Nikki, as he was called on arrival ( but he does not respond to this
name so it will change when he can pick a new one) is in a small 2 tier
cage at Ferret Wise with a full belly at the moment.  He has a slight
and personable face.  The truth is Nikki was severely neglected by the
human(s) who claimed to be his caretakers.  Lucky for him the MSPCA force
fed him last night-- perhaps the saving grace that kept his system going
through the night.  Today the manager at MSPCA was very eager to release
this ferret to Ferret Wise- usually I get the privilege of pulling teeth--
I was caught off guard by this until I met the ferret called Nikki.
 
The first thing I noticed was the bright eyes and slight head were attached
to a thin ferret, the stool was loose but formed- tinged green with
stress.... not too bad I thought... I was gazing at him in a darkened room
while tucked into a feline cubicle.  He was lifted out and placed in the
carrier..  we began the journey home- to Ferret Wise.  On the ride the
little one looked out drank form the water bottled and chowed on some
Marshall's kibble.  This is gonna be a sinch I thought to myself.  Upon
arrival I set the crate down and opened the door-- what horror and pain
overcame me as this frail ferret sauntered out hardly able to hold his hind
end up.... The peaceful badger face had little more than a skeletal frame
attached.  Looking further -- there was a bald patch or nearly bald patch
of fur on one side of his body-- perhaps from being cut- perhaps from being
ribbed off on some surface-- but this area was all covered in scabs from
scratching.  The I took a peak at the teeth- after all he was supposed to
be a young guy-- though his frame length and head would state he was at
least a year I wanted to size up the dental aging -- the canines were
broken off.  My best guesstimate is this boy is perhaps 3 years old --
but a lot is hard to tell -- he is so thin, so frail I can close my index
finger & thumb around his mid section.  It is suspect that however old he
is he never had enough or good enough food and I am quite sure once we get
him stabilized the underlying health conditions will begin to reveal
themselves.  He will have a vet exam on Thurs Am when Casper gets his next
Lupron depot, I am sure there will be no blood work done as there couldn't
be time to get a stable reading-- and certainly now the less stress the
better.
 
The one thing that brought back some bittersweet memories-- upon looking
at the new boy-- he bears a striking resemblence to the very first ferret
requiring medical care at Ferret Wise.  In 1994 Peanut arrived at Ferret
Wise one of a pair of surrendered ferrets from MA which went to 4 Li'l
Paws.  We accepted Peanut and kept him going with lympho & cardiac problems
for 2 years before his time ran out-- It is eerie how this young or not so
young ferret mirrors Peanut -- but he is ever so welcome for however long
he needs us.
 
Watch for an update to the shelter hospice listings soon!
www.ferretwise.org
 
There are a few further pics available for those who request to view them.
I am hoping we will have some improvement pics real soon.  send this little
one some good thoughts he is far better off than he was yesterday-- but he
has a long way to go.
[Posted in FML issue 3440]