If a ferret shows a sudden and large change in behavior -- like the one who just began biting after two years, or one which becomes very dependent, or one who loses energy, etc. then GET THE FERRET TO A VET. A sudden large behavior change can indicate a hidden health problem which needs care. Biting suddenly -- or holding a big toes in the mouth which is something Meeteetse does ONLY when sick -- can indicate pain. Our fridge has a cage around its bottom -- not joking since we used actual caging and it's got attachments to the legs of the fridge so it can be easily removed for cleaning -- great for allowing the necessary circulation and completely effective. Even met the approval of the certified repair person beforehand! Two things which are IMPORTANT to know: since people never see behind stoves it is NOT unusual for there to be a gaping hole there for electricity or gas. In the past FML people have had ferrets get into those holes. Also remember that any stove solution must be NOT be flammable! Don't forget to protect any place you keep cleaning products. Check the rubber "molding" around the base of the cabinets. Many kitchens have some spaces into which ferrets can get by climbing over this. We have two. Fortunately, neither contains anything which can hurt the ferrets or visa versa and no holes, plus the rubber pieces can be bent back to see into the areas with a flashlight so we let them use them. They love playing with jingle balls in them -- ricochet city. Get on the floor; actually lie down on it, and look around for a ferret vantage point. I really liked Kevin's point yesterday about how vets could become upset with shelters in general if they got stiffed by any. It was an example of noticing a very important aspect of a problems which had gone unnoticed. People who do not get permission from the authors before using their work or their names are simply showing a very callous and inconsiderate lack of respect as well as a lack of knowledge about copyrights. I view it as a very good indicator of who might be either someone who needs to learn (which is okay since we all regularly have to learn and correct ourselves -- otherwise we'd be either senile or dead), or someone continues and shows that he or she has chosen to be a jerk who is therefore best avoided. [Posted in FML issue 2930]