Please post this anonymously, the ferret ban has not been lifted in our state yet. To the person who was thinking about getting a ferret: I has yet to meet anyone who is allergic to ferrets. I'm sure they're out there, but there seems to be absolutely no correlation between being allergic to cats and to ferrets. Handle and play with some ferrets if you're afraid you might be. [We know someone who claims to be allergic to ferrets, but not cats or dogs. Long story, never mind.] Cages: Read this list for a while, and you'll realize that anything goes. After building our own, we found better success with commercial cages (assuming you don't have more than 2 weasels). The fold-up wire terrier cages are excellent, especially if you're a student and move around a lot. They have slide-out plastic trays in the bottom, clean easily, but I had to add some 1/4-inch wire mesh around the bottom where the ferrets could get out. Post to this list if you want more info on these types of cages. Recently, though, we've been keeping Nancy in a large Kennel Cab. We assemble the top & bottom halves with binder clips for easy access to clean the litterbox. The bottom is a plastic-coated wire grate suspended about 1/2-inch above the floor. We put cedar chips under it to keep everything (Nancy included) smelling fresh; especially useful in the summer. It's also solving the problem we have of Nancy stashing kibbles everywhere. She's taken to flipping her food dish in the cage, so that when we let her out, she can hide kibbles in the laundry basket. Unfortunately for her, the food drops below the grate, and she can't get it later. Good luck. To Bill Gruber: Since ferret owners seem to be fielding the same questions over & over from new/potential owners, I think it would be a good idea to put "basic ferret info" in files on the server. Suggested topics: -- Books available about ferrets, critiqued. -- Whether or not a ferret would be a good pet for you. -- Ferret-proofing your house/apartment. -- Choosing a ferret. -- Cages, food, toys. [I don't have the time to write any of this. It would be nice of a few people would root thru the old issues and come up with short sections on each of the items. I'll review them and insert them into the faq. Then I can ship the FAQ to each new member. On the other hand, it'd probably reduce traffic.] Ferret diseases probably shouldn't go on the server, because the info is changing so rapidly. It should really be for archiving answers to commonly-asked basic questions. Also, when new people subscribe, they should be told how to get these files and the back issues. [Posted in FML issue 0264]