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Math Is Hard
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turbo-1 said:What a sweetie! I would love to have another ferret, but it's tough to say goodbye to them after 6-7 years. They are clever and engaging and curious and its impossible not to fall in love with them. Cats are OK, and I like dogs, but I LOVE ferrets. We have rescued ferrets that have spent years in cramped cages, only to watch their personalities bloom when they had our love and trust and the run of the house.
Turbo was a special guy. We ordered him and his brother from a breeder who bred a female from NZ with a big male from Sweden. Our close friend wanted one ferret and we wanted one, so I picked them up from a Delta express flight and we had the boys for a couple of days. I picked out the feisty one, with the most impressive speed and bite and our friend took the more laid-back kit. Turbo quickly accepted my wife and me, and was easily trained with just a bit of verbal disapproval if he did something we did not like. He would either meet me at the door when I came home, or he would look me up as soon as he woke up (ferrets like to sleep) and we would play. His favorite game was ferret bowling. He would approach me and play "keep-away" until he agreed to be captured, at which point I would flip him onto his back and bowl him across the slick (fake wood) living room floor. He would right himself and get his little feet churning to slow himself down until he could reverse direction and run back to me for another round. After 15-20 minutes, he would come straight back to my hands without making me catch him. That was my cue to cuddle him to my chest and let him take a snooze.
Animals are precious. I might be able to bring myself to rescue another ferret that I find in horrible conditions, but I don't know if I can support ferret breeders by buying another ferret when so many of them get treated like they are disposable. (another conflict...)
I can certainly understand your pain. I feel the same way when I lose a kitty. But to me "home is where the cat is" and I can't imagine a life without them, especially when I can offer them a loving, happy alternative to a cruel fate. All I've ever wanted in life is to live in a place where I could have all the critters I wanted, and all the critters who wanted me. I share your feelings about breeders. My four-legged children have all been ones who adopted me.
I think you have a very special connection with ferrets. My native american ancestors would say they are your "totem" animals. I hope the door to your heart is not closed when the next little one in need comes knocking.