Klondike has been here for 2 1/2 weeks now and is no closer to having a
ferret buddy than he was the first day he came. :(  He was in solitude for
the most part for two weeks - kept in a separate cage, with separate play
times than the established group of four - only a few closely supervised,
brief encounters with the two ferts I had the highest hope for accepting
him.  They scruffed, drag, and bit him at every opportunity (him squealing
and hollering the whole time - he's a vocal one!).  He got a clean bill of
health on Friday from the vet, so I've started letting him get acquainted
with the same two ferts one-on-one for longer times together - hoping they
could work it out.  Doesn't seem to be happening.
 
I've swapped bedding, I've put Bitter Apple on his neck (which helps!), but
it's so disappointing that not one of them seems willing to be friends.
Tonight, I let him out because all the others were in their various places
taking naps.  One of them woke up and found him.  For a few minutes, it was
just the two of them, then they ended up on the bed and tunneling under the
blankets, where it took one minute flat for the other three to be awake
and biting him, too.  It was four against one!  He was so shaken.  He even
messed.  His poor neck is all scraped and scratched from their teeth, and I
think it's tender - he seems uncomfortable when I scruff him to clip nails
and such, even though I'm trying to be gentle.
 
The other two ferrets show a lot more aggression toward him.  All out
attack whenever they get a chance.  They even act crazy when he's out of
his pen and they're in theirs - bristle brush tails, clawing at the floor
or blankets, up and down motion with their head - just plain upset.
 
I had really hoped that he would have a few new buddies by Christmas, but
that hope is getting bleaker and bleaker.  I know I haven't given it much
time, but there seems to be NO progress, and I just hope he won't always
have to be a "loner" in a house of five ferrets!  His only furry friend is
our Pomeranian - they're getting along great!
 
Is there still hope that the established group of four will accept the
newcomer?  Is part of the problem that he's a kit, rather than an adult
(I'm hoping it gets better as he gets older)?  Is there something more I
could be doing?
 
On another note, I'm afraid our oldest guy, Templeton, has Adrenal.  His
tail rather quickly became totally bald except for a strip of hair on the
top.  Almost overnight, I noticed that his entire flank is practically
bald, as well - I see a lot of skin.  We adopted him two and a half years
ago - he's about four and a half now.  His coat has never been thick or
soft, and now this.  I've never been through this before, so I guess I
should read all I can about Adrenal so I know what to expect.
 
Needless to say, the last few weeks have been a lot of ups and downs.  Part
of the reason I was able to resist ferret math for so long is because the
group I had got along so well and I hated to risk upsetting that by adding
another one.  They all seemed to accept each other so well - within a week
of bringing in new ones, they were sharing the same cage.  Not so this
time... is this normal, or have I just been lucky so far?
[Posted in FML issue 3265]