Dear Bill and everyone on the mailing list.
 
I'm known as the ferretguy around these parts(Colorado and surrounding
states) and am finally getting the time and ability to correspond on
the fml.
 
We have been so busy here at Especially Ferrets with our work load doubling
each and every year we are here.  It has been 18 to 24 hours aday , 7 days
a week for five years now, and still people are just finding out about us.
For two years we awere in Petco stores doing educaton and awareness
programs every Saturday.  We still go into public schools and have even
gotten the school district to bus kids to our shelter for lots of fun with
the fuzzies and teaching the kids about ferrets while we are doing it.
Last year (1999) we had almost 2000 ferrets come to our shelter for one
reason or another.  Not all had problems as some came just to play in
Ferretland.  It's kind of an amusement park for fuzzies only.  People
aren't even allowed in Ferretland unless they aare one our trained staff.
We train them to spot aggressive bx and what to do about it, reinforce good
potty bx and generally keep the fuzzies safe and happy.  They are never
left unnattended in Ferretland.  We also clean Ferretland every day with
natural organic antiviral and antibacterial agents to prevent the spread of
infectious diseases.  We learned the hard way our first year.
 
The main reason I'm writing is the S.T.A.R survey that came out recently
with our stats is incorrect.  I believe it is Judith , God bless her, that
works so hard on that survey, who is not at fault for this one.  Our stats
got mixed up this year thriough the piles of paperwork that I've just
around to.  Nevertheless, we still conducted over 700 rescues and
surrenders, which resulted in over 500 adoptions.  We had done or referred
236 ferrets for adrenal surgery, or lupron therapy, with a surgical
mortality rate of .65.  We lost a total of 66 ferrets out of almost 2000
that came to our doors and most of them were just in such bad shape when we
got them, there was nothing we could do.
 
We do not charge for the care we provide here and when possible, rush =
most ferrets to the closet ferret approved vet as soon as we can. It =
really breaks my heart everytime we lose one our precious fuzzies, but =
we keep going on hoping to just save the next one that comes in.
 
I will be on the fml more now that my health has me out of the shelter more
than in.  Don't worry, the fuzzies won't miss a beat here, I'm replaced by
several people, who do a wonderful job and love the kids as much as I.  I
don't want to add heart attack #5 to my list of achievements this year, so
I must slow down some.
 
Thanks to all of you who make the fml work.  It is a wonderful forum for
the fuzzies and their humans
 
Randy Horton
[Posted in FML issue 2982]