I discovered 14
pairs of pantyhose (many unopened) stolen directly from my girlfriends
dresser, several pairs of my underwear, various gloves and rags, fiberglass
from the walls, string, hundreds of mouthfuls of rice and barley, and a host
of other bedding materials.  Perhaps the best find was a bunch of small
balls of questionable origin.  These turned out to be mummified potatos
shrunken down to about an inch each.  they probably took ten lbs. of taters
in their fallout shelter with them.  How disapointed the kids were when they
were released and ran directly under the sink to find a superior drywall job
and a new ferret-proof bathtub.
[Posted in FML issue 1780]