>From:    [log in to unmask]
>About 2 yrs ago we adopted a beautiful little female ferret from a shelter.
>She had adrenal disease when we got her.  The shelter didn't tell us.
 
This is a very strong & derogatory statement.  As a long-time rescuer it
touched me personally.  Please understand that this is not a flame, only
an attempt at understanding.
 
If you've confirmed that the shelter knowingly didn't inform you, then you
have every right to your statement.  And if so, by what means have you
confirmed that that was the case?  Or is it that you assume the shelter is
guilty of nondisclosure.  If that is the case, what leads you to believe
that the shelter knowing didn't tell you about a confirmed health problem?
 
As has been discussed many times in this forum, many symptoms can be
attributed to multiple conditions & causes, & sometimes admitted
overreactions by the owner.  For example, one of the most commonly
recognized symptom of adrenal disease is hair loss.  But hair loss can
also be caused by seasonal shedding, emotional stress, parasites, or
malnutrition.  What kind of symptoms did your little one have when you
adopted her?  Did the symptoms prompt you to question the shelter?
 
In our case, ferrets coming into our care are given an initial health
check & brought up to date on vaccinations if routine medical care
cannot be documented (as in case of found & abandoned ferrets, or when
surrendering owners fail to provide medical info).  We are not in the
financial position to test for every malady a ferret may have unless there
is an indication for concern.  If conditions are suspected in our fosters,
they go to the vet.
 
I am a very strong proponent of full disclosure for adoption.  Failure to
do so is unfair to the ferret being adopted & their new owner - as well as
dishonest.  A situation like this can make all rescues look bad.  Please
provide a response so we all have a better understand of what occurred.
 
>If anyone is debating adopting a ferret with adrenal disease, in my
>opinion the benefits far out weigh the cost of the surgery.
 
I wish everyone felt this way.  Thank you.
 
Juliana  (770) 984-1417 <[log in to unmask]>
FERRET BUSINESS of GA
(fer'it`biz'nis) n.    1 Ferret foster care & adoption.
2 Info about ferret care & ownership.  3 What a ferret does.
4 A collection of ferrets.             5 A direct result of ferret math.
/That's BUSINESS as in a bunch of ferrets folks./
[Posted in FML issue 2688]