I've gotten a tad behind on my FMLs, but I wanted to toss in my opinion
about the topic of cage time that has come up.  Someone posted that 1-2
hours a day is sufficient run time.  I heartily disagree.  Ferrets need
exercise and stimulation as much as your or do.  If left in a cage, ferrets
have little option but to sleep (or dig up thier litter, food, or bedding,
or rattle/shake their cage ala 'cage rage').  Our clan has free run of
several ferret resisant rooms from the time we get up in the morning until
the time we are going to be at night.  Someone compared caging ferrets to
confining a 2 year old to a small room -- not a bad analogy in my opinon.
Ferrets aren't intended to be cage animals like a gerbil or a guniea pig.
We use their cage as a secure place to keep our ferrets while we sleep
(otherwise we wouldn't get a wink of sleep), not as a storage facility
where we can take them out and play with them and then put them away when
we're/they're done.
 
Our halfway hosue will not adopt a ferret to anyone under the age of 18
period.  We've already seen most of our rescues/surrenders come from
circumstances where a teen begs his parents for a ferret, gets one, loses
interest, and gets rid of him/her/them.  Now, if the PARENTS would like to
adopt a ferret and agree to take on the responsibility (i.e. if interest
wanes, monies run low, kid leaves for college, etc.), we will consider
their adopting to them the same way we would adopt ANY family.  The key is
that the PARENTS need to want to have ferrets as well.  This helps protect
everyone involved (ferrets included) in the end.
 
                          -Erin...
 
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   Mr. Erin M. Ennis    |       Any sufficiently convoluted argument can
 eennis(at)zoo,uvm,edu  |       be made to appear to be science as the
 Water Resources Major, |       layman equates incomprehensibility with
     Biology Minor      |       science.                -Unknown
    Uni. of Vermont     |
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[Posted in FML issue 2374]