I guess I should have been a bit more specific on my post. Please understand that things are pretty rough with all our worry over our little one at our house, so if I sometimes don't make sense, please forgive me! I'll due my best to clear things up. While one, smaller section of the guarentee (the end that I was to keep) does only guarentee that my ferret was spayed/neutered and descented, the other half states "XXXXXX Farm, Inc, guarantees that all their ferrets have been neutered and de-scented. If your ferret dies from genetic or congenital abnormalities during the year following purchase, obtain a letter from your veterinarian on their letterhead stating the cause of death and return this letter along with your guarantee receipt to the place of purchase. Upon our authorization the seller will replace the ferret." So the breeder has extended the health guarantee. Please don't get me wrong. I don't mean to slam the breeder. In fact, we are overjoyed at what wonderful, affectionate, personable little critters we received, and think their temperment is perfect, which is one of the reasons why we are so heartbroken over Tygger's "defect". We just want to make sure the breeder knows that there is a problem and follows through on their promises, promises that were a major motivation behind our purchase of two of their ferrets. I did finally get through to the farm, and they said right away that they would "give me a new animal" and would send me something in the mail, even after I explained that Tygger was very much alive and hopefully still would be after the guarantee expired (expaining that I was more than happy to cover the cost of vet care myself). I was a little concerned that they didn't ask how old Tygger was, when/ where he was purchased, what his illness was, etc., but I am being optimistic that this just means that they are more than willing to fulfill their guarantee and were not just putting me off. Thanks again to all for their advice/concern, and apologies once again for being so emotional about things. Deborah and the gang in MI [Posted in FML issue 1171]