Tony the ferret

Many of you know that ferrets Tony & Inge came in this past weekend. Tony was put on the priority list for surgery yesterday when the vet found he had a cigar sized, very hard hair ball in his intestine. We were quoted about $700 for the emergency surgery.

 

Today, during surgery, the vet called me and informed me that not only was there a hairball, there were also multiple insulinomas, a VERY large, black right adrenal gland and a very enlarged left adrenal gland. I was told to take care of all his immediate needs, surgery would exceed $1,000 and the vet wasn't sure he would survive well after surgery. She suggested I euthanize.

 

Tony has now crossed the rainbow bridge. In all honesty, it wasn't because I was fearful he wouldn't do well after surgery. We have no money. We have 6 or 7 other ferrets needing surgery now. 2 of which are urgent. I hate having to make these choices because we have no fucking money. I need a break too but it will never come.

 

I'm sorry for Inge who must now be left alone. I'm sorry for Nancy who took these kids in until ADV tests could be done. I'm sorry I don't have all the money in the world for these kids but mostly I'm sorry that I failed this kid, who was found abandon outside a school and didn't ever find real love. I'm just really fucking sorry.

 

 

Miss Randy Melanie Belair

President

The Ferret Aid Society

www.ferretaid.org

 

Join the IFC Ferret Aid list! Get the info FIRST!

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Ferret Aid 2006 photos

http://www.ferretaid.org/events/ferret_aid_2006.html

 

 

 

 

Sunday at the shelter

It was a busy Sunday at the shelter. We had someone come in to check us out and possibly volunteer, two adoption appointments and a cage dropped off to the shelter. We certainly need the extra cage, we are busting at the seams. We have 3 ferrets waiting to come in, two are at Nancy’s and a young girl I named Juniper is at the animal control in Toronto. Poor thing is in the same room as two chickens, one pigeon and one very yappy young dog. I don’t know how she is going to manage for another two weeks until her ADV results come back.

Bailey and Tommy were their usual crazy selves but very well behaved for our new volunteer. Bailey trashed his cage after I put him in so at the end he won and got a second run. Tommy has turned out to be quite the cuddle bunny and just sat in people’s arms as they pet him.

Gloria and Laura were out next. Laura does not like the sound of squeaky toys and got all freaked out when our new volunteer used it and jumped up and bit his face.

Sophie’s poop was really slimy and green. She was really quiet and I was told that she threw up the day before. I think she is losing weight so keep a close eye on her. Her buddy Hercules was doing well and was his goofy cute self.

Dora is growing some fur on her back and I hope she keeps it up. However her funny sneeze is still there so I took Nancy’s advice and put a bowl of water in her cage. I wonder how long the water will stay in the bowl. She went to the vet last Monday and her heart and lungs sound good and the blood work came back normal so I am hoping the sneeze will go away. She was quite bouncy and playful today and impressed the couple that came to hopefully adopt.

Gizmo was not as needy today as he usually is. He explored both rooms and seemed quite interested in the new cage. He is going in for his distemper booster on Tuesday and some blood work and the following Tuesday he is going into High Park for adrenal surgery.

I thought Freckles was in good spirits today, she seemed less agitated and more interested in exploring. She started out in the second ferret room and decided to bring all the toys from one corner to the other, which kept her busy for 30 minutes as she was slowing down I changed the rooms and she perked up again. I am happy to see that she is growing a bit of fur on her body and maybe with a Lupron shot we will see more fur. Her blood work was not so positive so now she is on antibiotics to see if they help her. Poor Randy has to give her meds twice a day.

Chubby and Logan are such sweet gentle boys and they are so soft. Today they got a bigger hammock since they love sleeping together in it. I let them run back and forth between the two ferret rooms since they were the last out and they enjoyed it. They went to sleep after a while and so I woke them up and tried to motivate them but I think they are still trying to understand why they are at the shelter.

Supplies – We need litter and paper towels

Laundry – the laundry container is full of dirty laundry

Tools – all the tools, screws, drills and the rest of the stuff on the counter was placed in a bin. The clear bin is the space below the stairs where all the left over flooring is.

Last Sunday I picked up a little girl I named Drew from Oakville Humane. She was adopted the same day by a wonderful family with a big blond beautiful male ferret named Gizmo. She doing great and I have also attached a few very cute pictures of her.

Lucky girl!

News

Have a few things to tell everyone! Aggie is BACK. Nothing makes me happier, you all know how much I have missed her since she has been in SK. Aggie is back and has taken over Shannan's Tuesday shifts for now. WELCOME BACK Aggie!!! :)

We also have a new volunteer who is taking every other Saturday so Bonnie & Nigel can get the much needed break they deserve. Ali has ferrets and came in last week for training. Ali did very well and you can see how much she enjoys the kids :) Welcome Ali and we hope you enjoy your stay with us!!!

I've received a few private e-mails from some of you in regards to Olympia's needing some time off. Yes, it's true and it's been a long time coming. Olympia has been doing most of the out-of-shelter tasks for a few years now and we all know how overwhelming that can be. She is not leaving the Board of Directors and will still be at the shelter every other Sunday but she is needing some time for herself which she isn't getting by doing all the vet runs, checking phone messages and going out to Animal Controls to ADV test and pick up ferrets PLUS helping me with adoptions. She isn't sure how long she will be on break but we all know she deserves it and all of us support her in her efforts to have a more normal life :)

This is where I need you all to come in. I don't drive and can not afford to taxi to and from the vet or various animal control shelters. I'll begin posting when ferrets need picking up etc very soon and I hope some of you will be able to help. Many thanks to Nancy for offering help with vet runs already.

As of today, I am very nervous. There are 2 ferrets in Brampton that NEED to be picked up by Saturday or they will be killed. They are not ADV tested and I'm at a loss of what to do. Do ANY of you know someone who may be able to hold onto these ferrets until the ADV test results come in? It would have to be a ferret free home. If they end up at our shelter they will have to be fully caged until the results come back. I also need someone to pick them up and bring them here from Brampton. If anyone is available for that, please let me know too. There is also a man with 7 ferrets and a ferret at Toronto animal control and another at Hamilton needing to come in. We have no room and no funds for these kids. High Park may be able to do a few adrenal surgeries at cost for us (about $300) which may be of help.

On another note, Tina, our London shelter mom is thinking of having a get together nearer to Christmas. She'll be in touch with us about it when she firms up a date. I think we could all use a party and some 'lighter' times. I sure know I could.

Miss Randy Belair

Saturday, Oct. 20th report

First let me introduce you to a small friend from my past, his name is Chico, but because he was so small, we called him Chicinho, or little Chico. His previous owner had tied a cord around his waist and then had him climb the mango trees and then they would yank him back when he had a mango in his hands. As he grew from a youngster, they never adjusted the cord and he had it grow into his skin around his waist. This was my first rescue. He cost me about $5 as I had to buy him to help him.

This is Chico.

He stands 15” high.

Now to the shelter and today.

Gloria and Laura were first out in the main room and then Tommy and Bailey were out with Bonnie in the garage room. Both these two G & L love to play and try to drag hands and fingers in to the tubes, and guess what, to do that they have to nip and pull. They are still very gentle even in play. Sorry, no pictures of the girls this week nor of Tommy and Bailey.

The two boys were as rambunctious as always, Bonnie and I think they are the first cousins of our Higgins & Burke. Only not quite so rambunctious. Higgins is becoming a holy terror as he recovers from his illness. Tommy and Bailey love to rough and tumble, especially if you leave them alone for a bit. Anti-boredom activity.

In the cage Tommy’s poops looked Ok but he did a really soft diarrhea like poop while out. Bailey on the other hand had a very soft (runny) poop in his litter which could be smelled from across the room. Seems like we may have poop issues in the shelter.

Gizmo came out next in the garage room and Dora was out in the main room. Gizmo had visitors, prospects, but unfortunately, they were very un-ferret savvy and had to be asked to learn a bit more before trying again. It was pointed out how expensive these little guys can be. So Gizmo stays for awhile. He will have his surgery and then grow his gorgeous coat again and be a real winner in the glamour stakes.

Dora stayed with me in the main room with me. She really is such a sweetie and so gentle and needs such a deal of attention. I did notice that she had only one very very small poop in her litter. She was also coughing quite a bit. This in no way affected her activity level which is high when she has someone to interact with. She did at one point vomit, projectile vomit, clear to very slightly brownish, no hair in it. It shot 2 feet from her mouth. Please keep and eye on her. I find she loves pick-ups but not for long which seems about par for the course for ferrets. If she doesn’t get put down when she wants, she can really squirm and will try to wiggle her way down.

Here is a couple of shots of Dora.

Could anyone resist this little girl.

Two ferrets came back into the shelter today, they were Chubby and Logan. Chubby and Logan first came to the Shelter in March 2004 and stayed with us till Aug. 2004. They were two very special little guys. Gentle but playful. Chubby used to lick out our yogurt containers. Well they arrived back and we were stunned at the condition of these two. They are gorgeous, the softest, richest coats you could imagine. They looked great. Can’t understand how someone could give them up. They are now about 4 ½ years old. Chubby plays with balls, and will take liberties if you hold him too near your face when he wants down, that hasn’t changed if I remember correctly. Logan just doesn’t know how to nip. Logan has beautiful red eyes, unusual for a sable. Chubby used to be a silver, but many of this ilk he has lightened up to be a slightly streaky looking DEW. Just Gorgeous. Here they are.


Hercules and Sophie out next, or rather at same time, other room with Bonnie. Both very playful with good activity levels. Sorry again no photos. Wrong room.

Lastly out came Freckles.

Her litter was very wet again, far more pee than normal for a single ferret. Poops soft as well. And a bit seedy. She is reported to be drinking huge amounts of water. I think she is going in next week for checks.

Freckles seems to like the samba stuffed toy on top of her cage. She dragged it into the cube and curled up with it. She seems agitated all the time, can’t seem to slow down.

That’s all for now. There will not be Saturday report next week as after 6 ½ years some has volunteered to do every other Saturday. So we two have to now wrack our brains for something to do on every other Saturday. I am sure that will evoke some comments.

I do have a request for Olympia if you can, the guys will still needs weighing each week so if you shift is on our off week then could you take the weights and mark on the sheets, also could you compare with the previous weeks weights to see if we have problems.

That’s really it, or I will be accused of rambling on.

Bonnie and Nigel

Saturday, Oct. 6th report

First out were Gizmo and Dora, each in different rooms. Bonnie and I split our time with each of then so we both got to play with both Gizmo and Dora. Gizmo is a very attentive little guy, he keeps climbing into my lap and asking for hugs, such a pity he is so adrenal, he is naked on his chest and most of his belly even though he has fur on his back. Patchy but it’s there. He stood up and checked out Hercules through the bars and both seemed very curious. No squabbles or threatening postures. Has any one else noticed he has a little hook at the end of his tail. Looks like it may be a small growth right on the side of the tip of the tail. Giz can be very friendly and very chatty when he gets the attention he wants. I think some of the chest fur loss could be through scratching as he seems to scratch there a lot. A great find for someone once the adrenal is sorted out.



WATCH GIZMO’S POOPS, they look very thin and small. Well formed and solid but small and thin. We gave him lots of hairball tonic and maybe he should get more from each volunteer. Then we gave to all the rest too.

Dora was in the other room for the first half period then switched to my room, the lower one. She is also suffering from hair loss even though we think she may be only four months old. She is very gentle and is a toy stasher, especially in the tubes. She also chews the toys a bit, so please watch out for that. She likes the toys as seen her with the handcuffs.

Tommy and Bailey. These two fight when they get bored and one leaves them alone to amuse themselves. They seem to need constant attention. Tommy stood up on his hind legs and begged for a pick up several times. Then he likes to nuzzle. When Bailey sees Tommy do this he follows suit and waits for his turn. Both boys love the TD treats. Bonnie bought some special biscuit like treats that all of them really liked.

Laura and Gloria out next. Laura loves pick-ups but will nip soft under arm tissues if given the chance, like if she wants down. Gloria climbs over the barricade someone put up in the 2nd room to stop them going where some contraction stuff is stored, but this barricade does not apply to Gloria, she hops over in a trice. Climb the air cleaner and is over. Laura, unfortunately cannot follow, her figure will not allow it. I put her over one time so she wouldn’t feel left out and she had a ball, especially when I gave her a treat as well. Gloria can also get under that baby door if the bottom is not closed properly, it seems it is out of alignment a bit. Gloria also stole my weights book, fake ostrich hide, she must like the taste of leather. Neither of these two ladies likes to play very rough and will stay away if you try. Both will keep coming back if offered hugs. Neither liked ferret bowling either. They look like some undignified action has been perpetrated on them when you attempt to bowl them. Laura will stash TD’s if offered more than two or three. Laura also stashes squeaky toys when they are squeaked.




Sophie and Hercules out next. Sophie never stops. Never seems to get tired. She uses a climbing technique we used to see with our Poppy, she runs her back up the wall while climbing the cage bars. We removed her stitches using the small black nail clippers, saw Dr. mike do it and thought it would work here. She is now stitch free.

Both got playing in the toy hamper, while it was on it’s side and mostly zipped up. Every now and again Hercules would emerge, look around and charge back inside and the whole hamper would “rock and roll.” Ever wonder what ferrets do when you can’t see them!.

Watching these two I have come to the conclusion that Hercules is very dependent on Sophie but Sophie is quite dependent on people. But when he gets too pushy for attention, she lets fly and pounces all over him.

All have stable weights so nothing immediate is happening.

And that Folks is the Saturday report.

Nigel and Bonnie.