Oh, what a day.
 
Thursday I got up, and the ferrets got up, and Bear was having trouble
breathing through his nose.  He was making a LOT of noise like he was
trying to clear it but couldn't.  At times it scared him and he ran off
to hide.  So, off to the vets we went for a not-exactly-emergency visit.
I forgot it was the day for the relief vet to be in, but she was nice
and fairly knowledgeable.  We ruled out a chest cold and couldn't find
anything else, so Bear comes home with some antibiotic in case it's a
head cold.
 
Then evening rolls around, the ferrets get up again, so it's time for
Bear's medicine.  He doesn't want to take it, so I left the bottle on my
desk and went off to draw up some Ferretone in the syringe.  That does
the trick and Bear greedily laps up the medicine.
 
In the couple of minutes I was out of the room, one of the thieves took
off with the medicine bottle!  Digger and Fox have both learned how to
reliably get on my desk.
 
So we proceed to tear the house apart looking for the medicine.  We looked
under the couch where they often sleep to see if it was stashed there, and
one of us, not paying attention, set the couch back down on Fox.  I walked
by a couple minutes later and found his butt sticking out from the edge
and thought he was trying to go in a new way.  I lifted the couch to get
him out, and he's hurt!  I put him down and he staggers a couple of steps,
collapses, and closes his eyes.  He's got that distant look that until now
I have only heard described.
 
So I pop him in the carrier, and off to the emergency vet we go.  Within
a couple of minutes he perks back up again.  But we go to the emergency
vet and get him checked out and get x-rays done.  Everything looks ok
except for a scratch on his shoulders.  I'm sure he's sore (the couch
edge is a tight fit for my flat hand), but he seems ok.
 
<sigh> I actually had to check the calendar to make sure it wasn't
Thursday the 13th.  It's a good thing these little buggers are so lovable.
They cost me a bundle in money, frustration, and worry.  But they are
worth every bit of it.
 
Don't forget to love your ferrets every day, and always remember that
there is no such thing as a completely ferret-proof house!
 
BTW, my girlfriend eventually found the medicine, still in my office
under a filing cabinet.
 
Roger, Digger, Bear (snort!), Fox-the-almost-squished, and Sniffles
[Posted in FML issue 3751]