I helped Laurie finish the first round of distemper shots on the 36 ferrets rescued from MI this weekend, then we treated 72 ears for earmites. What fun! Meanwhile, my daughter Joy trimmed toenails on Laurie's bunch, as well as the rest of the shelter kids. She also assigned names to some of the as yet unnamed ferrets. (Laurie--feel free to change them!) I also had some time to become a little more familiar with these ferrets. Every single hob is a big, cuddly, stinky sweetheart! Well a couple of them don't smell TOO bad. Polar Bear, the elderly albino, lets the kits beat up on him. Arthur bites furiously at his cage until let out for playtime, then he dooks, dances, runs into things and generally acts like a clown. A timid hob is slowly gaining confidence, but still clings to whoever is holding him for dear life. There are some very cute jills, but watch out for that pretty sable! She is very protective of her cage and cagemates, treating them like kits (we don't know if they are her kits or not). She needs a little work. Some of the jills are coming into heat, but fortunately we have access to a v-hob to bring them out. Laurie is monitoring their condition closely. Mandy and Charlie are an older pair that are completely devoted to each other. After shots and ear treatments, they groomed each other to make sure they were ok, wrestled a bit, then curled up together for a nap. The kits are typical rowdy kits. Laurie has to fill their big food dish twice a day. They have big ears, but from their size at 4 months, they may grow into them! Some of the altered ferrets are very thin. Laurie will work on them with TLC and duck soup. We'd like to again thank everyone who has donated food, vaccines, hammocks, misc accessories, time, cash, and so on. Laurie is keeping a detailed account of all income and expenses. Our single biggest expense is going to be the neutering and spaying costs. Even with the discount our vet provides, it is going to cost around $1000 to have them all fixed. We greatly appreceiate any donations to this vet expense. You can send checks to Douds Veterinary Hospital 12115 State Rte 58 Oberlin OH 44074 440-774-4542 credit the Raisin Retreat account We are also going to have at least a couple adrenal surgeries, perhaps more. Those will be done by Dr. Wayne Turner Animal Clinic Northview 34910 Center Ridge Road North Ridgeville, OH 44039 440-327-8282 Again, thanks to everyone who has helped out. Linda Iroff Raisin Retreat Ferret Shelter Oberlin, OH http://www.oberlin.edu/~liroff/ncfs.html To help in raisin' funds for the Raisin Retreat, go here http://www.iGive.com/html/ssi.cfm?cid=3585&mid=30146 [Posted in FML issue 2553]