Many times as a shelter operator, I have had to make room in the shelter
for one or two or whatever amount of new kiddos that have just come in and
the only place I know to send them is to the vet.  They are usually older
ferrets that have been here for months and no one wants to adopt them as
they are too old or starting to lose hair or what eever reason peole have
for not choosing them once approved for adoption..  I am pretty good at
picking the ones that I have faith in my vets to work on and do a great
job with.  For example, when we first started using lupron, my vet needed
patients to work with and start his own study group.  I had several here
in the shelter that were not good candidates for surgery.  Cardoimyapathy,
heart murmurs, advanced adrenal, whatever the reason.  My attitude towards
the situation is do I turn a no win situation into a win / win or a win /
lose situation.  Lupron was new back then and it's sometimes hard to
believe credible research without seeing for yourself and having the
confidence to make a statrement"yeah , that procedure is great!" I have to
say to my vets, here doc, I have a couple here and there that I think are
good candidates for this new procedure we have been talking about, can we
learn something from this.  the same with when we got Dr. Paula to do Cryo
surgery..
 
How many people do you know who love their fuzzheads so much they are
reluctant to let a vet do their first procedure on their ferret?  Well, I
love all the little fuzzbutts that come through my shelter doors as much as
my very first ferret, who is still alive today, yet I'm having to make the
decision, how good do I want my vets to be?  Do I want to take a chance on
this little fellas life who no one wants to take home or do I let you bring
your ferret in to be the gineau pig?  Folks, I may get flames for this
but I feel my vets, and I say my vets, because in the years I've been a
shelter, I have sent them hundreds and maybe thousands of patients through
our website , brochures, and other media sources, even word of mouth.  I
consider my vets that I refer and trust to work on my ferrets(shelter kids)
probably to be the most advanced veterinarians in the region when it comes
to ferrets, and trust them implicitly when I tell you to go there with your
beloved fuzzy.  Some of our clients swear my vets can walk on water, just
because of the great job they did of saving the last fuzzy who was in a
crisis.  How did they get that way?  Someone did a skeletal study!  Someone
studied a skull.  Somebody like me said, maybe I can save this one if I go
out on a limb, but if he doesn't make it, I'll let him know that I tried
and I'll see him at the Bridge.  Sometimes I'm reluctant to say, hey little
guy, it's your turn when I know he is too far advanced and may never see
him again.  Yet I've offered my great vet another challenge that may help
the next one, which may be yours.
 
Being a shelter operator isn't always a hard chore, or playing with
fuzzbutts all day, or dealing with crisises, but sometimes making hard to
deal with life and death decisions that affect those all around you, two
and four legged critters as well.  Many times my vets will call me and give
me the bad news and I think to myself, if I had just waited, he could have
lived a couple more months.  would it have been ok But I give in to my
confidence in their skill and expertise and say "go ahead" as I know they
won't act until they hear me say those two awful words.......Then I hang
up and cry a bit.  hoping and believing that my decision today helped a
different one tommorrow, maybe it will be yours.  I pray every time that I
did the right thing and look for the day when I get to play at the bridge
with all my friends.
 
Goodnite
ferretguy
[Posted in FML issue 3018]