I was enjoying the beautiful pictures of the Hide-E-Hole ferrets on the Giving Tree. Their stories are still being updated, so I e-mailed the shelter director Barbara Carlson to find out about them. She was kind enough to send me their stories, and I thought I would share them on the fml. They are on page 21 of the Giving Tree and don't yet have Santa's Howie is a 5 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male with a biting habit. He's had a rough life-he was purchased from a Petco and brought back because he was deaf. The person who purchased him next kept him for a long time, but had to give him up because they were moving and couldn't find a place that allowed ferrets. Howie has been at the shelter since February 2008, and nobody has shown any interest in him due to his biting. He lives with his girlfriend, Snowflake, who is also nippy. Howie is afraid Santa won't bring him anything because he's been a bad boy. He would really like a new tube to run through and some N-Bones to chew on (instead of shelter mom). He also likes bedding large enough for both him and his friend. He could also use his own little toothbrush (like for an infant) because he has bad teeth. Snowflake is a 5 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white female with a biting problem, a tooth problem, and a serious sneezing problem. Snowflake has been at the shelter since February 2008 when she came in with her friend, Howie. Poor Snowflake has sneezing fits and will sneeze over and over again up to 10 times in a row, whimpering and crying in between sneezes. We have pulled bad teeth, given her several rounds of antibiotics, tried removing her litter, had her head x-rayed to look for infections, and tried antihistamine, but none of these things have worked. Nobody is interested in acquiring a ferret that is not only nippy, but has health problems as well. It's a shame when older ferrets end up spending the rest of their lives in a shelter, sharing the attention with 35 other animals. Snowflake would love some nice bedding (big enough for Howie, too!), some chicken or turkey baby food for when she's feeling poorly, and some extra cage floors (30" x 30") because she poops everywhere and shelter mom needs to change the floor frequently. She'd also enjoy some Ferretone. Tiny is a 6-year-old albino female with a checkered past. Tiny was originally surrendered in September 2004 because of her biting problem. She actually appeared in the PBS special, "Ferrets: Pursuit of Excellence" as winning a ribbon in the albino ring and immediately perforating Barb's thumb. Both the ferret and the bloody thumb were on the video. Tiny was adopted in November 2007 after we had given up all hope of ever finding her a home, however, the guy broke up with his girlfriend and gave the ferret away to someone else without our knowledge. The new family kept Tiny until May 2008 when they got a new kitten and were appalled to find Tiny's friend Leo dragging the kitten under the couch...and not in a good way. So Tiny and Leo are here to stay. Tiny is starting to go adrenal and could use some money towards her vet bills. She also needs Slippery Elm capsules for her old lady tummy problems. She would enjoy some bedding to share with her good buddy, Leo, and some Cheweasels or N-Bones. Tiny also likes whole prey, so if you have any frozen mice lying around, she'd take those, too. Leo is 5 1/2-year-old light silver male. He originally came in with Tiny in September 2004 and has an equally checkered past. Leo has a biting problem and is deaf and, like Tiny, was surrendered because of the biting issue. Leo was adopted in November 2007 after we had given up all hope of ever finding him a home, however, guy broke up with his girlfriend and gave him away to someone else without our knowledge. The new family kept Leo until May 2008 when they got a new kitten and were appalled to find Leo dragging the kitten under the couch...and not in a good way. So Tiny and Leo are here to stay. Leo would like some Foamy Fries, N-Bones or Cheweasels. He'd also like a sleep sack big enough for two. Leo is deaf, so jingle toys don't excite him, but he does like his tubes! Jupiter is about 4 years old (we don't know for sure). He's a dark sable male who came in with his older girlfriend Isis. Isis and Jupiter were rescued from a flea market where they were being sold in the middle of July at Roger's Flea Market by a "rescuer" on a 95 degree day, sitting in a wire cage with no bedding or protection from the sun. When they were found, they were laying flat in the cage, panting. Jupiter is quite lively for an older ferret, especially considering the heat stress he and his girlfriend went through. When Jupiter came in, he had some hair loss and looked a bit ratty, but after a Lupron shot he is doing much better and looks rather handsome. We don't want to separate them since they have been together their whole life and survived the summer heat together. Jupiter could use some chicken or turkey baby food to help him put on weight, and some Slippery Elm capsules to sooth his insides. He loves crocheted eggs and running through the dryer tubes. Isis is a 5-year-old silver female with about 50% hair loss. Her front half isn't bad, but her back half is rather sparse. She's had a Lupron shot, but it doesn't seem to be doing much. We're hoping the Deslorelan implant helps more. Isis and Jupiter were rescued from a flea market where they were being sold on a 95 degree day in the middle of July at Roger's Flea Market by a "rescuer," sitting in a wire cage with no bedding or protection from the sun. When they were found, they were laying flat in the cage, panting. We don't want to separate them since they have been together their whole life and survived the summer heat together. She is feeling a bit better these days, but still needs her duck soup (chicken or turkey baby food) and Slippery Elm capsules to keep her tummy happy. Isis doesn't play as long as Jupiter, but enjoys a cuddle with her human. She likes hiding crocheted eggs and snuggling in a comfy sleep sack. Roxy is a 5 1/2-year-old sable female with many health problems. Roxy has adrenal disease and is half naked, but also has serious kidney and liver problems. Since she arrived in February, she has been to the vet's office many times, had several low blood sugar seizures and has been made very ill by her liver disease. She was originally surrendered because her previous owners realized she was sick and didn't want the expense of the vet bills. Despite all these problems, she's remained a sweet old girl who loves her humans. Originally, she didn't like other ferrets, but recently has decided that Isis and Jupiter are okay in her book! Roxy likes comfy sleep sacks, Ferretone, and her duck soup (chicken or turkey baby food). She likes to be cuddled while in a nice, warm sack. Godzooki is a 5 1/2-year-old sable blaze female who originally came into the shelter in June 2004, was adopted, and then re-surrendered in June 2008. Godzooki has a bit of a nipping problem as well as a few other health issues. Her owners had to move out of the country and were not able to take her with them. After returning to the shelter, Godzooki went through a rough time missing her mom and returned to her old habits of biting rather hard. In the last couple months, she was taken in by a foster family and after a period of adjustment is doing much better there. Despite being on the old side, she still has a lot of spunk left in her. 'Zooki loves N-Bones, crocheted eggs, and running through tubes. Moe is a 2-year-old chocolate male who was surrendered because he nipped ankles. His cage mate had been given to someone else (along with the cage, food, bedding and toys), but they didn't want Moe. He arrived in a cardboard box with nothing to even lie on. Since he's come to the shelter, he has eaten holes in no fewer than 8 pieces of bedding, is showing possible signs of IBD, and is currently living in a bare cage with no cloth bedding due to his cloth addiction. We designed a special sleep box for him from a plastic container filled with shredded paper to keep him warm and out of trouble. We are currently trying to solve his cloth eating issues and hope that eventually he'll be able to be adopted to a good home. Moe has been at the vet's office several times already for tooth grinding and cloth eating. At one point we were even considering doing surgery for a potential blockage but it seemed to pass along with the barium for the x-ray. He's a sweet little boy who is difficult to supervise because of his addictions! Moe needs Laxatone and lots of it! He also needs ferret-safe chew toys to distract him from his first love...cloth! Pippen is a 6 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male that was regretfully surrendered due to his owner being deployed to Iraq. He was placed in foster care immediately to prevent him from catching the "shelter crud" that ferrets always seem to get when they first arrive. He has adrenal disease that is currently being treated with Lupron. He is happy and relatively healthy for an elderly ferret, and is a very sweet little boy. Pippen likes N-bones and Ferretone as treats, and would enjoy a sleep sack to cuddle in. Voodoo is a 4 1/2-year-old dark-eyed white male with a black splotch on his back foot. He was surrendered in December of 2007 because the previous owner couldn't keep up with the vet bills. Voodoo is in foster care currently and under treatment for various health problems including an enlarged spleen and IBD. His original owner rescued him when she went on a babysitting job and found Voodoo with a bag tied around his back legs. She threatened to call the SPCA, and instead, they gave her the ferret. Despite his less than ideal beginnings, Voodoo is a very sweet boy. He enjoys N-bones, checking out the dryer tubes, and hiding crocheted eggs. Wally is a 6 1/2-year-old sable male who always looks like he is grinning from ear to ear. He was surrendered February 2008 because his previous owner was moving to California. (Join the effort to legalize ferrets in California!) Wally has adrenal disease and recently had a large tumor removed from his back foot. He has also had problems with IBD, but is doing well now. Despite his health problems, Wally is still an alert, happy-go-lucky ferret, who doesn't seem to know he's elderly! Go see them on the Giving Tree, page 21 http://www.mfran.org/2008/index.html To contact Barbara of Hide-E-Hole: [log in to unmask] Dooks Risa [Posted in FML 6181]