Hi there ya'll!!! We have some really fun and unique news to share with everyone. !!! Toast-man, certified PAWS therapy ferret, teaching animal for P.E.P. Education and also promoting "Prevention of Animal Cruelty" in Louisiana School Districts and ambassador from Fuzzie Friends Organization, Shreveport Louisiana AND Ferr'ouquea Clarice, certified PAWS therapy ferret from WeezleWings Ferret Sanctuary, East Texas, personal anxiety/panic service ferret.... are getting married in a charitable event hosted by Westwood Nursing Home of Shreveport Louisiana on September 30, 2010 @ 2 p.m. Toast and Ferr' frequent area nursing homes and schools bringing joy and comfort and some fur-lovin that the residents of medical facilities wouldnt normally get , this is their favorite one to visit because everyone looks forward to their monthly ferret "fix" and all are front and center in the activity rooms and in the halls when the fursnakes make their grand entrances. Toast and Ferr' have become strangely bonded over the course of the last 6 months, they are really neat to watch , when together they are caged and choose the same hammy, when they are on freeroam they seek each other out and snooze in a collective ball and where you see one, you see the other. Its precious! When Westwood Director of Activities, Janet Henderson, learned that the two had planned their engagement, she was delighted to insist the wedding be held where the residents could attend. We whole-heartedly agreed with this! A "sister" nursing home has committed an arch for the ceremony and another has committed a fountain punch bowl. A cake has been donated by a local bakery and a fellow ferret lover has generously offered to handmake the cake topper capturing the likeness of ferr and toast! Debby Osburn , who is the wedding planner , actually swung into action and immediately procurred a wedding dress, tux and veil for the couple. She has planned the wedding in teal and white for those of you who are interested. Jan Schmidt of PAWS therapy animals has also generously offered to help fill wedding favor bags for the residents to take back to their rooms. We decided it would be a really nice thing for the residents to forget where they are for at least one day and try and draw it out for them as long as we can. A very special donor that wishes to remain anonymous is loaning us real kits to be the flower girl and ringbearer to be pushed down the isle in a fur-by-four" with flower petals hanging off of fishing line and garland so there is no cleanup and no risk for residents falling before it could be swept up! We would also like to have a table with a nice pink carrier (decorated like a car leaving a wedding to carry the ferrets out after the nuptuals) on it with all of the attending residents' names in it for drawing names for gifts for their rooms...(pictures, flowers, cd's, etc.) this is a special needs nursing home and even though most are all ambulatory (limited to mobile), are not able to leave the premises often. We thought it would be nice to help brighten up there rooms that they spend so much time it. We'd like their" PAWS ferrets and family to do that for them. We wanted to make this a fundraiser for both shelter and hospice but in lieu of the nursing home offering to host the event we decided it didnt seem appropriate or right to take away from that aspect of it so we are making it all about them, and that makes us happy to make them happy. The mothers of the happy couple will be writing cute vows for them to answer questions with licks from the "ferretone of love" bottle. : ) !!! Several local musicians have offered to sing little ferret ditties and the wedding march and a few photographers have donated their time as well. The media has been contacted so anyone that does anything to help w/this will get mentioned . Ferrets magazine is also doing an article on this and many other hard copy periodicals. Here are some of the things we need if you'd like to help....that would be WONDERFUL: 1) donations of items for the nursing residents for the "carrier" draw. 2) a donation of about 150-200 teal or white napkins w/the bride and groom's name and date of wedding and either a ferret pic or wedding bells on them. 3) a pink carrier, medium size 4) wedding decorations that you are not using anymore 5) an officient or clergyman who is open minded enough to join two ferret spirits together that make so many infirmed people feel a little better for even a few minutes monthly.(have to be local of course) 6)****NOT NECESSARY***** but if youd like to send a gift to the bride and groom, we are setting up a table and letting the residents open the ferrets gifts for them so they can oooh and aaaah and have fun talking about all the stuff ferrets use or can get....(they are still learning about ferrets and having a ball with it!) 7) teal and white fake flower petals, 8) an idea where to get a set of cool pet charms for their existing PAWS collars that they have to wear when working. (instead of rings, but we're still calling it a "double collar" ceremony.) 9) someone to loan or make us a pretty pillow for the charms for on top of the stroller (remember the little ringbearers and flower girls?) 10) wedding album or scrapbook etc. 11) XANAX for the mothers of the bride and groom....LOL! 12) Someone to design a commerative t-shirt for the event (possibly to even advertise and sell it to raise funds for their shelter/rescue after the event if anyone wants one..I know what I want it to say and its cute) 13) for all you sew-mamas out there...a tiny handmade garter belt (2 pls).. /giggle 14) something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue for the bride. 15) goodies for the residents favor bags 16) mints for the cake table for the residents (we promise not to let the fursnakes have any!) 17) soft ferret toys (the Libby Nelson kind) to hang off the ringbearer/flower girl stroller and something neat or a cool idea of what to hang of the the wedding carrier for the fur-couple to leave the event in. 18) an old guest book if anyone has laying around , the residents would loooove that! 19) a good videographer, we have an amateur (ME)...so Mr. Tripod wont capture much! 20) any volunteers living in the east Texas, northwest Louisiana area ferret lovers that wanna help....er .or wanna drive...(lol)....we would LOVE it! This thing is getting bigger by the second.......! 21) a computer literate genius to design an awfully cool wedding certificate. 22) we need a ferret pin for a resident that ALWAYS wears a different baseball hat w/tons of pins of kitties, dogs, fish, p.o.w.m.i.a., etc on each of them. We are trying to find him a ferret one!!! **** last but not least....# 23) ANY IDEAS THAT YOU HAVE, IT WOULD BE THE BEE's KNEES if you would share them w/us!!!! Anyone that would like to donate to the outstanding vet account Fuzzie Friends Organization or WeezleWings Ferret Sanctuary (we share the same account and work as partners in the care of our fursnakes) contact : Dr. LL Snyder,Jr, DVM 3308 Industrial Drive Bossier Animal Hospital Bossier City, LA (318)746-7821 (318)746-7829 outstanding bill currently: approximately $3,000.00 [Posted in FML 6814]