A couple things.  First, about blocking off the fridge.  There are 2 main ways
ferrets seem able to get into the fridge.  The first is by pulling off the toe
kick in front, since most are not attached all that well.  Putting a couple of
bricks in front of it should stop that.   The second is by crawling in through
the back.  You don't want to block the back, because you need air flow.  But
what you can do is block off the corners where the fridge meets the
wall/cabinets, whatever.  It's worked *really* well here - we used 2x4s.  If you
were looking at the fridge from the top, here's a picture...   You need about
___wall______________________________   3-4 inches of airspace behind the fridge,
    2x4 -> {             |           |  so a 2x4 is just about the right amount
   here     ***********  |  stove &  |  of width.  Just make sure you get one
            *         *  |  cabinets |  that is longer (ie, taller) than your
            * fridge  *  |  here     |  ferret can jump!  We just wedged the
            *         *  |              2x4s into the space between the fridge
            ***********==|   the == are         and the wall, or the fridge and
                            another 2x4         the stove, and it blocks that
                                                are off without preventing air
flow.  (wedge it so that the length becomes height, the 3-4 inch side is the
width, and the 1 inch side is the depth.)
 
        As for news from here...  we've been considering getting a third ferret
for a couple months now, partly just for us, and partly as a playmate for our
younger one.  We were thinking of getting one sometime in the next few months,
but we went to a shelter yesterday...  she really didn't have any she was
willing to let go, but she also breeds, and had some really cute kits, and...
We now have a cinnamon male, about 14 weeks (no name yet).  We're taking intros
really slowly, but we seem to have one problem... our dog is *terribly* upset by
the new addition!  Anytime she (the dog) sees him (the new ferret) across the
gate, she starts barking very loudly (and she almost never barks otherwise).
She's never minded the other ferrets, so we had not expected this at all.  I'm
not sure if she's jealous (but we haven't been ignoring her), she's trying to
protect us from this strange creature, or what.  She's never been overly
protective before, though.  Has anyone had this problem before?
 
-Rochelle (and Fezzik, Shadow, no-name, and Gruagach)
 
[Posted in FML issue 1021]