this is for the mckay ferrets, and anybody on the fence about adopting. i don't have a mckay ferret, but i do have a ferret adopted from similar circumstances...left outside..no interaction with humans. my ferret was in a cage out behind a house, and just got food and water thrown at him "occasionally"...the couple both blamed it on each other... long story short...i got him..scrawny..scared to death...he actually screamed the majority of the hour drive home...yes..i was rethinking it at least 50 minutes of the drive... challenges...name them...ferrets that have never been in a house are afraid of everything that we take for granted. almost every sound sent him diving for cover..the phone ringing, the washer or the dishwasher changing cycles, the stupid weather warning thing on the t.v., a door opening, or shutting, someone making the stairs creak, god forbid the doorbell rang...anything and everything was a new and frightful sound... he didn't bite..i never made him...i always kept my interaction with him brief, but pleasant, because i knew that he was so out of his element that if i added one more thing to his fear, that it would probably push him over the edge...so i waited and watched...when he slept, i would take the opportunity to run my hand over his back, then walk away, before he had the chance to react, after a couple of weeks, i could give him a little quick neck massage, then leave..over and over...during the day...he'd run out and grab one morsel of food and run back and hide with it...i thought he might starve to death the first week... time does heal all things...eventually he got used to my touch, and actually ate at the food dish..each milestone brought tears to my eyes, and i swear he knows, he is very loveable, and cuddly, never once refuses affection now...all of my ferrets are special to me, for their own personalities...but he has such a special place in my heart because of his.i might add that this was 6 years ago.... i have 3 food dishes and a very large crock for their water, but he just gets crazy if the food and water are not filled to the brim...he is waiting for me, and bickers like crazy, and if i don't jump and top them off, he bites me..not a mean bite, never breaking my skin..more like a punishment...just a firm reality check that he is not getting what he needs to feel secure...i always accomodate him...even though there is enough food and water to last all 8 of them for a good 2 days, i understand why..so i jump when he asks. he does this to this day, years later.this is the only time he has ever bitten, and it's not aggressive, it's more like panic, that he'll be hungry or thirsty again, i understand him, so it's okay. i know that every night he will jump on the couch, turn his butt to me, brace his front legs, and wait for the massage that he knows will come. i have such love for this boy that was once so afraid of me. he is now one of my most cuddly, i am so glad that i put the time into him, it's almost like he knows how good he has it, and is paying me back with affection. the mckay ferrets should be the same... never introduced to humans... ferrets are full of love, and with a bit of time, they should return your effort 100 fold...if you're on the fence...give them a shot...they will most likely be wonderful pets once they've learned that they can be safe and warm and fed...a little love goes a long way..if you have room for one more ferret...please think of adopting one of them. i have no affilliation with mckay, or the shelter that has them...this is just my experience with a ferret that hasn't had a chance. donna [Posted in FML 5738]