Since I work in the veterinary profession, I can tell you  that if you have
to go the way of one extreme or the other, you are far better off being
"overprotective". Do you know how many animals we see in a week that are
either in need of very lengthy and expensive treatment or beyond help,
because the owner either listened to a friend, neighbor,  just thought it
was no big deal and would go away, or to quote something we hear often
"but I just didn't think"............?  While I personally do not think
you should panic at every little thing, I have had professional training.
My advice to people is always that you know your pet, no matter how silly
it might seem to someone else if you think something is amiss, or you are
not sure, seek veterinary advice.  Better safe than sorry.
 
Your advice on not interfering with nature is odd coming from a woman who
manipulates jills to have two litters in one season.  Particularly when the
jill is deaf and has produced deaf kits.  Deafness is a genetic defect.
This jill is listed on your website as having both sire and dam unknown.
How do you know that she is not carrying and passing other genetic defects?
She was bred to a hob, who has had some medical problems in his immediate
line (father, brother.....).  You sell these kits for a high price because
you think the colors are beautiful.  Normal hearing kits can be a handful
to train let alone deaf kits.  You try to retire and place breeders by
the time they are two-three yrs old.  You do not keep them long enough to
find out what they may get.  It is not true that keeping adult animals
unneutered is healthier, particularly older ones.  You risk the chance of
them developing mammary tumors and life threatening uterine infections
called pyometra in jills, and testicular tumors for one in males.
 
Perhaps you should start being a little more "overprotective".
 
Pat Stauffer
Weasels
http://pages.prodigy.net/staufferp/
[Posted in FML issue 3108]