Our experience (mishap) with a christmas tree happened the first year with the first ferret, Molly. We thought we had ferret proofed the tree to a large extent, there was no tinsel, no ornaments hung within batting practice range, and the water in the tree stand was plain H2O. So far, so good, no? Then I started noticing that the candy-canes I had hung were thinning out. So I began blaming my husband. (we were young and unsuspecting ferret parents way back then!) He insisted he had only had one, the rest I was obviously eating in my sleep, as far as he was concerned. My first hint came when Molly came to sniff my face (I was eating raisin bread) as I sat on the couch and her breath was oddly minty-fresh! (the light begins to dawn) So I started watching her alot more closely, but still couldn't prove anything. Right before Christmas break, I came home from class to check on the fuzzball, and couldnt find her. I heard crackling coming from the tree and went to investigate. When I peered into the tree, I got the shock of my life when I discovered I was nose-to-nose with Moll...she had climbed up the trunk, out the branch, was in the process of snitching one of the last candy-canes, and trying to get it across the branch and down the tree. I followed her around the living room only to discover her stash of over a dozen chewed-up candy-canes still in their ragged little wrappers way back behind the couch. Needless to say, we don't hang candy on the tree anymore. And we haven't had to soak sugar-spikes out of Molly's fur in years. Love, Marya and the whole family, fuzzy and human. [Posted in FML issue 1386]