Here at Especially Ferrets Inc., we recieve several calls a week about lost ferrets. sometimes we even gather up a bunch of volunteers to go out and look for the ferret. some of my best volunteers come from folks whose ferret we helped find. Occasionally, we chased leads of sightings of the little critter running loose in the neighborhood, and sometimes we get real lucky and find the fuzzy. they are usually very tired, hungry, thirsty, and scared. Three times last year, we found the fuzzy too late and they died right there in our hands. All thtree were suffering from exposure and hypothermia. In one case, the ferret had been out for three days and it rained all three days that he was out. Here in Colorado, we experienced extreme weather conditions in the winter and summer. In balmy conditions, a ferret can be expected to survive approximately ten days without intervention. ( human or animal) In extreme weather, they can be expected to survive anywhere from 1 to 5 days and will sucumb to temperature conditions. Even though they are furbearing, they are not acclimated to freezing temperatures and or finding food sources. There little feet also can become frozen if out too long in extreme cold. There can be exceptions where the conditions are right for their survival such as a case I personally experienced a few years back. We had some ferrets get loose from the shelter by an alarm installer who was left alone to do his job while we went on a rescue. We came back to find all the doors to the shelter open and ferrets running all over the neighborhood. We immediately recovered all but one, and to make matters worse, it was a boarder. Two weeks went by, we had already informed the family that their ferret was lost, took the flack we deserved, and had given up hope of ever finding the lost one. I went out back with some trash one day, after it had been snowinf for a couple of days straight and just happened to look into Ferretland. ( For pictures, see our website at www.especiallyferrets.org), and I saw footprints that didn't look like the regular squirrel footprints all over Ferretland. and upon investigation found the little lost ferret from two weeks ago! She had been living in Ferretland in the little Fred Flinstone house and had found all the little stash places the other ferrets had put food in on the previous summer season. She had made a nest inside the house and seemed quite comfortable outside. She had been able to get in Ferretland, but because it is escape proof, she couldn't get out During the summer season, there are not only so many animals out that coulds easily kill or injure a ferret, but they have to deal with extremely hot temperatures. It doesn't take much for a ferret to die from heat prostration. When you see you ferret start to pant, it is the beginning of a very serious condition. Putting them in front a fan will not work as they don't sweat the way we do to cool off. During the summer months when Ferretland is open, I fly a flag that has a skull and crossbones on it, like a pirate flag, on days when it is too dangerous to have ferrets outside, so if you bring your ferret over to play in Ferretland and the flag is flying, you let your ferrets out in Ferretland at your own risk. We keep a frig outside next to ferretland with cold, dry towels in it to slowly cool your ferret off in the event they start panting, and then recommend that the ferret go inside for awhile. On hot days, the flag is usually flying during the heat of the day and taken down in the am and pm when it is much cooler out. There is also an airconditioned space in Ferretland for staff to sit in while watching the kids in Ferretland. It is all glass so as to not obsruct the vision of whomever is in it.. There is room at the bottom of the enclosure for all the little fuzzies to come in escape the heat of the day if they so prefer to do so For questions about Ferretland, see our website or call me ferretguy. [Posted in FML issue 3043]