I'm so sorry to hear about Susan's sister Diane and her troubles.  My
husband Stuart and I have only been owned by ferrets for a little over a
year.  We lost our first, Jerri, at eight months to a wasting liver disease.
I can't imagine how much we'll suffer when we lose one we've had for many
years.  My heart goes out to Diane.  It sounds like Leilani is depressed by
the loss of Bandit.  Hopefully someone can find her a companion in Nevada.
We're in South Dakota, so I'm afraid we aren't much help.  Our thoughts and
prayers are with Diane.
 
Chris Young wrote about ferrets being afraid of him/her.  I don't know about
abused ferrets and how to handle them, other than to keep being gentle with
them.  In my limited experience, I find our ferrets can be a little
dramatic.  They have never suffered at our hands, in fact they are
thoroughly spoiled and rule the house.  But sometimes they will shy away
when I come near or move suddenly.  They don't like loud noises, so if
something falls, or the doorbell rings, they panic.  I can't worry about it
though, having read about the theatrical performances of other ferrets on
the FML.  Good luck, Chris.  You sound like a kind and responsible owner
(pet).  :)
 
My sympathies also to Terri Beier, who wrote about Oliver being diagnosed
with cataracts.  Our Tom, who is about a year old, developed cataracts at
about 5 months of age.  I was really traumatized, as Jerri had only just
died.  But Tom is just fine.  You can hardly tell he is blind.  He navigates
known areas as though he is sighted, although he will bump into something
that wasn't there before.  He does quite well in unfamiliar territory,
having no trouble getting around my girlfriend's house when we go there for
ferret parties (they have 2 girls, we have 3 boys).  Actually, the big
advantage is that he is the easiest one to catch when it is time to go back
in the cage!  So try not to worry, although it is hard not to, Terri.  I
think Oliver will have a lovely life with you.
 
Dooks and kisses,
 Jerill (El Grande, the most magnificent of them all)
 Tom (Of the ghostly eyes and strong predilection for picnics)
 Gabriel (But your sock-encased feet taste SO scrumptious!)
 Susan and Stuart (pets and faithful servants)
[Posted in FML issue 1826]