Thank you all for the guidance, information and stories you have all so graciously shared!! I have been an avid observer of the FML for the last 6+ months and I thought it might be time for me to share one of my own fuzzy stories. My love of ferrets did not surface until after I was "forced" into fuzzy ownership. Three and a half years ago a friend of mine had asked if I would be interested in adopting a ferret from a friend of hers who's teenager had "lost interest" in this lil guy. To my (now) embarrassment, my reaction was "NO WAY!!... they are STINKY, DIRTY and they BITE!" *ah hem* fortunately, my friend was a bit more informed about these wonderful creatures and her reaction was "yes!" a week later when I got home from work, there was Emmett looking up at me from his cage. All I can say is that from that *first* instant when I picked him up... my heart just MELTED! How could I have been sooo misinformed about ferrets? Well, Emmett Sheets (yes, he has a last name too) and I have come a long way and he has taught me so much more about loving, laughing and caring deeply for animals than I could have ever imagined possible. Over the years, "ferret math" has struck and we now have 7 ferrets altogether (each one had come from a neglected, abandoned or no-longer-able-to-keep environment). To my fianci's relief, 7 *IS* the perfect number of ferrets for us (not to mention our dog, Hazey and our cat, Julius in the mix too)! This one is Emmett's story though for one and a half years, he was my one and only ferret! I was single at the time and he was truly my 'lil companion. Because I have family all over Ohio and Pennsylvania, Emmett went with me on all of my weekend roadtrips and vacations! It got to the point that no longer did my nieces and nephews greet me with "Hi, Aunt Audrey!", but instead, I got "Where's Emmett?!" (err, my sister thoughtfully had a talk with them and now I get "Hi, Aunt Audrey where's EMMETT??") *grin* Well, because my animal companion family has grown so much, it is no longer feasible for me to take them on the many trips with me (but fortunately, I have two *wonderful* neighbors who love to take care of the animals while I am gone). I love to travel and do so quite frequently, but my mind and heart tend to think of my original 'lil traveling companion, Emmett Sheets. Last year, I decided to do something about it... I started sending Emmett postcards to my house! (Just imagine my mailman's reaction each time he delivers one of these postcards addressed to: Emmett Sheets c/o [me]!) Haha Each one of Emmett's postcards make it on the refrigerator and to date, he has postcards from San Diego; Chicago; London, England; San Francisco and Niagara Falls! Here's where it gets interesting... most all of my family and friends know about my "habit" of sending Emmett postcards while I am away; and boy, do they get a kick out of coming over to the house to read them on the refrigerator. Well, this past week there was a postcard from Colorado Springs, Colorado with the most adorable baby black bear cub pictured on the front of it. (My mother and her husband were celebrating their honeymoon in Colorado) I had a smile on my face thinking, aww, mom sent me a postcard... but NO, instead, to my amusement, it was addressed to: Emmett Sheets c/o [me]!!!!!!! When I read they message, they had written: "Dear Emmett and the Rest of the Entourage: Thought this guy [the picture of the bear cub] looked like a relative and we were wondering if we should bring him home?!? Colorado is beautiful and we hope to see you soon!" 'Anyone else on here have any such quirky things that they do for the love of their ferrets?? If so, I'd love to hear about them. Someday I hope to get Emmett's postcard collection to include one from each state! Not sure if I'll make it to each of the 50 states in Emmett's lifetime... anyone interested in sending Emmett a postcard from your state or country for his collection?!?!?! Hmmmm, this could be FUN!!!! Thanks to all, Audrey & Michael Fuzzies: Emmett Sheets, Mimi, Bodie, Doyle, Daisy, Beau & Luke The "Other" Lovable Animals: Hazey & Julius [Posted in FML issue 3483]