Last night Meltdown decided that she was REALLY annoyed about her nighttime
medications, so she climbed her terry cloth ramp to the top of her privacy
cave shoe box bottom and walked across that to the entrance of her hanging
box.  (We prefer easy exercise for very sick ones and like to work up their
cages so that they feel they have more control of their situations, plus
Meltie's cage in on top of the others' and she can move bedding to spy on
them whenever she wants.) Then she took three catnip mousies which were in
there and carefully stacked them ON END wedged against the hole rims side by
side so they they blocked our access hole to the hanging box.  She did not
forgive us till we put Savanna perfume on her (She has caviar taste.) and
let her sleep first in Steve's arm pit and then up the medial line of my
chest.  Actually, that's a good sign.  Feeling well enough to be actively
annoyed with small things like meds is FAR preferable to depression in a
sick ferret.
 
I am STILL trying to come up with a diaper prototype for Dodie's Angel.  The
problems involved are: It has to block urethra while leaving anus free ( a
REAL problem with females in whom the two are so close) so that infections
are not caused by the diaper trapping feces ), it has to stay on, and it has
to stay reasonably in place, it must not chaff, but must absorb reasonably
well.  I MIGHT have a way to do it with soft fabric and velcro for males,
though, so that might help someone here sometime.  First make a CHEST band
with velcro closures.  Allow extra length so that the velcro is well
shielded and will not get in the critter's fur.  Then work up a loin cloth
portion of extra thickness which will cover urethra, but not anus.  Next
attach two more narrow bands so that they are most widely apart where they
are sewn on to loin portion, and angle inward so that they will not be
likely to chaff inner thighs.  Put a wide enough pair of cross bands with
velcro (again well covered) in the area just above the tail to keep the
diaper in place, and run the rest of the length to the two bands up to the
chest band where they also attach with velcro.  Finally, if necessary, make
a front loop, or a back loop, or both to the collar, again with well
protected velcro closures.
 
Sukie
[Posted in FML issue 1723]