LONG TIME, NO BLOG!

EEK! Has it really been since November that I've written?? Well, boys and girls, I have some catching up to do. First, let me say that it is 2:45 AM and what better time to catch up on a blog....

Anyway, the last time I wrote I'd rescued a little ferret named Darby. Happily she has been adopted and hardly spent any time at the rescue before she found her forever home. I'm still very involved in rescue -- admittedly I had some bumpy times with it and had questions about whether or not I wanted to continue. But my passion and love are with the ferrets. I can't abandon them or the human friends I have made. I just need to get back up when I stumble, that's all.

I think Angel had already had her adrenal surgery last time I wrote, too. Well, she's doing great in terms of energy, appetite and mood. She's still naked, even after a Lupron shot. And melatonin. Her vulva is slowly shrinking back down, which is good. Dr. Dori wants to see her again in February and I guess we'll see what she says. Maybe more Lupron? Maybe little Angel is just gonna be naked, which is OK, as long as she's healthy otherwise. She's really adorable, the little rat!

Tonight I noticed some bruising on her torso. After a couple of phone calls and a on-line chat with a friend, I went back and investigated closer. Turns out a large mast cell tumor had popped up and the other "bruising" was simply dried blood from her scratching at the spot. I felt silly for thinking she had bruises or hematomas all over her, but relieved that that wasn't it! Anyway, I but a dollop of hydrocortisone cream on it and will watch it closely.

I have another addition to my ferret business! His name is Bailey and he is a cinnamon kit, about 3 1/2 months old! He is just beautiful and a total wildcat! Here he is:

That brings me up to ten, yes ten ferrets. Every one of them is unique, each a blessing to me. I think K. will have my head on a platter if I take in any more. I probably should quit making promises that "this-is-the-last-one-I-swear".

Having fibromyalgia and CFS presents a challenge to me sometimes and these little guys have brought me so much love, joy and healing. I can't honestly say that Bailey is the "last one". I'll explain that next time....

OUCH! THAT REALLY HURT....

Some people who live in a neighborhood across from us found a little ferret. She just appeared in their garage. They've tried to find the owners, but had no luck, so she is coming into rescue. I have her right now (in strict isolation) and will take her to Dana on Saturday. She is a beautiful little thing - a silver mitt that looks a lot like Baby. From what I can tell, she is about a year old. God, the owners must be frantic. Brings back memories of when I lost Rocky over the summer. Devestating, for sure.

The family that found her named her Darby, which I think is adorable and fits her. She's a little shy right now. No pic of her (I'm trying to stay unattached...mmrrrr) But here is a cute little pic I snapped of Angel and Baby hanging out in the hammock last night:

Speaking of Baby, that little rat bit me tonight. Totally hurt my feelings. My fault. Princess Misty was in Baby's cage, annoying her. I reached my hand in the cage to pet her and she didn't know it was me and swung around and bit me. Hurt like hell. :( I know she didn't mean it - she is a very sweet and lovable little girl. It was totally my fault for suprising her when she was already being defensive.

This is now the second time I have put my hand in the middle of a ferret confrontation and got the shit-end of the stick. The third time may just have me lose a finger....GAH!!!

STOPPING THE BLEEDING

Gee Whiz, has it really been two months since I've written here? OMG, don't know where the time goes...

Well, let's see, that last time I wrote, Misty had just been adopted and graduated to the Big Cage with the boys. Things are going well between them ~ even Misty and Ziggy are getting along for the most part. Misty still likes to show everyone that she is the boss by pooping wherever she pleases; like, say, the middle of the living room floor...But we are working on it. The thing about picking a ferret up when they are in the middle of "doing their business", is that they don't STOP doing their business and you wind up with a trail of business all the way from the original poop spot to the potty pad...not fun.

And while I am talking about Misty -- she had a growth on her back foot. I think it is called a sebaceous adenoma, which is a benign growth that can get pretty nasty. I had it removed last Wednesday and everything was fine. Then on Thursday night she came to me wih blood all over her. I'm not kidding, she was covered. Needless to say, I freaked. I grabbed her up and saw that she'd somehow knocked the scab off the surgical wound and it was bleeding like a sieve. I'm by myself (hubby is still out of town) and I'm trying to calm her and myself down, put pressure on the wound, call Dana (because I'm panicking). Now there is blood all over Misty, me, the sink, the floor. I'm thinking she is seriously going to bleed to death. Dana encouraged me to keep putting pressure on it and then when it slows down, using cornstarch. I did that and it finally stopped.

My goodness. Never a dull moment.

I have also adopted the three foster fuzzies I had: Smokey, Baby and Angel. I adopted them and immediately got Angel in to get her adrenal surgery. That was about ten days ago and she is doing fabulously. She is busy as ever, prancing around like the little princess she is. Her prognosis is fair to favorable and I feel very confident about her recovery. I can't wait to see what she looks like with hair on her tail and back! :D

So currently, I have nine ferrets and no fosters. But I'm still very involved in the rescue. I struggled for a little while - things happened that caused some uncertainty on whether or not I would stay. But, it's my destiny to help these little guys out. Happily, it wll turned out for the good of all concerned.

OK, I will be better at keeping up with this blog. I love writing about my furr kids - they are always teaching me new things!

TERRIBLE TWOS

I took Rocky, Ziggy and Milo to a ferret playdate last night and they had a blast. Well, all except the car ride. I swear, if someone asks me was having ferrets is like, my short answer would be, "It's like having two-year-olds."

I had their travel cage all ready, complete with hammock, just in case someone (Ziggy) needed to go in time-out while we were at the playdate. I got the cage in the car and was about to buckle up when I saw poo all over the hammock. "Alright! Who poo'd in the hammock? Rocky, NO! Get out of the poo!!" So I have to pull the hammock out of the cage and take it back in the house.

I had a light throw over part of the cage for the drive there, because, somewhere I heard it helps the stay calmer....NOT!! Rocky and Ziggy cage-raged all the way there. At one point I look over and see Rocky has a nail caught in the throw, which he had pulled partly through the bars of the cage. So he's just laying there being pitiful.

Had to pull over and unstick his nail from the cloth. Cloth gets thrown in the backseat. Try to shut the cage door back, but trying to get all three ferrets to stay out of the door and not escape was like playing Whack-a-Mole.

Back on the road. Traffic is diverted becasue of an accident. Pull over again, call my friend for additional directions. Cage rage continues. Rocky is panting. "Rocky, here, water! Drink!" Forget that. Pulled water bottle off cage, douse ferrets with water.

Back on the road. Finally we make it to our destination, where we had a great time. By the way, Ziggy was a perfect gentleman, which shows me he is not aggressive...just a bit ornery at times.

Yep, Rocky cage-raged all the way home, too. When we got home, everyone slept like a baby.