Hello,
 
This is the FORMAL introduction of the Midatlantic Ferret Website and
Mailing list! :)
 
My name is Mike Ninivaggi, and I (along with my fiancee, Paula) are owned
by 5 furkids.  I also do some website design.  I have created a new
website, http://www.ferretopia.org, and one of the sites within the site is
the Midatlantic Ferret Website, http://midatlantic.ferretopia.org .  It is
a version of the New England Ferret Website.  After this introduction I
will explain why I created these non-profit, non-affiliated sites, but
first I want to cut to the chase, as they say, and explain what the site
is for.
 
I have created the Midatlantic Ferret Website to act as a resource and
central place for shelters, organizations, and owners from the Midatlantic
states (NY, NJ, PA, MD, DE, and Washington DC) to post or organize events,
ferret adoptions and rescues, discuss topics that particularly affect
ferrets in these states, exchange ideas, and just meet others from the
area.  I have also created an adjunct mailing list,
[log in to unmask] to help with this.  The idea was that
bringing folks from the area closer together couldn't be a bad thing for
the ferrets.  To accomplish this, the site includes a Discussion Board,
Events Calendar, Want Ad Board, and Organization List, as well as links
that will let you join the National and Midatlantic FML's.
 
This site is a non-profit site, not affiliated with any ferret club or
shelter.  I did it on my own.  I originally started with the New England
Ferret Website.  I live in New Hampshire now, and I thought that especially
with a bunch of states so small, it would be a good idea to have a central
resource for them.  I don't have the money to help support a shelter, nor
do I have the time to volunteer.  I am also limited to how many pets I can
have in my apartment.  This therefore seemed like a good way for me to
contribute to the ferret community.  The site proved popular enough for me
to spend the $35 and register a domain name, ferretopia.org, for it, so it
would be easier to find.  I also benefited by having a ferret-owning friend
who let me put the site on his server for free.
 
I found that many of us up in New England had at least some dealings with
folks from the Midatlantic region, and as well, I was born in Long Island
and lived a while in New Jersey too, graduating from Ramapo College, so I
have an affinity for this area.  Rather than dilute the New England site,
I (after asking a few folks) decided to put up a site for the Midatlantic
region as well.
 
Midatlantic region residents, please take the time to look at and use the
website and mailing list.  It's for folks like you that I especially
created it.  I hope you find it useful.  If you wish to post events on the
calendar, let me know and I'll send you the password.
 
Happy ferreting! :) - Mike
[Posted in FML issue 3081]