Hello to all my fellow ferret-loving friends. I need some help to stave
off an eviction.

I am the editor of a disability rights magazine (The Mouth) living in
the George Washington Hotel (now a 10-story apartment building) in
downtown Washington, Pennsylvania. Four ferrets live with me. They are
service animals who alert me when I am about to have a seizure. Thanks
to all the ferrets who've shared my home, I haven't had even one
seizure in sixteen years.

Only a few of all the ferrets who have lived with me did not do this
service for me. Both were rescues who had advanced cancers, or went
to other homes pretty quickly. (Seizure activity hits me about four
times a year depending on how hard I'm working-concentrating.)

Yes, it sounds crazy. But perhaps you know someone else who has had a
similar experience. It's hard for me to imagine that I'm the only one.

Of my current fuzzies, 2-year-old Tooty is my best seizure watchdog.
When he senses I'm about to have a seizure, he butts his head against
my shins. When I go to bed to lie down and stop stressing myself, he
lies flat out on the floor near the bed for as long as twenty minutes.
I can tell I'm out of danger when he gets up and wanders off again.

Over the 16-year period I've taken their warnings seriously, 30 or
maybe 35 ferrets have exhibited this ability to sense my oncoming
seizures. Which leads me to believe I can't be the only one.

I need to know of other such cases, if any, because my landlord is
determined to evict me. I have a ten-year lease with no mention of
pets or animals, but he's decided on a no-pets rule and wants me out.
Service animals are exempt from such rules.

Please ask around and if you find anyone who has a similar experience,
tell them to email me about it.

I'm Lucy Gwin at [log in to unmask]

[Posted in FML 6159]