First and foremost-to those who've lost their fur kids (Betty-I meant
to send you and your husband a card, so please consider this a huge
cyber hug from me and the Crew) and all who have ill babies, my sincere
condolences.
 
SONYA-Please, contact me.  I saw your post but you have anonymous on it.
We've had major computer crashes and I've lost addresses, yours was one.
 
Now, my thoughts on the Silly Girl post, and I hope you all read and
bear with me.  I've been a member of the FML for 5 years.  As one person
stated in today's FML (9/14/02) I remember when Sandee was a big issue,
and the little one who was there before Sandee, when religion has become
a big issue when one member blesses folks.  I'm not trying to get that
dog to hunt again, so please, all of you, just read this.  This is not
a flame to Silly Girl, these are my thoughts on the issue, and they are
addressed to her, and to anyone else who cares to read this.
 
Silly girl-I have a 20 year old daughter, but I call all my ferrets the
'kids'.  Why, I don't know, just seems natural.  They're dependent on us,
act like little 2 year olds on caffeine highs, so why not call them kids?
I call my cats 'kids' too.  Just something many of us do.  Could the
creatures in my house replace my daughter or husband, I think not.  But
you know, my husband is right there with me about our ferrets.  I didn't
show him your post, because I know what his thoughts would have been, and
they wouldn't have been polite.  You call some of us fanatics.  Well,
I've never been called a fanatic, eccentric, yes, fanatic, no.  So let me
examine fanatic: does this mean that those who run shelters, who lobby
for the health and welfare of ferrets, who will fight for them all the
way to the statehouse-are they fanatics?  Those who run the giving trees,
those who beg you to help with bedding, fostering, adopting-fanatics?
How about those who do rescues (and I'm one of those) who take in the
abused, the abandoned, the no longer wanted, the ill and the
deaf-fanatics?  Are all of us who attend the International Ferret
Conferences, the Forum at the Falls, and any other thing we can on
ferrets fanatics?  Okay, then I guess I'm a fanatic.  Here I thought I
was just Rebecca McFarlane, eccentric ferret person.  I've known people
who have set dinner settings at tables for their dogs, who refuse to go
certain places because their dog was refused entrance-and this is no lie.
I knew a woman who told me her cat told her what it dreamed at night, and
the cat didn't like me because I didn't talk to it enough, or listen to
it.  Trust me, I tried, cat didn't say word I understood.  Now to me,
that's close to being a fanatic, but if that's what makes that person
happy, then so be it, I'm not about to call them a fanatic.  Eccentric,
uh, yeah.  You've called members of this list uncaring, and I'd say you
owe an apology to this list.  This is a group of compassionate people.
You've not read in between the lines obviously.  You say you value life,
but the statement "dead ferrets", well that kind of rubbed the wrong way.
Sure, they're dead, they've passed on.  But let's try not to be crass.
There are people on this list that for them their ferrets are their
life-lines, their life savers, the reason for getting up in the morning.
Do you think this is an odd statement?  Let me tell you, it's not.  I've
done radio shows for Purdue University concerning ferrets, and one was
about ferrets as therapy pets.  One lady contacted me and for her, those
ferrets are what gets her through the day-her reason to work through pain
and depression.  I had, when younger, a horse that you'll read about a
couple of paragraphs down.  If not for that horse I wouldn't be here
today-I was almost a teen suicide, and she saved my life-she became my
best friend, my companion.  She was there to listen, not criticize, and
give comfort to me when I most needed it.  We were together longer than
most people stay married.  She's been gone over 10 years and I still cry,
and I cry hard.  When she left me for the Bridge her head was in my lap,
and as I left the pasture I heard an animal scream.  I was told later
that animal was me.  I remember dropping to the ground, but didn't
realize I was screaming.  When I lose one of my furkids I cry till I'm
sick.  I rage at not having known what was wrong, why didn't I catch it
sooner.  And I cry.  Fanatic?  Okay, fanatic, I'll accept that.  Just
don't start flinging stones where you have no business doing so-you're so
called 'value' of life didn't show through.  If you value life you have
compassion, and yours was not a compassionate nor kind post.
 
I've never read on here where anybody thought it was fun to feed their
ferret mice, etc.  Most of us, I believe, were grossed out when we first
heard it, I know I was.  But many believe that to be natural-as stated,
ferrets are hunters and that goes along with their instinct.  I can't
watch those nature programs that show animals in the wild killing another
for food, so I know I couldn't feed mice to my ferrets, even the freeze
dried ones.  Thank God, obviously you weren't at Ferrets 2002 and heard
Bob Church's alternative to feeding mice!  The whole room about lost it
on that one.  I happen to feed my ferrets my own brand of chicken gravy.
Luckily I don't have to go out and kill my own chickens, but if
necessary, I would have.  Does this make me any less compassionate-I
don't think so.  I don't look at any animal as another's food, but don't
get me wrong.  I'm not a vegetarian-I am a carnivore.  Mine hunt for
their food too, they find that plate of chicken gravy, that plate of duck
soup, that bowl of kibble and their treats, and they have a grand old
time with it.  Hunters in the true sense of my house.
 
As to your Rainbow Bridge issue.  Sandee is on the computer as a grief
counselor, in my opinion.  Do the posts to her and about the Rainbow
Bridge tear me up-yes.  But you know, I've posted about my kids (oooh,
the word is there) when they leave me.  In those posts are their
symptoms, what happens at the vet's office, and a lot of tears, but it's
a catharsis to write it, to give a tribute to a creature that has brought
joy and laughter into my family's life.  You say fanatic, but isn't it
odd that when one of my 'kids' passes on in the vets office, they send me
sympathy cards, as I'm sure other vets do?  I know a vet who makes a paw
print of the deceased pet and gives it to the owner.  When I lost my
horse, who had been with me for over 20 years, there was no list to write
to.  So I sat alone and wrote over 10 pages of a tribute to her, and
bawled my head off.  I don't know what happened to what I wrote, but it
helped.  So if you don't like our Rainbow Bridge stories, scroll past
them.  To the person who said something about scrolling being hard-been
there, done that, but it can be done.  I've had people tell me animals
are just that, animals.  They have no soul, it's wrong to think of them
the way I do.  My comeback is the fact that in the Bible it is stated
that God knows when a sparrow falls-so if He cares that much, why
shouldn't we.  And don't you think it's odd that He made sure there were
two of every kind of animal on the Ark?  No souls?  Hmm, better check out
the eyes on your animals, that light shining there isn't a reflection of
the sun or your lamp.  I feel extremely sorry for those who think their
pet is 'just an animal'.  They lose a lot.
 
Sometimes this list is extremely silly in it's posts-why not.  Life is
tough, it can be a real bitch, and to come on here, read silly stories by
Wolfy and others is a good thing to do.  I've assisted in the craziness
and silliness myself.  There are many cries for help here.  You can
respond per the list, or as I most often do, respond individually.  I've
seen people post twice because they've not been answered the first time.
I answer when I think I can help, I try not to be ignorant and give
advice if I know nothing about the problem.  I've met many, many people
over the years through the FML, and some are excellent friends-Bill is
one of those friends.  I met my 'ferret mentors' here, and one couple I
hold in the highest of regards is Harvey and Helga Clark.  Then there's
Randy Belair-one of my adopted daughters, Julie Fossa and all the others
who are my friends, my life lines, my friends, my mentors and advisors.
People from all over the U.S., and the world.  Through this list I have a
friend in Australia who picked the phone up and called me last year on
9/12 to make sure my family was all right, to express her condolences for
what happened in New York.  Without the people of this list I wouldn't be
able to do what I do for the ferrets, and I turn to them frequently, as
they well know!  If you're looking for a list with pure medical advice,
do as has been suggested, join the Ferret Health List.  That's medical
help, right there, but they'll also be the first to tell you get your
animal to the vet.  They can help you with symptoms, but they won't
diagnose nor treat your animal over the net.
 
As I said, I've been with Bill and the FML for over 5 years now.  It
changes all the time.  It goes through silly stages, argumentative stages
where it bleeds when it comes through my e-mail, stages where cries for
help and medical requests are rampant.  You didn't say how long you'd
been a member.  So I suggest you sit back and scroll through, watch for
what you want, join the FHL, or, leave the FML, especially since it
seems, from your post, that it doesn't meet your standards, whatever
they are.  I think I've said what I want to say, hopefully I've been
articulate enough to express this.  But you do, Silly Girl, owe this list
an apology for the insult you have given it's members.  Oh, and please,
don't write me.  I know what the delete key is used for.
 
Rebecca and the Crew of Merry Mayhem
"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crunchy, and
 taste good with ketchup"
"Support bacteria, it's the only culture some people have"
[Posted in FML issue 3906]