Mr. Bear, a eulogy
 
You came into my life on 1/3/90, and left on November fourth, a few days
ago.  You and sister Silky, who's doing fine health wise, gave much joy to
our house.  My only regret was listening over 3 years ago to the Nutro
company rep when she said you needed to eat their Max kitten food instead of
the cat recipe.  When the owner of the store later heard that you got an
enlarged spleen & Silky got a hardened kidney after only a couple of months
on the stuff, he commented that the rep got a cut of the higher cost of the
product.  He theorized that the ethoxyquin listed as a preservative was
higher in the kitten formula and just overloaded your poor systems.  I heard
other horror stories from other people with even different animals having
many problems.  It is supposed to be limited to only 2 spices for use in
humans, it's too toxic to be allowed in higher dose uses.  The only people
defending it's use seem to get $$ from it, or don't know many companies
successfully use vit.'s E & C instead.  We were never able to reverse the
damage it caused.
 
Last year you became quite listless and refused kisses.  Having just found
out about colloidal silver, I figured it was worth a try.  I was happy to
see your spleen reduce to half size, & you played & gave kisses again.:)
 
Last summer, early July, you got ascites of the abdomen, fluid building up
like filling a balloon.  A good vet here did a lot of tests & said there
were nodules on your spleen now, & the fluid seemed to be from the lymph
system.  He said taking out the spleen might not help, and you'd have only
2/3rd chance of living thru the operation.  He said that was good odds in
Vegas, but lousy for an operation.
 
I began the trip to Boulder to see Dr. Dave who helped Timmy beat the
"terminal lymphoma".  Stopping in the Springs to see a highly recommended
vet, he said to "re-evaluate you later, & consider euthanasia".  I was not
impressed.
 
Dr. Dave gave some herbs for the ascites that didn't seem any better than
the Lympho Clear by Enzaymatic Therapy co. that I weaned you over to from
the lasix.  By Sept. you were needing force feeding & stopped eating on
your own.  It didn't look good.  You had a couple of hypoglycemic crashes
when your blood sugar went so low you just layed there & drooled.  My friend
Susanne here at 2am helped me recognize what was happening, & 2cc of clover
honey in your mouth brought you up to be able to eat some recipe & get back
on track.  I then realized you needed hand feeding at least 3x/day.  Other
remedies were tried with no noticeable helpful results.
 
Making a long story shorter, we gave you human gamma gobulin, .02cc/day, &
in 3-4 days you were eating out of a cup & giving kisses:)  This was in
Sept., & it was starting to snow, so we started the trip back to warm
country here.  Stopping in Denver, we tried to pick up a ferret that needed
a home with fewer than the 60 animals he was living with.  He was being
picked on by some of the females there, so spent a lot of time in his cage,
alone.  Your sister tried picking on him as did Sadi, but he seemed to
defend himself over here.  Tina, who was showing adrenal signs, did not
fight with him, but it's thought that she was so stressed out that she
pooped mint green jelly!  I was told it seemed bacterial, not the ece, &
caused from stress.  Well.  it spread to everyone soon, and Sachi to this
day doesn't have normal poop, but more like nutri-cal with a green tinge.
Some people are saying the ece mutated & there's a 2 week variety & that's
what it was.
 
The new ferret, Dave, was away when his house got the ece, & his mom swears
that it was gone as she had other people visit & not catch it.  I don't
know, but I think maybe he was so healthy he carried something though he
showed no signs of illness, & still doesn't.  He wound up with another
friend who had an older ferret loose it's mate not long ago.
 
You were finally stable enough to complete the trip to warm land here, but
on Sunday, 11/3, you just seemed to be breathing shallow & faster.  You had
trouble the last few days even walking to the paper towels that became your
litter pan, since it was too much work to climb into the regular one.  I
sensed it was becoming work to stay here, something more than just needing
more sleep.  I had the strong sense that your mom may be waiting for you on
the other side, and told you so.  I gave you permission to leave if it was
becoming too much work for you to stay here.  I told you how much I & the
rest of your family loved you, and wished you only happiness.  I kissed you
goodnight and placed you back in your ski cap in the little tent under the
table, on it's soft padded floor that had the heating pad set on very low,
but warm enough to help you keep warm with less work for your little body.
 
I heard not a sound the night thru, but the next day found that you had left
us.  Living in the motor home & not having a yard to place you in, I found
Susanne offering to let me place you with her many departed ferrets and
other friends in her back yard.  I cleaned you up, placed you with your
favorite bunny that you used to put your head on to rest while your other
ferret family played.  I placed you both in the ski hat that gave you so
much comfort in your last days, and Susanne's husband Ken helped to place
you where it will never snow, and is under the shade of a big tree.  There
is a nice view of green grass & flowers, & your physical form has the
company of many other departed friends of hers.
 
I had to stop here & cry for awhile, the first I've done since too many
"things" had to be done these last days since your leaving.  I understand
you're happy with your mom & friends, not in any pain any more, but we who
are left here feel the pain of missing you.  We wish you well until the day
we leave this world & can join you in the land that is without pain.  Please
say hi to Squeaky, Slinky, Nermal & Sam, give them our best & tell them we
miss them too.
 
      Sincerely & with most Love,
                 Gary & the gang of fur ->
   Thru joining, their grief has been transmuted to joy, loneliness to
celebration...
        ..Data, in "The Tin Man" episode, STNG.
[Posted in FML issue 1759]