Hi, This is the first time I have written but I have been lurking for some
time now and I just had to write regarding all the letters about pet stores
vs. breeders.
 
As a little background, we were owned by our first ferret in October of
last year.  She is a wonderful 6 month old Chocolate (I think!) and very
docile and loving.  We had done tons of research on the Internet as well
as reading every book we could get our hands on before we purchased her.
One thing we didn't know for sure was where to find one of these wonderful
animals once we decided to get one.  I was unable to find out anything
about any shelters or breeders in my area - we live about 2 hours from
Seattle WA - so the only place we had available was Petco.  We went in
several times before we finally purchased one.  I have to say that they
were all well taken care of every time we went in.  They always had fresh
water and food and the litter box was clean.  The sales people didn't know
as much as I would have liked but at least we had done enough research to
know what to look for.  I know that some have written that no one should by
from pet stores but in some cases that is all that is available to us with
a reasonable price.  Bandit was $90 plus of course all the wonderful
accessories that we just "had" to buy!  I did just look up the sheet that
told us about her and she is from the Triple FFF breeding farm in
Pennsylvania - haven't heard that one mentioned much here or on the
newsgroups.  I guess that is good since it means they aren't out there
causing a lot of trouble.
 
Anyway, as a new owner (or is that owned by), I wanted to point out that
it isn't always possible to find a shelter or breeder and if we have the
chance to provide a loving home for a wonderful animal like Bandit, does it
really matter where we got it from?  She has a fantastic personality, loves
to cuddle, gives wonderful kisses, and has never, ever nipped any of us (we
have 8 yr old and 11 year old girls).
 
Thank you for the great information provided on these pages.  I read my FML
from beginning to end every day and am constantly learning.  I'm so glad
there is a place to ask questions and learn more about these wonderful
fuzzy critters.
 
"May all your critters be healthy and happy"
Kathy with Bandit (the ferret), Cody (the dog), and Trouble (the cat)
[Posted in FML issue 2960]