Season's Greetings!
 
I wanted to take a moment to ask everyone to remember the many, many
shelter ferrets that will be spending their Christmas living in a shelter.
I know that FMLers hear about shelter overcrowding all the time, and you
may have become de-sensitized to it a little.  But at the holiday season,
there are things that you can do to make a difference, even if only a
little.
 
Of course, one way is to adopt.  Please take a moment to think of the
ferrets that have been passed over at shelters month after month after
month.  Do you only have one or two ferrets, and have the room, the time,
and the expenses to responsibly care for one or two more?
 
The PFRA, for example, will be caring for over 100 ferrets this Christmas
if we don't find adopters.  It's not only the ferrets with medical problems
that we cannot adopt.  Some are just slightly older ferrets, with no known
health problems, but they are passed over every time.  I also have at my
shelter many wonderful, young, adorable ferrets that have been passed over
time and time and TIME again only because they do not get along with other
ferrets.  Yes, it's harder when you have to have two runtimes, but these
ferrets are terrific, healthy, sweet, adoring ferrets that want so much to
have a home of thier own.  We also have groups of three and four - and
these groups DO get along with other ferrets, but they get passed over
because they are part of a bonded group.  This situation is not restricted
to our shelter alone - even if you do not live in PA, there are shelters
near you that have ferrets that want to be in a home for Christmas.
Please, before you go out to a pet store and fall in love with a little
baby ferret, please think of your local shelter.
 
If you really can't bring another ferret or two or three home, you can try
to make a happy holiday for a shelter.  There are many ways that you can
donate to your local shelter.  Here are a few:
 
-- Gift certificates are wonderful.  The Ferret Store is always a good
place to order them for any ferret shelter, and you can order them right
online.  Petopia.com is great for shelters because we can redeem them right
online, but I think you have to call petopia.com to order them.  Petsmart
and Petco are usually good bets, too, or a local petstore if you live near
your shelter.
 
-- Money donations.  If you feel uncomfortable sending a check for any
reason, you can send it to your shelter's vet, then you know that the gift
is being used for medical care.  Just call or e-mail your favorite shelter
and ask for the vet's address!
 
-- any kind of gift basket/box would be appreciated.  Throw in supplies,
food, treats, towels, hammocks... etc.
 
-- food is always needed and can be like gold to shelters.
 
Don't know where your local shelter is, or need a shelter address? Check
Ferret Central's Database:
http://ferretcentral.org/for-others/database.html
 
A suggestion to clubs: a nice thing that you can do is to have a Shelter
Stocking Stuffer party.  I hang stockings for all of the shelter ferrets
here every year and let the ferrets "open" them, it's always a lot of fun.
This year one of my club members suggested that at our meeting, club
members could bring a toy or something to put in the stockings to help
each stocking to be overflowing with goodies.  I think that's a neat idea.
They get to choose which ferret or ferrets' stockings the gift goes into.
 
Just a few ideas for everyone to think about.  I was putting the names on
each stocking tonight when I got a little sad thinking of these wonderful
ferrets that will be spending the holidays in the shelter, and thought I'd
send this reminder out.  Best wishes to everyone and to ferrets everywhere
this holiday season!!
 
Kymberlie Barone
Director
Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Association of Montgomery County
http://www.ferretrescue.com
[Posted in FML issue 2880]