HOSPITAL CAGE TABLE: Do not leave the hospital cage on the floor; homes have raised thermostats so while the air is warm at human height, the air at the floor is colder, making the ferret work harder to warm their environment. It is better to place the cage on top of a table or dresser so the ferret can use more energy for recovery. Mine is perched on top of two bedroom nightstands placed side-by-side, which I call my "hospital table". I bought both used nightstands for $20 each, trimmed the top edges so they would push together flush, and after removing the drawers, used wood screws and glue to permanently fix the stands together. I then cut a piece of 1/4 in. plywood to cover the top, and screwed it in place, doing the same to the back. My nightstands used wooden skirts rather than legs as supports, so I turned the table over and glued and screwed wood blocks in each of the four outer corners. The blocks were 3 in. on each side, and 1/4 in. short of the distance from the bottom of the table to the end of the skirting. I then covered the entire bottom with a sheet of 1/4 in. plywood, marking the locations of the wood blocks, and glued and nailed it in place just inside and flush with the skirting. I drilled four 3/8 in. holes (1.5 in. deep) through the plywood into the support blocks, and then installed casters in each corner, two casters having brakes. Turning the table back over, I covered the plywood top with vinyl flooring, trimmed it to fit flush with the outer edges and glued it in place with spray adhesive. Then I placed the hospital cage on top, played with its location until I was happy with it, and marked all four edges with a crayon. After removing the cage, I cut pieces of quarter-round wood molding to frame the cage and nailed them to the top with finishing nails using the marks as my guide. I covered the raw edge of the plywood with wood strip molding, glued and nailed, and filled all holes with putty. Along one side edge of the back of the hospital table, I screwed in place three 2 in. hose clamps, aligned from top to bottom. I mounted a section of broom handle in the clamps and tightened them in place. The broom handle extends past the top of the hospital table about 14 in., and is used to hold a roll of paper towels. You could add another broom handle to the opposite side of the table for use as an IV pole if your vet has shown you how to give subcutaneous fluids; just cut the handle about 2.5 ft above the table top and screw in one of those spring-loaded self-latching coffee mug holders. It is also handy for hanging bags of liquid foods for tube feedings. I then painted the hospital table with three coats of high quality gloss white oil-based enamel paint, masking off the vinyl flooring to keep it clean. When the paint was dry, I screwed in place a large drawer pull on each side of the table to facilitate moving the hospital table from place to place. I placed sick ferret supplies in the drawers (one drawer for cleaning supplies, one for medical supplies, one for clean bedding, and one for miscellaneous items), the cage on top, and it was ready for use. You can use any table, but the advantage of using nightstands are that they are a height so that when the cage is in place, I can easily open the top and reach inside without leaning over (saves the back) or snagging an armpit. The height makes cleaning the cage a cinch, and I can roll the hospital table into my reading room and from a sitting height I can see directly into the cage to observe my sick ferret. Also, nightstands have drawers that are most useful for storage AND they can be ferret proofed. Regardless of what you use, it is better to have the hospital cage on something, ANYTHING, rather than resting directly on the floor. Bob C [Posted in FML issue 4401]