4:50pm July 7th
She was small and feisty from the very beginning..
She never weighed much more than a pound...
She came here with her 2 sisters.....3 kits at once (Pansy, Clover and
Rose)
Ya-Ya we called her...whatever was going on, she was like "Ya-Ya I wanna
do that!"
Mouse we called her...she was so small, the only thing she had on a mouse
was length!
Wild Haired Weasel we called her....she seemed to have a permanant 'bad
hair day'
But....mostly we called her Clover
It was July of 1998 that brought Clover to us, a MF/Petco kind of girl...
She was always busy, in a ferrety kind of way...
A jumper she was....when we first started blocking the doorway to The
Ferrets Room room with a peice of plywood, what kept the other ferrets
contained, was was no problem for Clover! That barrier kept getting
higher, and Clover kept going over! Even a tube across the top wouldn't
deter her! She was so lightweight...boy could she jump! We eventually
won that challenge, but by then the barrier was so high, I could barely
get over it, and what kept Clover in, kept her Mom out!
Tops of cages....Lord, that girl was forever on top of a cage!
Especially cleaning days, when I put everything on the floor, up on top
of the cages. Ol' Clover would be up there in all the clean laundry, all
the boxes and sacks...running thru the tubes (and of course the tubes
would come slithering to the floor....)
Tubes? They were like a freeway to her....so tiny...she'd never touch
the sides! She'd whip around and go the other way in the blink of an
eye! Frequently I'd find Clover comfortably curled up in the middle of a
20' tube...sound asleep! I once missed her sleeping in a short segment
of tube, when I got a new crew up.....I came back to find 2 big boys at
either end of the tube, being held at bay, by one riled up Clover who
seemed to be all teeth (and seemingly at both ends of the tube at once!)
When Clover went out, she was hard to keep in a harness....oh, she'd
consent to keep it on long enough to make us think she was going to
behave....then bing! she was loose... Putting that harness back on was
like trying to harness a spider...one that kept nipping and scratching!
Clover always wanted to do, what Clover wanted to do!
Not that she was a biter.....I'd have her in her harness, and in my arms
as I'm explaining to a stranger what it is I have, and Clover would chomp
on my arm, and shake her little head....then look up at me as if to say
"Witness my fury...now put me down!" She never..ever broke skin....but,
she could leave some really good dents! (or if she didn't take a big
enough bite....a nasty pinch!)
I once watched Clover across the room (all alone) wait until I had 10
ferrets all sitting up on their hind legs, begging for a treat, then
clover ran across the room, and fling herself into all those ferrets
(which set everyone off!) I assumed it was her version of Ferret
Bowling....
When we put a pool of water in the room, all the ferrets would approach
cautiously to the waters edge.....all except Clover who would take a
running leap, and cannonball into the water splashing everyone! No one
enjoyed the water more than Clover...
Lily was sleeping with her this morning.. She took a lick or two of
babyfood, and a little water..
Jasper was sleeping with her this afternoon.. She took one lick of
babyfood....but no water (tho she did stick her head in the dish, and
blow bubbles....a clown to the end........)
Tho I wanted to deny it, I knew it was time....
We sat under the fan where it was cool, and she briefly (and unsteadily)
explored the sofa
We sat on the porch, and she felt the hot sun on her nose....all the
scents....all the noises..... She snorkeled in the grass briefly...
I reminded her of her sister Pansy who had gone on before... Of big ol'
Dean, and Riki, and Jester, and Casper, and of Joker....and Merret..
I told her of a Bridge, and a beautiful meadow where she'd be healthy
and happy again... and, I told her to wait for me...
and then it was time to go.......
Clover
April 1998-July 7th 2003
[Posted in FML issue 4202]
|
