That Gizzmo!!! She pressed the send key before I even started my email.
 
Gizzmo is our little cinnamon girl we rescued in September.  We absolutely
love her.  Even though she turned out to be a little princess.  She came
from an abusive home being caged up most of her life.  When the ferret
shelter rescued her, they spoiled her and rightly so.  We decided to
foster her at first since our Nipper just crossed over the Rainbow Bridge
and I didn't know if I wanted to see another ferret cross over the Bridge.
It was very traumatic for me.
 
Gizzmo was a real terror when we brought her home.  We felt bad about her
being caged up all her life and allowed her free range of my husband's
office and when we were home, the den area.  When we put her down for the
night in the office or when we left for the day, she would promptly poop
by the door and sometime, smear her poop all over the floor and door.
When we didn't give our 100% attention, she would poop outside the litter
box.  She seemed to spend all her waking life to get outside the office
and pooping wherever she can.  She didn't act like a ferret.  Meaning, she
didn't sleep much.  We always found her awake.  Even when we put her down
for the night, we would hear her 15 minutes later trying to scratch her
way out of the office.  She just didn't sleep much.
 
Gizzmo is a real chatterbox too.  She would constantly make humph, humph
noises.  Especially when we pressed her little squeak toy.  When she heard
that squeak, wherever she was, she would race out to get that squeak toy
humph, humphing along the way.  We have never heard a ferret make that
kind of noise and we never had a ferret that seemed to be awake 20 hours
of her life instead of being asleep.
 
In spite of all this we did finally chose to adopt her. She is just so
amusing and in her own way, very loving.
 
We thought that maybe we could try to "calm" her down by adopting another
ferret.  We knew Gizzmo would try to play the dominant role.  She did
for the first couple of days but, surprisingly chilled out by constantly
grooming Fat Boy.  She has, in fact, been sleeping the "normal" 20 hours
and is not making her life goal to get out of the office now.  She is also
sleeping with Fat Boy and she is now a real sweetheart.
 
But, we are wondering whether this is normal for a ferret to do a complete
180.  We don't know if she is not feeling well and that is why she is
constantly sleeping.  She has vomitted a few times too.  We don't know if
it is the new food we got or just hair balls from all the constant
grooming she does on Fat Boy.
 
Does anyone have know if this is a normal turnaround for a ferret that has
been alone for all her life and is now with another ferret?
 
Other than that, she seems to play and explore when she is awake and is
eating like she normally does which is just nibbling.
 
Thanks.
 
BTW.  We love Fat Boy too!!!  He does the Dance for Joy all the time.
Another ferret thing that Gizzmo doesn't ever do.
[Posted in FML issue 3589]