There has been so much interest,squabbling, and flaming going on about deaf ferrets that it is starting to bug not only me but probably a few others who don't like to sift through all that to get to the good stuff. When you get an animal, and in my own biased opinion, a ferret, you should be committed to that ferret for the rest of your natural life. At the shelter, we realize there are extenuating circumstances that just can't be forseen, that cause some good ferret owners to surrender their ferrets to a shelter. Most of them are financial in nature. Landlord found out and they can't afford to move. Ferrets sick and they don't have the money. And then we hear the lame excuses, like I'm having a baby and didn't you know that ferrets eat babies faces off?(yeah right!) Or my boyfriend/girlfriend thinks they stink! ( give 'em the boot and find one who likes ferrets) When you run a shelter, and all of you bigger shelters know what I'm talking about, you see the worst of people this world has to offer. They beat, blind, burn, kick, torture and just about every form of abuse your mind can think of! Then you meet really wonderful folks, who no matter the condition of the little fuzzies, take them in and show them the better side of life. If I can draw this picture in your mind of a big Uncle Sam pointing his finger at those folks, and you all know who you are, WE WANT YOU!!! We want you to take home our sick and injured and physically and emotionally abused. All of them didn't have a choice. They were entrusted to us humans to care for. Unfortunately for them, someone didn't take care of them. Let us all seek out those desired humans in every corner of the world and help a shelter. They really don't care( at least they shouldn't), about the condition of the little fuzzy. We love them all, good and not so good, healthy and not healthy. Big and little, short and tall, we love them all! I don't think there is a shelter in this world that doesn't struggle to stay open from year to year. Yet we manage. See your local shelter, and give them a hand any way you can! Ferretguy [Posted in FML issue 3117]