I'd like to express my concern over some of the attitudes about money that come across on the FML sometimes. I'm the person who started the coupon program for the shelters and who posts the monthly update from some of the shelters, plus I will be working with Ela Heyn and Georgia Wood to produce the Ferret Coloring Books to support the shelters. In the course of these efforts, I have learned a lot about the shelters and have become the eternal fan of most of the people who do shelter work. Two things concern me. One is that so few people support the shelters. Very few donations of supplies or money have resulted from the monthly updates. These shelters need support, and even a couple dollars are very welcome. You don't have to be wealthy to give. In fact, I think it is often the people who have the least who find it the easiest to give. The other is that some people still seem to misread the figures posted in the updates. I have decided to discontinue posting the income and expenses, because people who do not post an update have been bad-mouthing shelters which do post. People have said, based on the updates, that some shelters are wealthy and rolling in donations, when in fact they are under financial stress in spite of active fund-raising and careful management of resources. I never wanted the monthly update to hurt the shelters which post there, and I am distressed to learn that some shelters actually feel competitive towards other shelters. I've just read the posts concerning rescues which have appeared over the past few days. Rose Smith, Michelle, Penny Elliot and Lisa Leidig did a persuasive job of answering the questions about money and shelters. I'd like to repeat the point that a "rescue" exists in the mind of the ferret-lover, not the person who originally owned the ferret. Many ferrets can be rescued from neglectful or abusive situations only by paying the owner for the ferret. If a ferret is living in filth and is never let out of its cage, I call it rescuing the ferret even if a person has to pay over $100 to get the ferret out of the bad situation. It is rarely possible to confiscate a ferret without the help of the authorities, and if we all waited for them, more ferrets would live in misery until they died. People need to find a balance between believing that everyone is trying to rip them off and trusting everyone blindly. Please remember that you, individually, could make a real difference in helping needy ferrets. Not needy shelter owners, though they can become needy through helping so many ferrets, but the ferrets for whom they care. It is sad when a shelter has to cut back on its services or refuse a ferret because there is no room at the inn, as it were. Please read the next shelter update and consider sending a gift to someone on the list. Blessings Judith White and the Fur Posse The Book does not say that money is the root of all evil. Money can be used to do great good in this life. It is the *love* of money which is the root of all evil. May you never profit at the expense of your fellow creatures. [Posted in FML issue 1803]