Sugar Magnolia, the ferret formerly known as Sprinkles.
 
She is one of the rescued ferrets from the animal mill in Illinois that was
shut down.  The Petersen's brought her to me this last weekend.
 
She is a pretty bad biter, almost as bad as Miss Natasha was when she first
came here.  She is also going through the same stage, getting worse right
now as she gets more comfortable in her new surroundings.
 
Sug is a stocky little albino who had two kits that she turned away.  She
was just fixed last Friday.  No one knows her age and I cannot, in any
fashion, even begin to check her teeth right now.  Not from that angle
anyway. ;-)
 
Brock made fast friends with her.  I think because he can't hear her
barking at him.  but he also didn't mind her chomping his cheek either.
She hung by him for a couple of days and is now starting to blend in with
the others.
 
Sunday when she came with the Petersen's, I put her in a one ferret sleep
bag and she slept on my chest for over an hour.  She would look up at me
and then curl back up and sleep.
 
She is fine once I actually hold her.  However, she is obviously afraid
of hands and will lash out at first.  She was kept in a cage with a whole
male, which hung suspended from the roof of a shed in the backyard.  All
the ferrets were kept this way with no bedding or litter boxes.  Their
waste fell to the ground, where the dogs and chickens lived.
 
The Petersen's took in around 20 ferrets from this place.  They have been
socializing them and finding homes for them.  Sug has not gone out since
she is one of the most freaked out of the ferrets.
 
She does want my attention and will back off from biting if I say no.  But
it is also clear that she was yelled at before being hit.  So I am having
to be careful about raising my voice at all, even when she does connect a
little.  So far, cross fingers, she has not bitten me badly.
 
She does not dance, or take raisins.  She does love ferretone however.  I
think she will fit in very nicely given some time.  It is clear she really
wants to trust but can't let herself.  She asks for my attention and then
bites at me.  I feel sorry for the little girl.
 
I am letting her just be with the others for the time being.  One to let
her settle in and frankly also because I have been so busy with work.  But
I will let you know how it goes with her.  And yes, I know, I don't need
another one at all but what can you do when you know they won't go
elsewhere?
 
Maggie and her Mid Mo 30
[Posted in FML issue 3134]