We had a gerbil when we got our ferret. We made sure that the gerbil had a secure cage and the ferret couldn't get her. Well, unfortunately, we don't know how, one day, we saw the ferret running towards something, which turned out to be the loose gerbil. By the time we caught up with them, the ferret was war-dancing with a struggling-to-survive gerbil in her mouth. Poor Blizzard (gerbil) died quickly, and we've *never* been able to figure out how Sylvia (ferret) opened the cage. She had always been fascinated by the gerbil and I guess she put her mind to it. No more gerbils for us! Eley Kohn //--------------------------------------------------- Eleanor Kohn email: [log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 1912]