Hi Everyone!  My name is Pat and I run a shelter in Upstate New York.  I
have been reading issues of the FML that have been passed on to me but I
read something in the last newsletter that bothered me and I'd like to
respond to the issue of "The Greenies" - or ECE in Shelters.
   I, too, was hit real hard by the Greenies two years ago.  But with
"round the clock" care no one was lost.  It wasn't easy -  I had to feed
the sickest ones every 3-4 hours and made frequent trips to the vet for
re-hydration.  The important thing in dealing with it was to NOT be
distracted for a single minute in care-giving.
   For several months after that I carefully monitored every ferret coming
in to the shelter.  One little female coming in to the shelter was
abandoned in a local park with her little companion.  The male had been hit
by a car and died that night  - It was very cold.  Where do you draw the
line?  Was she at any more risk by being abandoned to die outdoors than
contracting the greenies and getting over it?  Unfortunately, not very many
people who turn their ferrets in to shelters care what happens to them. I
recently took in two young females in full heat -  supposedly somebody
cared, but they did not bother to learn anything about prolonged heat cycle
and one of the little girls died this week from aplastic anemia.  I guess
they didn't care enough to get them spayed.
     I would love to say that people care -  but most do not.  I have been
sheltering ferrets (and many other animals) for 8 years.  I have worked
very hard to become the only LIFE approved shelter in New York State.  I
will not turn away any animal and risk having it turned loose or destroyed.
   I might add that in the past year NO animals coming in to the shelter
have contracted the Greenies.  Several were adopted out to "other ferret
homes" and those homes have not contracted Greenies.  I have attended
meetings of our club where ferrets are welcome -  no one has contracted
this virus.  I have also attended shows, as have several of my friends, and
none of our ferrets (including "new" ferrets not previously exposed) has
gotten sick.
    Don't get me wrong.  I am not taking "the greenies" lightly.  But I
have a job to do and that is saving ferrets. (etc.)  I take THAT aspect of
it very seriously.  I shudder to think how many animals would be dead if
shelters didn't do their jobs responsibly.  Dr. Williams states the
mortality rate for The Greenies in affected ferrets is less than 5%.   I
feel the Greenies is less of a threat than many other nasty things I have
been seeing.  Why have so many "farm" ferrets coming in to the shelter been
getting insulinoma at one year old, adrenal tumors at 14 months and
lymphoma at younger and younger ages?
                       Pat Nothnagle
                       Obadiah's Ferret Rescue and Shelter
                       Brockport, New York  (Upstate New York)
[Posted in FML issue 1242]