It was said in not so many words yesterday that people who want to protect
their possessions shouldn't be criticized for wanting to keep their things
nice. Firstly, I want you to know that this isn't me being angry, but I
do want anyone who considers their possessions high on their scale of
priority to keep this mind...
I want you to take a trip to your local SPCA or animal shelter and talk
to the staff there on any given day. What you will hear is stories of
how the animals there had to give up their comfortable home because they
shed too much on the precious furniture; the cat was declawed because it
ripped up the couch; the dog chewed on the coffee table; the ferret dug
up the carpeting; the dog had its vocal cords sliced because it barked
too much; the ferret had its canine teeth clipped out so it wouldn't hurt
the children. This world is filled with poor examples of responsible
ownership... people who got a pet they shouldn't have because they got it
for the wrong reasons. And who pays for the suffering of unnecessary
surgery of declawing and debarking? The animals do. Every single time.
Thousands of animals are dumped at each shelter yearly, and over half of
them will die because their aren't enough homes for all of them. People
want animals that are young, for starters, so the older ones pine away or
are euthanized to make room for the more adaptable ones. Hundreds of
thousands of animals each year give up their life because of the ignorance
of the owner. Why? Because the animal's natural behaviour was not taken
into consideration before getting it, or the owner wants to believe in old
myth's and wives tales instead of conforming to the new information as it
comes along.
If you want to talk to me about how much more worthy your possessions are
against the mental well being of a ferret, then explain to me what is so
important about something that can be replaced, when the life of animal
cannot. I want you to look me square in the eye and tell me that the
antique piece of furniture you have, or the art nouveau chair you paid
a $3000 for is more valuable than a living, breathing life. And then I
want you to explain to me why you even got a ferret in the first place
when the number one responsibility of any owner is to take care of the
animal they took into their home... that they promised to look after...
that they promised they wouldn't let anything happen to... and then gets
taken to the local ferret shelter because it stank too much, or broke too
many valuables, or ruined the carpet with poop and pee.
On second thought, don't answer to me... answer to the ferret that gets
locked away in its cage for the majority of its life because having it
out and about where it should be is just too much work, and it just
causes too much damage. The long and short of this is, if you can't be a
responsible owner by doing what is necessary to give your ferret the life
it deserves, then you need to reconsider getting a different animal.
Because, getting a ferret means this:
1. They will dig and they need to dig.
2. They need to have dark places to hide and sleep.
3. They like to explore everything because of their curious nature.
4. They need plenty of exercise... and this means more than an hour or
two a day outside of a cage.
5. Ferrets shed lots of hair twice a year for about 3 weeks and then
smaller amounts the rest of the year.
6. They need to be mentally stimulated daily.
7. They need to be physically challenged daily.
8. They will have accidents and poop where ever they like.
9. They steal knick knack's, jewelry, cutlery, and anything else not
tied down, and hide it.
And this is just for starters...
I want you to know that when I first got a ferret back in 1985, that the
first thing I did was stick it in a cage... a cage the SPCA stated was
the appropriate size for a ferret. It was tiny... Only 18" x 24" x 18".
After 2 weeks, we dumped it and built a new one. This one was 4' high x
3' wide x 2' deep and had three levels. After two years and 5 ferrets,
we gave them their own room, with time out of the room, because the cage
seemed as cruel as the smaller one did. Then eventually, a few years
later, we let them have free run of the house altogether. When we got our
first ferret, I was a clean freak. You couldn't even come over without
calling first so that I had time to clean up. Now, there is poop on the
floor from the accidents ferrets have and my furniture isn't so nice
looking anymore because the cats tore a hole in the side and the ferrets
took advantage of their sudden good fortune.
The point is that as we saw that their mental well being was as important
to them as it was to us, that we needed to make adjustments. Why?
Because that is our responsibility. The problem is that people don't
fully comprehend what true responsibility is when it comes ot having
non-human companions live with us. They aren't toys, and they aren't
there for our convenience. They are with us because we want them to be
there. And that means that we go the full mile, or we don't go it at all.
If you're telling me that at least being half a responsible owner is
better than not being one at all, well, I could write another post and
half on that as well. Bottom line... give your ferrets something to dig
in, to roll about in, to play in, and do it often, and do it with them in
mind instead of putting replaceable non-living things above their needs.
Go ahead and protect your couch, but give them something to dig in and
you'll make your ferret a happier camper every day of the week!
Enough said.
betty and her blur o'fur
for the love of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 3769]
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