RASCAL, CHANTILLY, AND NOW THREE.
                            in memory of COSMO  :(
 
It all began with a request from my girlfriend to get a ferret.  I liked
ferrets, I had friends that had ferrets.  So with out much of a fight we got
our first ferret named Rascal.  Rascal is a salt and pepper color.  White
fluffy hair under a drak black coat.  His mischiveous crimes hidden by a
perfect mask of dark fur across his eyes.  Rascal was the ultimite
entertanment for weeks.  Soon after, we got Rascal a friend, Cosmo a light
sable male.  Cosmo was hell on four paws.  Cosmo soon made Rascals capers
look like childs play.  He also had this unique ablitiy of teloporting up on
to counters leaving us wondering how he did it.  Soon Rascal was following
his lead.  You knew you were in trouble when you saw the two of them pancing
together from one couch to the next.  Rascal devolped a teaste in potatoes.
Soon Rascal and Cosmo would steal us blind of our potatoes.  The only way
for the family to get potatoes was to buy one five pound bag for the family,
and one five pound bag for the ferrets.  Recently Rascal has developed a
taste in tomatoes that is impossible to keep up with.  He can eat almost a
whole tomatoe if given the chance.  He'll come out and stare at you untill
you give him some tomatoe (only freshly sliced will suit him).  He also goes
nuts over Dr. Pepper, only when there's ice in it otherwise he'll pester you
untill you get some ice so he can steal it from you.
 
Tragicly while on vacation a wild cat got in and killed Cosmo.  The whole
family was sick with grief, Rascals poor heart just broke.  He soon be came
nasty and even more mischievous.  He would scrach you and bite you just out
of the blue.  After a period decideing whether or not to get another one, we
got Chantilly a darker red sable female and soon Rascal began to become his
old self again.  It didn't take her long to mark her place.  Along with the
ferrets we have two dogs.  One older and quite, the other (Mozart) an over
energitic puppy.  With the two dogs comes three cats.  Chantilly most have
the cats scared because they wont go around her, and the pup has a new play
partner.  Over time he figured that laying on the ferret could pin them.
This last for about ten seconds then you hear Mozart screaming as you look
to see him standing with a ferret hanging from his lip.
 
Monday was my birthday and we made a trip to the pet store and found our
third ferret.  I havent named her just yet (observing her personality), but
she is what is called a badger ferret.  She has a pure white face with big
black eyes.  Her fur turns blond at the neck, and she has a white strip from
her forhead to her frount shoulders.  Her coat is a patch sable and the tips
of her feet are white.  We said we would stop with one ferret and now we're
on our third in about a year and a half.  Seeing them running across the
room is amusing beacuse you wonder what their up to.  These cute,
intelligent carpet sharks work their way into your hearts and just love
watching them in action.  You may start with one, but before long you'll end
up with a whole pack of them.
[Posted in FML issue 1648]