Most of the time ferret care expenses are like any other expense; if a person saves for it then it's not a major burden. Are other things given up so that the savings can be accumulated? Of course. Life is a series of choices, though. You have to take care of the big rocks first, then you can fit in the little ones among them. There was a wonderful letter recently from someone whose ferret had run her about a dollar a day. That's a fine way to plan your savings for future costs. Take it out of your pay up-front, just like your pre-planned savings for retirement, for rainy-day needs (job loss and such), for future major purchases (car, home down payment, and so on), for tuition, for care for your parents in old age -- whichever is appropriate for you. Set aside what you need for essentials, and what is left is what you can spend on the stuff you'd like but don't need when you plan your budget. If you spend even less than that then you can really win big time with extra savings. Anyway, you won't have quite the fancy things that some will have, but you won't be hungry if you save up-front, and your ferrets will have the care they need and deserve. You'll have taken care of the IMPORTANT things. I think Caity had a good point on that score since for personal owners (as opposed to shelter folks) it so often, again and again and again, simply is a matter of having enough self-discipline to save up-front or to know that you are willing to give up non-essentials for the important stuff (so able to know the difference, the first step toward logical money management). Could ferret-care money matters still get out of control? Sure. No one can know what is down the pike in terms of accidents, catastrophic illness, etc., but the chances of not being able to afford veterinary care become quite low with basic, simple financial pre-planning. it's like any other costs that way. You give up something else to have what is important, same as even more important decisions; your future is largely in how you CHOOSE to budget your love, time, attention, and money. Except for love they are all limited resources for just about everyone, after all, and actions are louder than words. So, all any of us ever does is to try to do the best with what little is held, and if patches on clothing save Patches the ferret by allowing funds for an operation it's a net gain in love and choice. [Posted in FML issue 3071]