Dear FML,
I have been an on again, off again reader/poster for three years, I
recently posted about a canadian ferret that I got from a "bad" pet store,
who is a biter.  I love this little guy.  He is coming along fine, making
progress daily, and I am able to pick him up briefly with bare hands, hold
him for extended periods of petting, and loving if I wrap him up in a
towel, and he is learning not to bite feet.  This guy wasn't a nipper, he
was a sink in the teeth, and latch on and cry biter.
 
Day by day, he learns that I won't hurt him, no matter what he does, but
that to get my love and attention he needs to be nice with me.  He is
responding beautifully.  The only reprimand he gets if he makes a mistake
is a firm "No Bite" command, if he bites bad, he goes back to his cage,
play time is over.  As long as he plays nice he is allowed 4-6 hours of
interactive play and run time per day.
 
I post anonymously because I had a run-in with the local shelter, and some
shelter people about a year ago, and I am not ready to deal with them
"publicly" on the FML, yet.  Maybe someday, if it seems appropriate.  My
reason for posting today is to pass along the sad news my SO sent to me
via e-mail today.  It is yet another case of people who shouldn't have
ferrets, much less children.
 
I would never leave my 10 day old baby, alone, with a dog, or ferrets loose
while I napped.  Enough said.  I have two children 12 and 16, I have always
had animals.  I nursed my 12 year old until he was three, and he never had
a crib.  He slept with his father and I in our bed the "family bed."  The
family bed is not a widely accepted american method of child rearing,
neither is extended nursing, but it is common in europe, and was common in
this country until the turn of the century.  So, here's the sad story...
 
Pet Ferrets Attack Baby In Eau Claire
Two pet ferrets were destroyed after attacking a 10-day-old baby in Eau
Claire, and the family dog is credited with saving the child's life,
WCCO-TV reported.  The incident happened while the baby's mother, Kathleen
O'Connell, was napping.
 
Baby Cassandra was sleeping in a cradle when the two ferrets climbed in.
The ferrets left claw marks all over the baby's face.
 
Family members said that they think the ferrets bit the baby when she
started crying.
 
The family dog, Shadow, chased the ferrets out of the cradle.
 
"He woke up and (got) the ferrets out of the cradle," said Jennifer Grau,
the baby's aunt.
 
Doctors said that the baby will be fine and there probably won't be any
scars, WCCO-TV reported.
[Posted in FML issue 3099]