Kelly asked about an obviously deformed toe on her ferret:
Ferrets play rough while they are kits.  Sometimes they damage each other
which results in permanently caulifowered ears and broken toes.  We have
ferrets with both of these kinds of injuries.  There are also times where
the mother is less than gentle while giving birth.  Some cannibalism
happens and some accidental cannibalism.  Overly aggresive cleaning of the
ferrets as they are born can result in damaged or missing limbs.
 
Lynn asked a lot of questions:
If a ferret has other ferrets to play with it will have less need for human
companionship.  This seems bad for the human but is good for the ferret.
Dependance on the humans for everything seems harder on the porr animals.
This is why we usually recommend that more than one ferret be owned.  Can't
predict on a given hob how he will react.  Whole hobs generally need
complete isolation while in rut but not while not.
 
Don't expect hormonal jills to change to much.  I suspect that your
'bitches' will likely be so again next preganacny (false or real).  One
of the drawbacks to breeding.  Many other breeders do not have these
hormaonally charged jills but they also are having many more problem
birth than we are.  We suspect a connection but have no hard evidence.
 
As far as meeting us East coasters, we go all they way from South Carolina
to New York 'vertically'.  We also go as far as Chicago, Michighan and
Minnesota 'horizontally'.  Maybe you West coasters can meet us at one of
these more middle sites.  Okay they are still a little more to the right
than left but its closer to you than the DC area where the largest number
of shows are.
 
Someone else asked about Turkey:
Turkey for the ferrets sounds good.  In moderation of course but it is
somewhat closer to a ferrets 'natural' diet than a dried brown hard thing
(cat or ferret food kibble) I guess.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 1374]