>From:    Troy Lynn Eckart <[log in to unmask]>
>
>I'm not sure of the circumstances that the little ones were taken to a
>shelter but if they were a group and split up, they need to be back
>together.  The pain and suffering of separation is deadly on some.  That
>is why I always advise NOT to separate family ferret groups.
>
>How do you think they feel when they are taken from their home, lose
>thier human parents, and then lose their siblings?...
 
>I've seen the pain and suffering with human/ferret separation as well.
>And don't think ferrets forget easily, they don't.  It took a year for
>Culla to warm up to me but he never was really affectionate till his
>final days.....
>
>
>Hugs to all. tle
>Troy Lynn Eckart, F.B.S.
 
I just want to add to Troy Lynn's letter about "shelter ops".
 
Kuba and Freddy came to live with us after a family had broken up by
divorce.  Freddy was already 9 years and Kuba was 5.  Kuba began to live
with Freddy after he had been found outside in 20 below weather.  Freddy
was a very active ferret often playing like he was three or four ( no one
told him he was old).  They were best of friends.  When Freddy was almost
10 I found him in barely alive in his sleep box and rushed him to the vet
but he soon passed over the bridge.  Kuba never had a chance to say
goodbye to his best friend and wandered around looking for him for weeks.
He started to do things we had never seen before.  He would take a toy,
pull it under him and hang on to it; we thought he was getting an eye
infection because his eyes were running ( but there was no infection and
no explanation for it); he just wasn't himself.  He wasn't alone because
we still had several other ferrets.  Then two new fosters entered our
home (3 year old) and Kuba changed.  He especially like one of them and
started to bond with them.  The toy no longer was tucked under him and
amazingly his eyes stopped running.  Was he crying for his lost friend?
 
The purpose of this story is to show you that ferrets should not be
seperated from one another.  They do grieve loss and isn't losing their
human family enough?
 
Lorene Kimura
[Posted in FML issue 3913]