Hiya fuzzy luvas... I'm from one of those FFZ's (RI), and hubby and I own two ferrets, Loki (sable) and Squishy (albino). Squishy was given to us by some people who had to move and who claimed they couldn't keep pets (they were just sick of the novelty of the thing). Squishy is very low key--he was abused when he was young--doesn't do the war dance much, sleeps a lot, and is *very* crafty. We purchased Loki at a pet store in Mass., where fuzzies are now legal. (I've been trying to get a hold of a shelter in RI, but no one seems to know if there is one.) Loki is nuts. He's the way a ferret's supposed to be, I suppose--and he's the one who told me what "dooking" was. Today we brought Loki to the vet to get his rabies and his distemper. And I finally found out how to "scruff" a ferret. I asked her about the reaction to vaccines, and she said that ferrets will usually react within five minutes of the vaccine. Ours didn't, so that was good. Loki had also decided to try a gourmet rubber ball and ate about a third of it before we caught him. The vet did some feeling around and didn't find anything, and I've been watching him poopie--she told me to keep an eye on him, keep giving him linatone and watching him. He's still jumpy and playful as all get-out. When he stops eating, that's when we have trouble. I don't have many cute ferret stories yet, as we've only been owners for a month. I've been lurking on this list about that long, and find it to be a lot of fun, as well as informative. (I like the linoleum idea for the cages.) So I'll keep lurking and using all the info, and maybe putting my newbie 2 cents in... Lisa and Don Loki--"Ma! These superballs are TASTY!!" Squishy--"I am sleeping, dammit. Leave me alone." Grey Mountain (cat)--"Oh, grow up!" ----- "I hate goodies. I hate goodness that preaches. Better indulge yourself, feed fat, drink liquors, than go straight laced for such cattle as these." --Ralph Waldo Emerson http://www.ultranet.com/~maulkin/ [Posted in FML issue 1637]