I was talking to a friend of mine online this evening, and commented that
her husband (also a good friend of mine) was in hospital.  He is supposed
to be having a heart transplant shortly.
 
Now, what, you ask, has this to do with ferrets?  Well first, these friends
of mine own ferrets, and have been helping out in the ferret community as a
whole for some time.  Secondly, they have been told that because of the
drugs he will be given to ensure the new heart will not be rejected, he
*MUST* give away all his animals.  Cats, ferrets, the lot.  He and his wife
are terribly upset at this, and they want to know of others experiences -
if there are any - in this type of situation.
 
There are a few things they'd like to know.
 
First: Do they really have to give up their ferrets. If so, why?
 
Second: Are there others who have undergone such surgery and kept their
ferrets?  If so, what happened?  Did they talk to another doctor and get
told they could keep their animals?
 
Why are the doctors pushing for ALL the animals to be removed from the
house?  After all, aren't animals supposed to be good at relieving stress?
Wouldn't it be better to keep the animals?
 
Maybe it's just ignorance on my part, and I'm sure that plays a big part in
it, but wouldn't it be better to keep the animals?  After all finding new
homes for them all will be incredibly stressful, as it is tantamount to
throwing your own children out of the house!  Would a doctor tell a parent
to put their children into foster care because of a heart transplant?
 
Any thoughts, comments, ideas and experiences on this subject will be
vastly appreciated.
 
Sam
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[Posted in FML issue 2543]