Call me crazy, but I just had a personality switch during one of my
brother-in-laws' INSANE visits.  Ok, he has 4 kids...not well-behaved.
They scream, stomp..etc.  They were scared to DEATH of the ferrets.
 
The two older girls (7 & 5) were scared to go near them, but then decided
they wanted to hold them.  I made them sit on the floor in front of me, put
Chimi in one girl's arms at a time - each one threw him back at me as soon
as he started to wiggle.  I spent 30 minutes educating them on the fact
that they are gentle, are not going to attack (very supervised), and all
the things you can try to explain to young kids.  The 4 year old boy nearly
peed his pants...wouldn't even touch the ferrets through the bars.  17
month old baby LOVED them...but he thought their tails served as a ferret
handle.  I don't know how Pepe restrained himself from biting, but the boy
finally let go....it was very stressful trying to educate these kids who
were squaling and screaming.  The 4 year old boy was still scared even at
the end.  Meanwhile, I had to explain to their mom that they are not rats,
I had to litter train them, etc.
 
The baby was going after poopies in the litter pans, he went for stray
kibble on the floor, he wanted the pooper scooper so bad...it was wild.
To top it off, their dad, who is allergic to everything, was not allergic
to ferrets....All I wanted to do was educate them about my pets so they
have a better understanding of me.
 
OK, so here is where it gets scary.  I heard the first daughter say,
"Mommy, can we get a ferret?" and the other joined in...and I started
spewing awful things about ferrets like I was posessed.  I started saying
how they steal everything.  I said they destroyed my couch...they dig at
the carpet.  They pee on the carpet.  They poop on the carpet.  They get
in our bed and nothing is safe.  They tore up our mattress.  They stink.
They need shots.  They get sick..The vet is so expensive.  They get awful
diseases...
 
After all that hard work of teaching them how wonderful they are...and
those people looking at me like a Goddess with these great pets...now I was
like a crypt keeper with dirty, beady eyed rats, eating roaches in the
night.  Why on earth would anyone buy such an animal???  Only a glutton for
punishment...and I still love them.  I know these people couldn't take care
of a ferret...there were danger signals.
 
ugh...I hope they just forget it...Lisette, I agree.  I wonder how many
Dalmatians ended up in shelters after the release of the movie "101
Dalmatians." Bad promotion for Dalmatians.  A show describing the breed?
Good promotion for Dalmatians.  But do either want people running out and
buying Dalmatians on a whim??  Hope not.
 
You can't win.
 
Ok, I have to do some chores (play with ferrets) and find something funny
to rant about.
 
Later,
Stephanie, Chimi (Little girls smell like syrup)& Pepe (My bum still
tingles)
[Posted in FML issue 2688]