Howdy, I'm usually a lurker, but I felt the need to share my Hagerstown rescue baby story. When I first heard about the Hagerstown ferrets, my heart went out to all of those poor abused and deprived ferrets. I had no intentions of adding another ferret to my crew, but when I came across the picture of an incredibly pissed off looking blaze, I fell in love! That little blaze was Oops. Oops was a very distrusting young lady at first. I was told her name came about because of the phrase 'Oops, she bit me!' I traveled down to Rocky's this summer to pick up Oops and help out at the shelter. Meeting Oops in person was a wonderful experience. This semi-aggressive biter was an angel for me. Her one problem was that she was VERY dominant towards other ferrets. Oops is a very different looking ferret... she is short and stocky, with a stub tail, and with her blaze she looks very much like a little badger. This tiny little pip of a ferret would tackle the largest hobs with no fear! And she would win! :) I was a little nervous when I first got her home and introduced her to my crew. I had no worries about her and my Bad Boyz, Beezle and Bino, but I worried about how she would treat my current alpha ferret, Sugar. Sugar was an elderly ferret suffering from insulinoma. She was not very strong, and she did NOT get along well with other ferrets. She tolerated the boys, but never wanted anything to do with them. I worried that Oops would tackle her and hurt her. I needn't have worried. The first time Oops and Sugar came face to face, one squeal from Sugar and Oops backed right down. Soon I was amazed to see these two ladies seeking each other out and sleeping curled up in a ball together. Miss Sugar, who never had a friend before, had finally found one! Oops took wonderful care of my SugarLove, watching over her when the boys got too rambunctious, and cleaning her ears for her. My Sugar passed away last week, but it comforts me to know that she finally had a friend. Oops is finally learning how to act like a real ferret now. She is still a little nippy when she gets wound up, but now she knows how to play and dance and dook. She is finally beginning to seek people out for attention, instead of hiding under the cage whenever anyone walks into the ferret room. This poor little girl, who never had a chance to play before, now has the rest of her life to ENJOY herself. I spent several days at Rocky's this summer after my trip to get Oops. Our days down there were full of cleaning, medicating, vaccinating, and socializing these poor ferrets. Although I do rescue myself, the sheer scope of what Barb had to deal with never ceased to amaze me. With all of these Hagerstown kids, plus her current shelter kids, she never got discouraged and I swear I never saw her slow down! Even amongst the seemingly never-ending task of cleaning and caring for these kids, Barb always found time to talk to, cuddle, and love each and every one of those ferrets. I count myself lucky both for being able to adopt such a special ferret as Oops, and for having the chance to spend some time at Rocky's and learn from one of the best! I always came away from my visits to help filthy, tired, and smelly, but having learned a TON of new stuff! Meri Scales & Tails Rescue ~~ Meri Martin Scales & Tails Exotic Pet Rescue - http://www.scalesandtails.org Website Design - http://design.purpledragon.org [Posted in FML issue 4275]