[2-part post combined. BIG] Hi Gang; Sorry I haven't been able to contribute to the list much lately, but I have been busy preparing for a local Pet Expo which was last weekend and trying to prepare for yesterdays TV show taping of a program called The Pet Guys. They wanted to do various segments on ferrets since I have so many in my home, and on the fact I have other kinds of animals as well. So a 'what do ya do when ya live in a zoo' segment. The Pet Expo: This was a fantastic way to get information to a large amount of people in a one on one situation with ferrets who didn't mind being held, prodded, and cuddled. Our group was able to talk to many people and let them know about the reality of living with ferrets. Our booth was very popular and was directly responsible for being able to change the opinions of a large number of people on how vicious (not!) these animals were, especially when the little guys were laying peacefully in our arms and looking especially cute. We received a discount on the cost of the booth by doing a Speaker's Corner segment, which anyone in there right mind would do if it meant good public exposure. We combined fun with fact by getting people to watch a plant pot dig race between two ferrets. It was fun to watch them digging (or not digging as it started out to be) but one of our wonderful volunteers took the opportunity to show the audience how well they learn and showed them the roll over trick. Once the dirt was spread around the plastic sheet, both ferrets took to rolling and digging more. It was a crowd pleaser for sure. It gave us the opportunity to dispel common myths about ferrets and to give useful information on what to do if you find a lost ferret. The downside of the Expo was when a woman came to the booth with her two ferrets and both were obviously adrenal. It broke my heart when she told me she could not afford medical care and that she was waiting for them to die. My inner impulse was to grab the cage and run, but I knew that our group was there for a reason: to educate, to dispel myths, to help those in need. We were able to give her information and hopefully she will take it further. This was the saddest moment of my life to see ferrets in need and me not being able to do much more than I did. I wished I was Randy Horton for that moment for I know he is a man of action. But when you represent a group, it is imperative that your behaviour is conducive to the messages you are trying to send. It was hard to see her walk away, but I hope that she will understand that we are here for her when she needs us. Overall, we were able to let people know that a Ferret Society existed in our city and managed to get a few new members out of the experience. We also managed to find a breeder we had not known about who was willing to work with us, and allowed us to give him some much needed information. It was also nice to see people actively seeking out our booth so that they could ask us the ton of questions we got. It was wonderful exposure and I would highly recommend if the opportunity comes to your city or town, to take advantage of it. Special thanks go to all the volunteers who helped spread the good word about ferrets: Tammy and her daughter, Marcy, Lorene, Ken M, Marlene, Jessica, Chris, Ken C, Marie, and Shelby! Good work guys! BTW, having a mix of men and women at our booth helped to reach both audiences! And having Tammy's young daughter handling and showing the ferrets helped to dispel the myth about ferrets being bad pets for kids! She was a wonderful young spokesperson. The Pet Guys Show Taping: I had mentally prepared myself to say and do so much... then the cameras started rolling and my brain went numb. I'm sure I sounded nervous and it will probably seem like I took one too many drugs a couple of hours before taping. Next time, I'm going to write a cheat sheet. I just cannot rely on my brain like I use to anymore. Hindsight is 20/20. There was so much I could have said after is was all said and done, but this was a new experience for me and did the best I could. The taping allowed both Shelby and myself to talk about ferrets and their training. Unfortunately we were not allowed to mention our shelter, or give out a phone number, but the show's producer did say that they would like to do a spot just for that later down the road. We'll see what happens. So Shelby did litter and bite training, and I tried to talk about fulfilling the basic needs of ferret housing and care. The show's host got to hold the ferrets and do opening segments. The ferrets unfortunately did not read their scripts and so they did not do most of what we wanted them to do, except play and be cute. (Is there anything more?) But, if I am not mistaken, we actually got a ferret to poop in the litter box on camera! That was something! Four days prior to taping, I was preparing the house for the camera crew. For about three days before I started really scrubbing, we had noticed flies around the house that were larger than the typical black fly that one sees coming out of infested plant pots. In my cleaning, I found that our garbage can was filled with them and thus released more into the house when I opened the lid! It appears that my husband and I were testing each other to see who could hold out the longest for taking the garbage out! We both lost! For days I was trying to rid the house of them but alas, on the day of filming, they were still there. I'm sure that went the crew left, they thought I was a lousy housekeeper. Oh well... sigh. Anyway, the segments will appear starting around the end of November and go through to the end of January. The show appears internationally, so if you get a chance to see it, let me know how I did. I have many things to catch up on in the next few days, so if you don't see or hear from me, that's why. My condolences to all of you that have recently had a loss in your family, or have a sick family member... my heart goes out to you. Betty and Her Blur o'Fur For the love of ferrets.... I'm ready for my close up Mr. Demille... and so are Akela, Bella, Charlie, Cherokee, Chook, Dolly, Gadget, Gizmo, Jingles, Lace, Mr. B, Mushu, Pink, Rayden, Sammy, Slim, Spaz, Thalia, Uh-Oh, and Zsa-Zsa - the ferts; Ming, Toom, and Tetsu - the kitties; Ripley - the chilean pink tarantula; Squirt - the wonder guinea pig [Posted in FML issue 3233]