Thanks again for further hind end weakness info. The ill one locally turned out to have atypical insulinoma, but hearing of other possible causes from neurological, to urinary cysts, to ... has been very useful. Thanks to the vets who posted here with multiple options and to the owners who mailed directly to us with their observations. NAME my ferret: well, there are always: Ruttle (Grab an O.E.D.; it's an archaic word which fits their form of investigation and goes well with another old name), Jello or Junket (the belly motion of many male ferrets and a dessert for Kramer -- plus the second is a pun whenever the little one goes patrol-weasel), Elmer Thud or Volstag ( approximations to fictional/mythical characters), Whiteout or Avalanche (Need I mention the effect when Kramer enters a room?), Hoover (for the man who would never vacuum -- sort of the odd couple routine), and Filch (Just think of the fate of Elaine's bike.). Sadly, we do not have shots of the wheelchair. The wire is used to make sort of a sturdy 'cage' from which the hammock sections can be hung. These days I'd attach the hammocks with velcro for easy cleaning. Check in a hardware store for the wire and casters. Re: singed whiskers. This is not something to take lightly since it could indicate that your ferret may have found a fire hazard of which you are unaware. Did you know that the townhalls or fire departments of many communities have fire marshalls with lots of useful hand-out info (and sometimes free safety inspections)? (Local police will often also provide free safety surveys to help home owners prevent crime, BTW.) Protect your entire family! Beverly Sills lost a dog in a toilet. It was small and landed in there head first, but because porcelain is so smooth it could turn itself and drowned. Keep lids closed around pets! Bob, the molar vs. molarform thing is similar to a common misunderstanding among folks: that having a canine means one must be from carnivorous ancestors. They are always upset when I mention that it's just a tooth name for a type with only one per quadrant usually with very long root which is between the incisors and premolars, and that human canines are incisorform (except for one FEMALE vet tech we knew years ago who had thick maxillary ones with rounded points that extended well over her lower lip -- no they were NOT caps or stage teeth --now, she was someone the patients never crossed). Joe, you can use his ready sneeze response to teach Timon to use a handkerchief (not joking). Our asthmatic Ruffle (She's the dwarf who is also arthritic and retarded, etc. -- many separate problems has Ruffle -- the arthritis and dwarfism go together, but not the rest.) has a chronically running nose, and people are always entranced when we hold up a handkerchief telling her to blow her nose. She leans forward and blows hard right into it for us. The nostril holding trick might not always work. I've had an abused fur-fitch kit scream for me to come, holding its lips open enough while its canines were buried in my hubby's finger. She could have done the same to breathe. Of course, to get a biter you usually need a ferret which has been abused (or -- in extremely rare cases -- is intellectually impaired) and has been trained with physical punishment, rather than with time out if bad combined with lavish praise when good. (This is as opposed to kit play nips and teething chewing.) In a recent game of blanket drag the guys tried something new with each pass. Best was when they laid down before it and let it roll them over. Also tried: reclining on belly or back, running on the blanket, climbing the blanket to my hand, and laying down facing toward or away from the flow of the blanket to have fur rearranged. Sukie, Steve, and the Six [Posted in FML issue 1471]