I am pleased to announce our first adoptions:
Baby, a beautiful 4yo sable who is a very fat girl, and Blizzard, a 6yo
silver who is a very skinny girl because she seems to be suffering from
adrenal disease.  The owner is moving to Italy and very sadly gave them up
to the shelter, asking that they please find them a home where they would
stay forever.  Both girls had at least one home before his.  The woman who
picked them up said that the owner seemed unaware that one was sick.  He
thinks she's just old.  I think both fuzzies spent way too much time in
their cages (separate cages!) and did not have their bedding washed even to
impress new owners.  Both of them snuggled right in to the clean towels,
etc., that I put in their cages.  I had to get rid of that stink.  I think
Blizzard may have an unusual odor.
 
The owner felt especially badly about Blizzard, who was a stray when he got
her.  She had been found a few years ago curled up around a little pink fuzz
cat ball.  She still has the ball (now pretty ratty) and is very funny about
it.  If you put it somewhere *wrong* in her cage, she picks it up, shakes
it, and puts it in her food bowl.  How will I ever keep Eloise from
relocating this precious toy?  It was the most pathetic, yet encouraging
thing to watch this long, ratty critter, with her naked legs and lower back
and her dry yellowish fur, decide she liked the room she had just explored
and start to dook and war dance.  She fell sideways a couple times, but she
looked happy.  My daughter and I are ready to be nursemaids and love her
back to good health.  She likes to be held and stroked and is very gentle.
BTW, she has two tattoos, so perhaps I have one of the MF ferrets I keep
reading about here.
 
Baby is one chubby girl!  We were told one is a retired show ferret, and I
am guessing it is Baby.  She has the cutest little face, of the
shorter-nosed type, and absolutely gorgeous color and markings on what looks
like a full winter coat.  But her rear view very strongly resembles that of
a ground hog.  She has a hard time lifting that rear end up couches and
stairs.  I will have her checked over, of course, in case her belly is due
to heart or spleen problems.  I have no experience with sick ferrets, but my
first guess is lack of exercise.  The fat is firm, evenly distributed,
somewhat indented down the mid-line of the belly . . . it just looks like
an exaggeration of her natural shape.  All opinions from the experienced are
welcome.  She has a super disposition.  She's already eager to cuddle with
people, even in her first hour in the house.  She loves to just roll around
next to us and have us play with her.  We tried the new hypnosis techniques
I've recently read about, and they work great on her.  She's a real dooker
and dancer, too.
 
Introductions went very, very well, with only a few incidents.  Sabine just
vibrated with what looked like surprise and outrage while she and Eloise
watched the new fuzzies explore the room.  When we let Eloise and Sabine
out, Sabine spent 10 mins following Baby with her nose at her butt.  Eloise
and Blizzard followed each other through the dryer tubes.  Both the new
girls gave warning cries a couple times to scare the nosy ones off.  Eloise
bit Blizzard when my daughter was holding her (jealousy?).  Sabine jumped on
Baby, but we think it looked like play.  All four were totally exhausted by
the meeting.  At one point Blizzard decided to wardance on the rustley
plastic bag (after throwing out the ringy ball Eloise keeps in there).  For
some reason, Oreo overloaded at that point and chased her under the couch.
Both Griffin and Oreo seemed more curious than upset, so I think the FDI/FLO
truce will stay in effect here in Drexel Hill.
 
Vet Questions:
Is Blizzard a good candidate for Duck Soup?  She ate her Iams Kitten, but
she is *so-o-o-o* skinny.  Is a lack of balance part of adrenal disease or
should I look for something more?  And should I be more worried about Baby's
fat?
 
Most of all, should I let my vet do the surgery?  To the best of my cautious
opinion, he is a great vet.  Very knowledgable about ferrets and many other
exotics.  I know he knows all about adrenal disease, but I don't think he
has performed the surgery before.  He has a clean, up-to-date surgery, and I
am willing to trust his skill.  I guess I'm asking if the surgery is so
difficult that I should drive the hour to the ferrets-only vet?  I don't
mind the drive if it is good for my new girl, and I'd like to meet the vet.
 
Shelter Owners:
Could you e-mail me to express an opinion on what I should pay for these
girls?  Sandee just asked for a donation, and I am unsure of whether I
offered enough.  I want to be fair.  The fuzzies are 4 and 6 (if the owner
was right about Blizzards age - she looks older at the moment).  One needs
surgery.  They came with one one-level cage with a shelf and hammock.  I did
not know I would be paying for surgery, so I am confused about what is usual
in such a case.  Sandee does not run a big operation and does not seem to
have a set rate.  I'd like to know what you think as soon as possible.
 
TNT!  Stunned and happy!
Judith
Eloise, Sabine, Baby and Blizzard (I think these names may change if I
see no signs that the new fuzzies recognize them)
[Posted in FML issue 1517]