It's obviously necessary for me to re-think what I'm doing with ferrets - either I'm a shelter, or I'm not, which also means I will take in ferrets in need, or I won't as opposed to just having a few as members of the family. In Illinois, I was a non-profit corporation. After relocating to Kentucky, I did not make any efforts to look into changing this to a Kentucky corporation - it's expensive to incorporate, and the need in KY seems to be much less than in Illinois (thankfully). I tend to specialize in the old or sick ones, having the skills to tend to their special needs and knowing that without people to do this, these guys would sit out their remaining time in shelters, considered "unadoptable". I currently have 11 such ferrets, and I'm quickly finding that without the ability to fund-raise as I could as a non-profit, I'm quickly running into medical expenses beyond my financial means. In addition to surgeries and treatments recently acquired, At this time - The following needs exist: Cosmo Kramer Ferret - Chocolate Mitt, Male, 5+ yrs. Exploratory surgery - sudden weight loss, diarrhea, nausea. Exam negative, x-rays negative, but we're thinking obstruction. Round of antibiotics, eating "soup" well but no improvement. Has had ECE years ago - could find intestinl damage from that. Autumn Pinklet Peanut Ferret - Color "Pink". Female, 5 1/2 yrs. A compulsive groomer - will "kiss" you from head to toe. Obviously from her color, Autumn has adrenal. Other than the hair, this does not appear to be causing much in the way of problems. She has, however, developed a growth on a rear leg which must come off ASAP. This is the priority surgery - if funds allow, will do adrenal as well before further complications arise. Sunshine - Chocolate, Female. 4 yrs. A reformed biter. In need of adrenal surgery - very swollen vulva. Bunny - Petite little Chocolate Mitt, Female. 4+ yrs. Bunny is truly a special ferret - Chewed an electrical cord before being dumped by her owners, lost her hearing, a portion of her tongue, lips on one side, and a couple of teeth all from electrical burns. Bunny is in need of adrenal surgery - vulva is up & down in size. What I'm looking for: If anyone is in the financial position to donate funds toward the above surgeries, we would greatly appreciate your gesture. All donations will be acknowledged and if addresses are provided, you will receive a "Before & After" photo of the this group of ferrets or the individual ferret of your choice as well as status reports and a small gift. Funds should be sent directly to the animal hospital: Springhurst Animal Hospital Account Name: Carel 9909 Brownsboro Road Louisville, KY 40241 Donations for A/D food can also be made to the same vet clinic. In addition, if you have knowledge of corporations at all - can they be transferred from state to state? Do I really need to be incorporated? Do I even need to be an actual business to get a 501c3 status? I've worked with 3 shelters plus my own (The Ferret Haven) in the past 5 years. I have handled over 450 ferrets to date. I do not really care to start a debate as to where you draw the line with medical procedures for ferrets of certain ages - I believe each of these 4 ferrets to be surgical candidates and none of these surgeries are for purely "cosmetic" reasons. Thank you for your support and/or suggestions. Jerri Carel Louisville, KY [Posted in FML issue 3490]