BAILEY MUST'VE STOLEN MY CALENDAR

Holy Cow, where does the time go?? My last post was in January?? Really??? :::hanging head:::: Aarrrrgghh. Let's update, shall we?

Well. Bailey, my champagne baby who got scalped by Milo, is now a part of the Wildkatz and he and Milo are BFF's. (Go figure) Bailey is the wildest of them all and he loves to find trouble. He loves to sneak in Keith's office, climb up on his desk and knock everything (including the wireless keyboard) off. He also enjoys erasing the greeting message on the business phone and stealing the computer mouse and Keith's glasses. He will attempt to steal the TV remote and it's a game of tug-of-war trying to get it back. He loves, loves to run and quite often we will just see him hauling ass through the house. It's hysterical. He's such a little clown!

Angel, my little girl who had adrenal surgery last November, never regrew her hair (except on her tail). Dr. Dori felt a lump upon examination and suggested a second surgery, which we did. That was just this past June. Turns out Angel was growing a tumor on her right adrenal and bone was forming around it! Weird. Now the little stinker is growing her hair back and she is going to be a beautiful DEW!

Oh, and we went to Shreveport in April for the First Annual Ferret Fun Rodeo. We had a blast! Smokey won 1st Place for Longest Kisser; Bailey won 1st Place in the tube races and 2nd in the bag races; Angel won 1st Place for Smallest Female Ferret; Angel and Smokey took 3rd Place for Opposites: Big and Small.

That pretty much brings us up to date -- at least with the Big Stuff.

But, there is one more Big Thing, and this just happened today. Dave, my blind guy and oldest by estimation, has insulinoma and I've been giving him prednisone for about a year. Lately he's had some hair loss on his back and head, a sign of possible adrenal disease. We felt that he was healthy enough to withstand exploratory surgery to remove the tumors, so it was scheduled for today. Just as they were about to put him under anaesthesia, Dr. Dori noticed Dave kind of choking and she realized he wasn't breathing good. So she did an x-ray and ultrasound and discovered a large mass that is either in his heart or his lungs, which is constricting his breathing.

Needless to say, the surgery was cancelled and she started Dave on Benazapril for his heart and Lasix to help get rid of the excess fluid.

Bottom line: my little Dave doesn't have much longer. And my heart is breaking.

BAILEY IS INJURED

Shit, crap. I wasn't watching close enough. Milo got ahold of Bailey and, I guess, bit him on top of the head, next to his right ear. He has two blood blisters and it looks awful. I found him hiding behind Keith's bookcase and he cried when I dragged him out. I cleaned it up, checked him over, fed him some duck soup and put him in his cage. He ate some kibble and is now sleeping. I'm jsut watching him now and praying we aren't gonna have an emergency vet visit.

It's my fault. Should've been paying closer attention. I feel awful.

:((((((

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!

O MY ZIGGY...

Ziggy's mission for the night: create chaos wherever he goes.....

Mission 1: Knock over Nathan's glass of tea and see what happens. Oh, wow! Look at that! The liquid stuff goes everywhere. Nathan appears to be angry as he frantically tries to dry off his calculator and textbook. Mom is trying hard not to laugh. Mission accomplished!!!

Mission 2: Try to open the closet door by scatching on it as fast as my little paws can scratch. Return to door and proceed each time Mom removes me from said door. Door will not open. Fail.

Mission 3: Knock all the books off Mom's book shelf and spread them all over the floor. Watch Mom throw up her hands and give up. Mission accomplished!

Two out of three missions: Not too bad. Someday, the closet door will be mine......

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.

CAN WE SAY "NERVOUS BREAKDOWN"?

Oh the drama. Rocky went missing last Sunday night. I went to put everyone to bed around 11:30 and couldn't find him anywhere. Ended up waking up hubby and we both began to tear the house apart searching for him. He was nowhere in the house. We thought back and realized I'd seen him last around 8:30 when he was helping me do the dishes and we played a bit in his pirate ship. I expected after that, he went to snooze in the Hidey Hole or his hammock under our bed.

Hubby remembers coming in about that time and opening the door that leads to our garage. Our garage door was also open. Could he have slipped out then?

We were out looking for him at 2 AM and I was hanging up "Lost Ferret" signs and posting on craigslist at 3 AM. I was in shock, felt like I was going to pass out, throw up - the whole bit. Harsh words between hubby and I added to the already nightmarish situation (we were both really scared).

I didn't really sleep; laid there, dreaming half-awake. Later on, Monday morning, I thought I'd just dreamed I'd lost him. But then the cruel realization hit me that it was indeed so. No Rocky came trotting in the kitchen to beg for treats. No Rocky running in-between my feet trying to trip me. No Rocky.

I was in total shut-down, sobbing hysterically all day Monday. I had a false alarm when someone posted on craigslist that they'd rescued a ferret the same night I lost Rocky. I contacted her, and it wasn't anywhere near where I live -- it wasn't my baby.

I was freaking out because of the heat and the dogs and the fact that little ferrets can't survive long on their own in this big world. I wondered if he missed me as much as I missed him. I put out a carrier, food, water and Ferratone for him. I even put ferret poo in the garden, praying he'd catch the scent and come back.

In the evening on Monday, my husband, son and I went out looking again. I was headed toward some bushes at a house when I looked up and noticed a car that pulled up to one of my signs. The lady was dialing her cell phone. I ran up to her car. "Did you find a ferret?," I asked. "Yes, I did", she said and she pointed to Rocky's picture and said, "That's him!"

Needless to say I about peed myself and jumped in her car (no pee in her car) and she took me to her house, which was about five houses down and across the street. There was Rocky, hiding under her shed. She noticed him peeking out at her while she was mowing.

He was a bit dirty, tired, hungry and thirsty and scared. Otherwise, unharmed. I am soooo grateful. I really didn't think we'd ever find him. It's so hot, no one is outside. He would have been so easy to miss.

I had prayers and postive, loving wishes from people all over the world. It is all of that outpouring of love that helped bring Rocky home to me. I believe that with all my heart. I am just overwhelmed with the power behind all of the energy that went out to us. Thank you, a million times over.

As for the lady who found my guy, her name is Rachael and was very sweet and (hopefully) didn't think I was too much of a lunatic. She got a reward of my undying gratitude and $ 100. And now Rocky owes me $ 100. LOL!

It is so good to have my Mamoo back home again!

IT'S NO HAIRBALL

Well...so much for writing everyday! Ah! Life is busy -- especially since I started fostering Misty, Oreo and Vestia. It is just like having a day care now, only with 9 ferrets! The boys want to play with the girls. The girls tease the boys through the gate. Somebody poops in this corner. I clean it up. Somebody digs ALL of their food out of their bowl, thereby carpeting their cage with kibble. I clean it up. Somebody poops in another corner. I clean it up. Somebody gets in a squabble. I break it up.

Then I'll get a big wet kiss or somebody will weasel dance me and it makes everything worth it, tenfold. I was created to be a ferret mom, that's for sure. I totally love this.

The situation between Snow and Ziggy is much improved. We still have moments of disapproval, but nothing like before. They are actually sharing the same cage now. Well...they were until a day ago.

This is where my drama with Snow continues. I've only had him, what, 6 weeks. He has been fine health-wise. I had an appointment for him to get his yearly rabies vaccination. The night before his appointment (this past Sunday) he began to have labored breathing and went "flat". And he kept trying to go to the potty pad over and over.

I thought he had a hairball, seriously. Dr. Dori checked him out yesterday and told me that he has a "really bad" heart murmur. So she put him on Lasix and Benazapril, which seems to have already improved his breathing.

I can't even find the words to explain how sad and devestated I feel around this. We only recently lost our Cupid to the same type of illness and it was hard. This feels downright unfair. The positive aspect of this (and I reaching here) is that little Snow is younger thn Cupid was and doesn't (at least I think) have any other illnesses, like insulinoma to further complicate the heart issue.

Honestly, I love the little DEW and albino ferrets. But I don't know if I ever own another one after this. It's too heartbreaking.

so there is happiness around the FriskyBiznus House of Ferret. And there is sadness and fear - a repeat of the slow loss we just went through with Cupid.

I will post some foster pics up soon. And if anyone ever misses me here on my blog, you can find me on Facebook! Feel free to friend me!

INSPECTION DAY!

Outside playday! Snow peeks out of the cube; Rocky

and Ziggy are in the background playing with a sack!
Snow is a lovie bug and lets me hold him!

My Sweet Snow - Playing in the Cube

Here are a few pics of Snow and I'll try to get some more taken of him. He is so beautiful (I love his little cowlicked hair on his head!) and a bit camera shy. Nothing that a bit of Ferretone won't cure!

My inspection went well ! They were very thorough and so I'm honored they welcomed me on as a Foster Mom! I am going to have three little girls!!! Girls!!! I've never had girl ferrets before!! I am thrilled! I will pick them up this coming Sunday, so I have one more week to do some finishing stuff before bringing them home.

So, yeah! I'm psyched!

ABOUT DUCK SOUP:

I have been feeding all my guys Duck Soup every single day. I just found out today that it isn't necessary or even really desirable, unless they are old or ill. The recipe I use has a large fat content. Oops...They told me to cut them back to once per week. Easier said than done. My guys love the stuff and come looking for it!! I'm gonna have to wean them back, gradually. Boy, does that give me a break, though. It was being very time consuming. I didn't mind..I enjoy holding them in my lap and petting them while they eat their soup. It just takes a while!

My eyes are heavy --- it was a big day!!

JUST TELL HIM, ALREADY!

Tomorrow I pick up Snow and, no, I haven't said anything about it and I'm prolly gonna get in all kinds of trouble. I need to just tell him and quit worrying about it. K. & I had a long talk about the rescue I want to start and he's apprehensive about it. I, on the other hand, am so sure that it's right. I'm working hard on getting a timeline of goals set, a business plan written, etc. I think money is the biggest issue, even though I explained to him that I am going to do fundraising.

I pressing forward and praying K. will come around and see I'm not trying to get in the way of our plans to reduce our debt. I'm following a passion, a calling.

It's not that I'm discouraged and it's not that he doesn't want me to do it. He just is very focused on our five-year debt reduction plan and is unwilling to have any interference. There's got to be a way of working it out so we both get what we want.

Ugh! I'm kind of streesed right now...

NOW I'M SKEERED

I've printed all kinds of good information about how to start a non-profit organization off the internet, so I'm pretty clear on what I need to do. I was happy to know it is a $ 25 fee to file for incorporation for non-profits, and not $ 300, like I thought. I'm just so excited about finally doing this -- even on a very small scale, I know I can make a difference.

The hardest thing I'm going to have to learn is how to say, "no", when I am filled up and someone wants to surrender their ferret. And the second hardest thing will be letting one go to a new forever home. As long I keep the awareness of that in front of me, I'll be OK. It's that "catching me off guard" thing I need to worry about.

The other thing I'm kind of worried about is, will my friends in HAFA support this? We have one rescue we are loyal to - in fact I am quite involved and still wish to remain so. I emailed the director of HAFA and the president of the rescue last night and told them what I want to do. No word back yet--so I hope I haven't done something inappropriate....I hope they don't tell me to go find someone else to play with.. :/