>In the past few weeks I have talked to people about the strict adoption of >ferret's. What are the reasons shelters do not adopt to people and how do >they come up with this? > >I've heard some weird reasons people get turned down and I myself just >don't understand it. > >Things like you have too many already >No transportation >You don't have enough knowledge >Your too young >shelter worried about a persons income >the knowledge you have is not correct >personality clashes Our reasons are more like: unvaccinated pets, history of losing/giving away/killing animals; unwillingness to allow us to contact vets/landlords; unwillingness to spend any money on the animal (if they gripe about our rather low adoption fee to our faces, we tend to wonder if they'd pay a vet bill), or any comments made in an interview that make us believe that the person does not value animals highly or knows nothing about ferrets and is unwilling to learn. So I guess the last 3 sort of come into play. Really, though, it's just a case of making sure these little guys end up in good homes. Someone who doesn't want to spend $50 on a ferret probably won't want to spend $150 when they need medical care, or even $40 a year for vaccinations and checkups. Low income level is not a barrier--it's the attitude that matters. Someone who's convinced that ferrets don't need large cages, or that they should be kept in glass aquariums filled with wood chips, is not likely to really give a ferret the time and living conditions it deserves. The folks who give up their animals to us come from all walks of life and have a lot of reasons for doing so, some of them good. And almost all of them make us promise we'll do everything we can to make sure they go to good homes. So of course we're picky. If people have a good heart and an open mind, and are willing to read our informational book, talk to us, ask us questions, and accept that the right ferret for them might not be at the shelter JUST THIS INSTANT--then they'll almost certainly eventually go home with one. And "too young" is only a concern if the person is under 18, as far as I'm concerned. Although we don't adopt out to homes unless everyone who lives there gives permission. Common sense. Jen and the Crazy Business [Posted in FML issue 2853]