I was going to pile it all in one post, but lets keep the names separate: 3) Names: Well, you've seen a few nicknames in my other posts, but here's the scoop: Squid: aka Sir Squid of Hillcrest: He was this monster baby, with these giant feet. I rescued him from a pet store because he looked like he was starving. He would lay on his back with his bloated baby belly sticking up, big paws kicking, and just wiggle. We wanted to name him the scientific name for a giant squid, or Behometh (which does NOT roll off the tongue), and Squid just stuck. I started showing him, and was totally embarrassed to have a ferret called Squid, so I decided to be whimsical and make him sound cool. Hillcrest is our farm name, and we used it in our horse's names, so I added that to the back. He's big enough to be a knight, hence the Sir. He has lots of nicknames, like Big Guy, Squidlet, Squidles, Squiggles, Squiggly-pooh, Muffin-face (usually said as I am ruffling his big furry tummy with my nose), the Big Rat, Mom's Prize-winning Rat, Fuzzy-wuzzy, and well, they just get embarrassing after that. Piglet: aka Piglet of Pooh Corner: My first ferret was named Pooh, and when I got her I went with the theme. Hence her show name - since Squid had one, she had to have one too. Piglet fits her, she's just a tiny little girl. Nicknames: Little Girl, Little Rat, Piggies, the Smart Rat, Evil Rat, but mostly Little Girl. She's not as cuddle-oriented as The Big Guy, so she gets less cuddly nicknames. Note: I DO NOT use rat or evil as a negative!!!! I adore them all!!!!! Rat has become a pet name, with absolutely no negative connotations (and we only use it with family). It's just that Piglet is absolutely diabolically smart. If we had a computer at home, she would be running the FLO! She already has a bunker with stashed supplies. She is brilliant and gets into everything. We mean our nicknames in a positive way - but it is naughty when she knocks over the vase and breaks it and spills water all over the TV..... Bandit: My newest ferret, I am fostering him for the Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Association. He's older, and I haven't had him long, so he doesn't really have any extra names. But he does have a nickname - the Bald Rat. Poor guy, he's lost almost all his fur due to adrenal disease, and it is only slowly coming back. I feel bad giving him a nickname like that, but someone said it, and it stuck, and at least this way, he's part of the group! Ann and her expanding business [Posted in FML issue 2653]