Hello everyone,
I was reading Mike's post about the family who got took home three shelter
ferrets after helping out at the shelter and really learning what ferrets
were about.  I thought I would share the story of my first ferret.  My
mother has a TERRIBLE habbit of letting my little sister Jessica (she's 15,
I'm 26) bring home animals and then telling her a month or two later that
she has to get rid of them.  Now part of this is my little sister's fault
since she rarely asks ahead of time and just brings them home.  Still it
really upsets me that my mother doesn't do anything to stop this pattern of
behavior.
 
On my last visit to my mothers (in Texas) she was telling Jessica she
couldn't keep this ferret and had to take her to the pound (to be destroyed
I assume).  My mother said she was smelling up the house and had to go.  I
was furious and said you are NOT taking that animal to the pound, I'll take
her home with me (New York at the time).  Well this was the first time I had
ever seen one of these creatures and to tell you the truth I was kind of
scared of her.  But I still didn't want her to die.  I put her in a shoebox
with airholes in it and put the shoe box in my backpack and smuggled her
into the airport.  She started scratching at the box though and a LOT of
noise was coming from my backpack so before I got on the plane I threw out
the box and let her free in the backpack which was zipped up almost all the
way.
 
So I get on the plane and my new ferret is buzy unzipping the backpack while
I am trying to rezip it (while leaving it open enough for air, but not
enough for escape) and two people sit down next to me.  I act like I'm not
feeling well and lean over my backpack to try and hide my new friend and I
hear one of them say look, a mouse.  I try not to laugh and fortunately they
don't say anything to the flight attendents who have begun to hoover fearing
I am ill.  The plane is taking forever to get off the ground, the flight
attendents keep asking me if I'm okay and I keep telling them I'm fine, just
a little naseaous.  Fifteen minutes later after they leave, suddenly I AM
naseaous and jerk foward barely having enough time to grab an airsick back.
I had moved so violently that I was worried I might have squashed my new
ferret.  So I peek into the back pack and there she is lying on her back
with her paws in the air and her tongue hanging slightly out of her mouth
and not moving.  I was sure I had killed her.  I touched her and she didn't
move, I gently shook her and she didn't move, I panicked and splashed water
on her face and she licks it off, yawns, and looks up at me sleepily.  (My
first experience with how soundly a ferret can sleep).
 
The plane still has not taken off!  They unload us saying something is wrong
with the plane and then reload us 10 minutes later saying now it's fixed.  I
am so worried I can't even think straight and when we arrive in New York my
lugagge is broken and my clothes are all over the conveyer belt.  Someone
suggests to me that the airline is responsible and I should go to the
complaint window, but I'm so worried about my new ferret that I just try to
pull everything together and meekly go home.
 
I was TOTALLY ignorant about ferrets and had no idea what I had gotten
myself into, but Sneakers would have died if I hadn't taken her (named
Sneakers since I had to "sneak her" into New York).  I got a book
immediately and quickly got over my initial fear of the strange creature and
feel in love.  Three ferrets, 2 1/2 years later I am still learning about
our adorable furry friends.  I think it's great when people take the time to
research ferrets before they get them (especially parents making sure their
kids are responsible enough for them), but I am glad I did not say no to
taking one just because I didn't know a lot about them yet.
 
Hear, Hear for everyone who planned carefully, and for those of us who fate
seemed to make the decision for us, well weren't we lucky not to have missed
out.  ;)
 
     Love R, M, & J
[Posted in FML issue 1783]