Popcorn left for The Bridge yesterday. She was 8 1/2 years old. Born in October, 1991, I rescued her when she was just a few months old, borrowing my sister's Camaro to drive into Center City Philadelphia - where I had never been before - because I had to "come right now or we'll have to get rid of her". That was right around Thanksgiving of 1991. I hated her name when we first got her, but wasn't going to bother changing it since she was just passing through as a rescue. Well, she ferreted her way into our hearts and was officially adopted on Christmas Day, 1991. By that time I had come to love her name, as it fit her perfectly. Popcorn, my little white bouncy bit of fluff. A stunningly white albino, her fur was almost pure white her entire life and very thick, not thinning and acquiring the normal yellow hue of albinos until very late in life. She was absolutely stunning. All was ideal until her dear friends, Percy and Bree, passed away just a few days from each other in the fall of 1995. She became very lonely, so we adopted Graham as her friend. She didn't particularly like him very much, but they did grow to become friends. He passed away last summer. She didn't seem particularly lonely this time, so we decided not to put her through getting used to another ferret. She has been on borrowed time for a year and a half. We almost put her down around Thanksgiving two years ago due to extreme psychotic behaviors related to adrenals. Thank God we found Dr. Weiss who put us in the Lupron program. Lupron gave Graham 6 months, and Popcorn a year and a half of really great quality life that they wouldn't have had otherwise. This past week, Popcorn slowly stopped eating. I don't know if she was sick or just decided it was her time to go. She seemed slightly nauseated, but in no particular pain. She slowly lost strength until we gave her the final gift of letting her go yesterday. She left very peacefully, with George and me right by her side the entire time. Her body rests beneath a beautiful flowering cherry tree, currently in full bloom, on my parents' property, with her best friends Percy, Bree, and Graham. She's wrapped in her favorite fleece shirt, and has a pair of my good socks that she liked to steal after she developed adrenal symptoms. Her soul is not under that tree, but somewhere happy. Hopefully playing with Percy, Bree, Graham, Cinnamon, and Winnie at the Bridge, waiting for the day when we can all be together again. Now, it is with great sadness that I must say goodbye to the FML. I have been a member of the FML for about 10 years, although I haven't been very active for the last several years. There are still many here that may remember the days when I was very outspoken. Sadly, Popcorn was my last ferret. There is no more jingle of ferret bells running around the house. So, I will be unsubscribing. Bill, if you would please take care of that? Goodbye everyone. Thank you for so many great years. It has been a thrill to be on the FML through the happy times and the tears. This list has been an integral part of making ferrets legal in many areas of the country, and in getting the rabies vaccine recognized. This list has educated thousands and thousands of ferret owners, helping ferrets live longer and happier lives. We have spread the word and encouraged veterinarians who experiment with new methods in treating ferrets. This is a great and powerful group. The ferret community is a very different world now than it was that first day I walked into a pet store 11 1/2 years ago and brought home my first ferret, Percy. This list is a huge part of that change. BIG can be proud of what he and Chris Lewis have accomplished. Never let the petty arguments and politics make you forget what you have here. Godspeed my dearest Popcorn, and goodbye to the wonderful people on the FML. I wish you all the best. - Nancy Stephens [log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 3035]