Hi Everyone, It's been AGES since I have posted. I am so far behind on the FML that I gave up trying to read the back issues and resolved just to save them and try to catch up on new business. In response to the request for information from Marshall Farm ferret mom's and dad's, my Lucy is a MF ferret and is without a doubt the most loving of my three. Although I love them all very much, Lucy is "special". She is extremely affectionate. She kisses and cleans us all until our skin starts to feel raw and sore, then she checks our ears and cleans as needed and finally she checks our eyebrows (and mustache in Steve's case) for fleas. She does this for everyone, the dogs, cats, people and other ferrets in our home. I know she would have made the best little mother. She never bites or chews up stuff (except her squeaky toys) and she's a big cuddle-bum. You've never seen anything cuter than my Lucy squeazing up between the arms of one of our other fur-children while they sleep and laying her little head on their arm, then she looks up at them for a moment and finally closes her eyes to sleep. Sound like a ferret parents dream? She's all that and more! I also saw Trish Curtis' post about the toilet loving ferret. Well, we have a fellow worshiper of the porcelein ""God". Chelsea LOVES to watch the water when the toilet flushes. She runs from where ever she is in the house at top speed. Unfortunately, there has been an occasion where she missed the actual flush and she was obviously disappointed. She just hung on the toilet (she grabs onto the inside of the toilet seat and lets her feet hang) like she was waiting for it to happen again. So now we call her or run the shower to get her in the bathroom before the awe inspiring FLUSH! Finally, in response to the issue of "shelters selling ferrets". I would just like to add my two cents. I agree with all of those who stated that anyone who feels that this is wrong has no idea how much it can take in time and money to take care of injured or terminally ill kids. Unless of course you have had a human child with an on-going illness. In many situa- tions the costs are comparable. By no means can I pretend to know the hardships that the shelter parents endure but I do know how hard it can be just to take care of the occasional stray or injured wildlife. I recently picked up a young, male siamese cat that had been hanging around my mothers house for about a week. He was thin and had a bad case of worms but other than that he was fine. We had him immunized (rabies, distemper, and feline leuk. and boosters), wormed, and neutered. It cost us $140.00 for a HEALTHY animal. Many of us have insurance to off-set our health care costs and if we don't there is still the "free clinic" which may not be free but signifi- cantly reduces the cost of gyn. visits, immunizations, prenatal care, and etc. There is nothing to off-set the costs of caring for animals. Shelter parents have to rely on the kindness of others and their own resources. Now please consider "child-care". Just like a human child, ailing animals need super- vision. Depending on the age and type of animal, they may need to be fed or medicated every 2-4 hours. Very young animals cannot regulate their own body temperature and need a source of constant warmth. Who is going to be there to make sure that they don't become exposed or that they get too warm. If the care giver has to work then they have to be able to care for the "kids" at work or they have to find a sitter able to meet the special needs of the "kids". I only do this once every two or three months, most of the "kids" I care for are older and don't need CONSTANT attention and the most time consuming I have had is 5 NEWBORN kittens (as in still wet from birth) abandoned by their mother in the factory I used to work in. I had to warm, feed, cuddle (touching is important for animal babies as well) and even go to the bathroom for these little guys. Unlike human infants, many animal young cannot even urinate/deficate without stimulus which the foster parent has to provide by rubbing their little bottoms with warm, wet washclothes or risk having them die of constipation. Imagine trying to do some or all of these things with anywhere from 10-45 animals at one time while still trying to come up with the money to feed them and get them medical attention and ask yourself if you think they are "selling" ferrets. God bless and love to all, Irena and the gang [Posted in FML issue 1808]