I was enjoying the beautiful pictures of the Hide-E-Hole ferrets on the
Giving Tree. Their stories are still being updated, so I e-mailed the
shelter director Barbara Carlson to find out about them. She was kind
enough to send me their stories, and I thought I would share them on
the fml.

They are on page 21 of the Giving Tree and don't yet have Santa's

Howie is a 5 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male with a biting habit. He's
had a rough life-he was purchased from a Petco and brought back because
he was deaf. The person who purchased him next kept him for a long
time, but had to give him up because they were moving and couldn't
find a place that allowed ferrets. Howie has been at the shelter since
February 2008, and nobody has shown any interest in him due to his
biting. He lives with his girlfriend, Snowflake, who is also nippy.
Howie is afraid Santa won't bring him anything because he's been a bad
boy. He would really like a new tube to run through and some N-Bones to
chew on (instead of shelter mom). He also likes bedding large enough
for both him and his friend. He could also use his own little
toothbrush (like for an infant) because he has bad teeth.

Snowflake is a 5 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white female with a biting
problem, a tooth problem, and a serious sneezing problem. Snowflake
has been at the shelter since February 2008 when she came in with her
friend, Howie. Poor Snowflake has sneezing fits and will sneeze over
and over again up to 10 times in a row, whimpering and crying in
between sneezes. We have pulled bad teeth, given her several rounds of
antibiotics, tried removing her litter, had her head x-rayed to look
for infections, and tried antihistamine, but none of these things have
worked. Nobody is interested in acquiring a ferret that is not only
nippy, but has health problems as well. It's a shame when older ferrets
end up spending the rest of their lives in a shelter, sharing the
attention with 35 other animals. Snowflake would love some nice bedding
(big enough for Howie, too!), some chicken or turkey baby food for when
she's feeling poorly, and some extra cage floors (30" x 30") because
she poops everywhere and shelter mom needs to change the floor
frequently. She'd also enjoy some Ferretone.

Tiny is a 6-year-old albino female with a checkered past. Tiny was
originally surrendered in September 2004 because of her biting problem.
She actually appeared in the PBS special, "Ferrets: Pursuit of
Excellence" as winning a ribbon in the albino ring and immediately
perforating Barb's thumb. Both the ferret and the bloody thumb were on
the video. Tiny was adopted in November 2007 after we had given up all
hope of ever finding her a home, however, the guy broke up with his
girlfriend and gave the ferret away to someone else without our
knowledge. The new family kept Tiny until May 2008 when they got a new
kitten and were appalled to find Tiny's friend Leo dragging the kitten
under the couch...and not in a good way. So Tiny and Leo are here to
stay. Tiny is starting to go adrenal and could use some money towards
her vet bills. She also needs Slippery Elm capsules for her old lady
tummy problems. She would enjoy some bedding to share with her good
buddy, Leo, and some Cheweasels or N-Bones. Tiny also likes whole prey,
so if you have any frozen mice lying around, she'd take those, too.

Leo is 5 1/2-year-old light silver male. He originally came in with
Tiny in September 2004 and has an equally checkered past. Leo has a
biting problem and is deaf and, like Tiny, was surrendered because of
the biting issue. Leo was adopted in November 2007 after we had given
up all hope of ever finding him a home, however, guy broke up with his
girlfriend and gave him away to someone else without our knowledge. The
new family kept Leo until May 2008 when they got a new kitten and were
appalled to find Leo dragging the kitten under the couch...and not in a
good way. So Tiny and Leo are here to stay. Leo would like some Foamy
Fries, N-Bones or Cheweasels. He'd also like a sleep sack big enough
for two. Leo is deaf, so jingle toys don't excite him, but he does
like his tubes!

Jupiter is about 4 years old (we don't know for sure). He's a dark
sable male who came in with his older girlfriend Isis. Isis and Jupiter
were rescued from a flea market where they were being sold in the
middle of July at Roger's Flea Market by a "rescuer" on a 95 degree
day, sitting in a wire cage with no bedding or protection from the
sun. When they were found, they were laying flat in the cage, panting.
Jupiter is quite lively for an older ferret, especially considering the
heat stress he and his girlfriend went through. When Jupiter came in,
he had some hair loss and looked a bit ratty, but after a Lupron shot
he is doing much better and looks rather handsome. We don't want to
separate them since they have been together their whole life and
survived the summer heat together. Jupiter could use some chicken or
turkey baby food to help him put on weight, and some Slippery Elm
capsules to sooth his insides. He loves crocheted eggs and running
through the dryer tubes.

Isis is a 5-year-old silver female with about 50% hair loss. Her front
half isn't bad, but her back half is rather sparse. She's had a Lupron
shot, but it doesn't seem to be doing much. We're hoping the Deslorelan
implant helps more. Isis and Jupiter were rescued from a flea market
where they were being sold on a 95 degree day in the middle of July at
Roger's Flea Market by a "rescuer," sitting in a wire cage with no
bedding or protection from the sun. When they were found, they were
laying flat in the cage, panting. We don't want to separate them since
they have been together their whole life and survived the summer heat
together. She is feeling a bit better these days, but still needs her
duck soup (chicken or turkey baby food) and Slippery Elm capsules to
keep her tummy happy. Isis doesn't play as long as Jupiter, but enjoys
a cuddle with her human. She likes hiding crocheted eggs and snuggling
in a comfy sleep sack.

Roxy is a 5 1/2-year-old sable female with many health problems. Roxy
has adrenal disease and is half naked, but also has serious kidney and
liver problems. Since she arrived in February, she has been to the
vet's office many times, had several low blood sugar seizures and has
been made very ill by her liver disease. She was originally surrendered
because her previous owners realized she was sick and didn't want the
expense of the vet bills. Despite all these problems, she's remained a
sweet old girl who loves her humans. Originally, she didn't like other
ferrets, but recently has decided that Isis and Jupiter are okay in
her  book! Roxy likes comfy sleep sacks, Ferretone, and her duck soup
(chicken or turkey baby food). She likes to be cuddled while in a nice,
warm sack.

Godzooki is a 5 1/2-year-old sable blaze female who originally came
into the shelter in June 2004, was adopted, and then re-surrendered in
June 2008. Godzooki has a bit of a nipping problem as well as a few
other health issues. Her owners had to move out of the country and
were not able to take her with them. After returning to the shelter,
Godzooki went through a rough time missing her mom and returned to her
old habits of biting rather hard. In the last couple months, she was
taken in by a foster family and after a period of adjustment is doing
much better there. Despite being on the old side, she still has a lot
of spunk left in her. 'Zooki loves N-Bones, crocheted eggs, and running
through tubes. Moe is a 2-year-old chocolate male who was surrendered
because he nipped ankles. His cage mate had been given to someone else
(along with the cage, food, bedding and toys), but they didn't want
Moe. He arrived in a cardboard box with nothing to even lie on. Since
he's come to the shelter, he has eaten holes in no fewer than 8 pieces
of bedding, is showing possible signs of IBD, and is currently living
in a bare cage with no cloth bedding due to his cloth addiction. We
designed a special sleep box for him from a plastic container filled
with shredded paper to keep him warm and out of trouble. We are
currently trying to solve his cloth eating issues and hope that
eventually he'll be able to be adopted to a good home. Moe has been at
the vet's office several times already for tooth grinding and cloth
eating. At one point we were even considering doing surgery for a
potential blockage but it seemed to pass along with the barium for the
x-ray. He's a sweet little boy who is difficult to supervise because
of his addictions! Moe needs Laxatone and lots of it! He also needs
ferret-safe chew toys to distract him from his first love...cloth!

Pippen is a 6 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male that was regretfully
surrendered due to his owner being deployed to Iraq. He was placed in
foster care immediately to prevent him from catching the "shelter crud"
that ferrets always seem to get when they first arrive. He has adrenal
disease that is currently being treated with Lupron. He is happy and
relatively healthy for an elderly ferret, and is a very sweet little
boy. Pippen likes N-bones and Ferretone as treats, and would enjoy a
sleep sack to cuddle in.

Voodoo is a 4 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male with a black splotch
on his back foot. He was surrendered in December of 2007 because the
previous owner couldn't keep up with the vet bills. Voodoo is in
foster care currently and under treatment for various health problems
including an enlarged spleen and IBD. His original owner rescued him
when she went on a babysitting job and found Voodoo with a bag tied
around his back legs. She threatened to call the SPCA, and instead,
they gave her the ferret. Despite his less than ideal beginnings,
Voodoo is a very sweet boy. He enjoys N-bones, checking out the dryer
tubes, and hiding crocheted eggs.

Wally is a 6 1/2-year-old sable male who always looks like he is
grinning from ear to ear. He was surrendered February 2008 because his
previous owner was moving to California. (Join the effort to legalize
ferrets in California!) Wally has adrenal disease and recently had a
large tumor removed from his back foot. He has also had problems with
IBD, but is doing well now. Despite his health problems, Wally is still
an alert, happy-go-lucky ferret, who doesn't seem to know he's elderly!


Go see them on the Giving Tree, page 21

http://www.mfran.org/2008/index.html
To contact Barbara of Hide-E-Hole: [log in to unmask]

Dooks
Risa

[Posted in FML 6181]