For those allergic to their ferrets: Here is a way of looking at allergies
that I learned when doing battle with food allergies a few years ago.
Think of your system as a container, and each stressor in your life adds
another drop of water to the container.  Yes, you're allergic to ferrets.
Maybe you also have lower-grade intolerance of milk, pollen, cigarette
smoke.  Maybe you have a stressful job and eat too much junk food & never
get enough sleep.  Each stressor adds a few drops to the container, and
before you know it the container is overflowing - that is, you are having
allergy symptoms.  But if you reduce any of the stressors, it lowers the
level in the container.  In my case, for example, if I cut out eating some
of the foods I had problems with that Ididn't care about, then I could
continue to indulge occasionally in the ones I had a passion for.  Also,
you might be able to increase the size of your container (i.e. improve your
resistance) by using food supplements or natural remedies, getting more
exercise, etc.
 
Mish: We also have a dedicated room for our ferrets, who also get out for a
romp around selected other rooms (not the kitchen!  not the bathrooms!)
almost daily.  We use the ferret room as a living room, and hang out in
there to eat a bowl of soup or read the newspaper or yak about how the day
went.  I also use it for a work room for some kinds of projects.  So they
have a reasonable amount of human company.  & we keep lots of, well, junk,
lying around for them to get into - paper bags & a clear dryer tube & (our
favorite toy) pants all sewn together & boxes of rags to sleep in ... & the
grey cat hangs out with them ... I'd love for them to have run of the
house, but our house & our habits make this impossible, & this feels like a
good solution.
 
Outside: I've read tantalizing bits from some of you who take your ferrets
into the garden with you or hiking or out to the park.  Please tell more!
Leashed?  Free?  They don't run off?  What about dogs?  Etc.
 
---sharin
Chloe (I need houseplants!)
& Ramon (I need bananas!)
[Posted in FML issue 2624]