Dear all, my partner has come across a research paper which talks about the effects of certain wood preservatives on animals and people. It contains the following: "Mice exposed to 22 to 76 mg/m3 of o-cresol for 2 h/day, six days a week for a period of one month exhibited signs of lethargy and irritability. Central nervous system damage, lung hemorrhages, inflamed airways, and degeneration of myocardial [heart muscle] fibers were observed upon autopsy." These are *exactly* the symptoms we have observed in our ferrets, plus several builder friends have pointed the finger at the pressure-treated wood the shed is constructed of. Such chemicals are not supposed to be used in domestic sheds in UK, but who knows? It does happen that illegal or non-standard chemicals are used. For the scientific minded, the full article is here (and no paywall -- miracle): http://www.osha.gov/dts/sltc/methods/organic/org032/org032.html Anna Hayward [Posted in FML 7800]