To all the Chicago people who took the time to write me and the FML, and
not one flame amongst them, thank you!
I want to clear up some statements in my original post and then I will let
this subject rest, if that's agreeable to all.
First of all, Animal Welfare League is a shelter located in the Chicago
suburbs, not just "southern Illinois". We have been up there several times
this year and also the last two years and have probably picked up close to
100 ferrets from them. I realize this is a drop in the bucket in the big
Chicagoland area, seeing as how it IS much bigger than St. Louis, but it
is sometimes a strain for our shelter. Since Chicago is so much bigger
than St. Louis, there ought to be that many more potential adopters.
FURRY rescues ferrets from the eastern half of Missouri as well as southern
Illinois, so it's not just the St. Louis area that we serve.
The adoption process that I mentioned was what Norm described to us two
years ago. My understanding was that it involved an application to be
filled out and returned to the GCFA, to be followed by a phone call or
personal interview before the wannabe adopter actually got to meet the
ferrets. I apologize for my misunderstanding as numerous people have
corrected me on this. All shelters struggle with finding a balance
between being too strict and too lenient.
I have had several people suggest to me that since Chicago is so much
bigger than St. Louis that there are more morons and thoughtless owners
up there. OK, so there also ought to be that many more potential good pet
owners.
My suggestions about publicity still stand, in spite of the fact that we're
300 miles away. It's great that they have been on TV, and publish a
newsletter. I do not understand why there were no ferrets from the GCFA
shelter at the GCFA show. I sympathize with the problems with PetSmart -
I am still trying to get my $500 check from doing the Adoptathon in May.
However, if you don't want to work with PetSmart, try some of the
independent pet stores. PetSmart is good because they don't sell ferrets.
Not everyone watches TV, or will happen to watch TV on the particular day
that ferrets are featured. Being out in public with ferrets is a
guaranteed way to find more ferret people.
FURRY is not as big as GCFA. But we ARE a no-kill shelter. We work with
any government or private animal welfare agency that will talk to us. We
will drive up to four hours to deliver and/or pick up ferrets. We have
placed ferrets in 10 states, mostly through the power of the Internet.
We have a small group of dedicated volunteers, but mostly it's me and my
husband. The ferrets have taken over our living room. As all you shelter
parents know, this is basically a full time job. We deal with the crazies
giving up their ferrets as well as the crazies wanting to adopt ferrets. I
don't think it's fair to say that any one shelter deals with more problems
than another.
I posted on this subject because I felt qualified to comment. Asking for
volunteers on list is NOT a sin, and I should have phrased that part of my
post better.
Dooks to all the fuzzies.
Sara Petersen
FURRY
http://www.furryferrets.org
[Posted in FML issue 3229]
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