Adoptables

My gal Jasmine...what a dear. She lived with us for several months but really needed a home where she could have lots of one on one attention. Jazzel was pretty old and had advanced insulinoma, so she didn't have much stamina while she was here, but boy did that changed in her new home! Jazzel was lucky enough to become the first "Millie Kid" who got to go live with our bestest Foster Mommy in the world, our dear friend Millie. Thanks to INCREDIBLE amounts of TLC on a daily basis, not to mention a healthy dose of respect for this tottering old gal, Jazzel lived on for a year after we thought she would! She continued to lose fur and look extra silly, but she just loved her Mom and Auntie Jeanette to pieces and they made her just about THE happiest ferret in the world! Jasmine will continue to be our best example of how rewarding it can be to take on an older ferret. She was only up for about an hour per day, but she sure had lots of happiness in her life - and was an absolute delight to her family. Jazz passed away quietly in August, 2001. She will be forever missed and beloved by her family. Jazzel's situation is perhaps one of the happiest we've ever helped to accommodate and we will be forever grateful to the Mierkiewicz's for all they do for so many of our beloved beasties! :)

Floyd...sigh...I rescued Floyd with Rhett in 1997. They were a happy pair o' friends for several years; after Rhett died Floyd made it clear that he didn't want any other ferret friends! Although it was one of the hardest partings of my weezil owning life, I let Floyd go live with our dear friend Millie. At the time I had several single ferrets and I just couldn't spend the time with Floyd that I thought he deserved. Although I missed him terribly, the decision was the right one and Floyd flourished! Towards the end he lost most of his fur and looked especially silly...a small boy, Floyd retained a big poof of hair on his head and back end, so he was quickly nicknamed the Lion King! HA! Floyd was always devoted to taking care of Rhett...poor sad Rhett never did seem to recover from the abuse from his early life. Floyd passed away early in 2002. Millie has helped many of our critters, but we give an extra special thanks for taking such good care of Floyd and making his twilight time so happy!

These six cuties have shared happiness and great sadness; we thought their story should be told all together. Our good friend Dawn has fostered critters for us for a couple of years now, starting with our Handsome and Harriet. Next to join the group was our Jackson-bear, who lived here at the shelter for over a year - including some of that time with Handsome and Harriet, so we were tickled to see the three reunited. Jack had adrenal surgery in December, 2000: he had a bad malignancy so we worried his trouble weren't over. However, after surgery he returned to his normal INSANE self - he was SO playful! After Handsome and Harriet had passed away, Jack needed a new friend. Enter Blossom and Brandon. Brandon was at the end of adrenal disease; we knew he didn't have much time left. But Blossom had recovered like a champ after adrenal surgery and was VERY playful. We thought perhaps Brandon would enjoy snuggle time with Dawn while Blossom could go nuts with Jack and that's exactly how it worked out! Jack and Blossom were unstoppable fun-sters. Brandon did pass away about two months after we first met him, but since Blossom had Jack as a new buddy she handled the loss well. Jack started to slow down towards the end of 2002, so when our sweet buddy Marvin rejoined our family (his foster Dad had a big change in work schedule and had to give up all his ferrets) we immediately thought of sending him home to be a mellow buddy for Jack. And Jack and Marvin used to live together here as well, so once again we were delighted to see them reunited. Jack and Marvin were mellow buddies in their twilight time and we're glad they got on so well. Jack finally passed away and Blossom had a hard time with the loss. So, we decided it was time for new buddies, so Minnie and Huck joined the group. As Marvin slowed down and finally passed away, Huck, Minnie and Blossom became better friends and once again we had a happy group. Huck had also had adrenal surgery and Minnie had adrenal disease, but of course Mom Dawn never cares about such unimportant details! The trio was living happily and Huck had really bonded with Dawn when tragedy struck on January 20, 2003. Dawn found all three had passed in the night; necropsy showed they had died of an ingested poison. We have no idea what they could have managed to get into; the home includes cats, dogs, ferrets and a human toddler even! Toxicology was just another frustration when didn't find the poison. Lots of sadness to temper the happiness of this story, so we try to focus on the happy life each beastie had with our good friend Dawn! :)

(Surrendered Sep '03) Cindy was a dear little grannie. So much woe in her past...Cindy was the victim of "new baby syndrome," a terrible affectation that causes a family to ignore a pet due to a new baby being in the household. Why people don't plan better is beyond us...but anyway...sadly Cindy wasn't brought to our shelter until the kid was nearly a year old, so she had some time to wither in lonliness with pal Laura. Although the owner knew that Laura had insulinoma no vet care or treatment had been sought or offered...sadly, although we tried to nurse Laura she passed not long after the girls came to stay with us. Cindy then began a new phase of her life trying to adjust and be happy without her buddy in a strange and scary new world. We were so happy when Cindy went to a great foster home in October 2003. She became friends with our pal Jones and was truly happy in her home until she passed at the ripe old age of 8 in May, 2004. Cindy made quite a mark in her final home, such attitude! She was so loved by her family and lucky to have found happiness!

Frank and Willie were superstars around our place. Originally surrendered in May, 2002, they were with us for some time before finding a super home. The only thing we were able to learn about their past is that they had spent the last year of their life in a cage. Apparently they had been passed along by their original home to the surrendering owner. She told us that Willie had bitten her the first day home, so she never let them out of the cage again. Some people! Fortunately they were quickly able to adjust to our place, even Frank, who was 7 at the time! During their stay they were always fun and such tough little monsters! Also during their stay, Willie had adrenal surgery. At last they found a home in January, 2003. Sadly, just before they were ready to go home we discovered Willie had lymphoma. His new family didn’t mind and he lived a wonderfully happy life until October, 2003. Frank was then on his own, but he handled the transition well thanks to wonderful parents. Frank continued to be a crochety old man for some time. He became to attached to his Momma that he would drag her hand into his sleep spot in the closet and refuse to let her go! Frank passed in November, 2004 at the ripe old age of 9.5! These two were troopers and we are so thankful they found such a wonderful home and had such happy final chapters to their lives!

(Surr Aug '03): Gordon sure was a character! This old man was officially a "grumpus wumpus" hee hee...whatever that means, right? Oh, Gordon had his own agenda. His official title was "toy manager." He carried his toys around all day, making sure they were in exactly the right spot when they needed to be. There wasn't any rhyme or reason to his work from our perspective, but we figured he must have known what he was up to. :) Gordon arrived with a friend, Naomi, but he was so mean to her we separated them. She passed away 3 months later...did he reject her? We're just not sure. In any case, Gordon sure didn't want any other friends. He just managed his toys, thanks. Gordon was here for SO long he was always a popular fellow. We were absolutely thrilled when he found a wonderful new home in November 2003. His devoted parents thought his antics were swell and they really enjoyed him. Then one day Gordon decided he'd had enough and passed away quietly - with no warning or anything, just another one of his "things to do" I guess. We were stunned and so sorry he wasn't able to spend more time with the family who had generously opened their home to him...but he sure did make an impression. We will miss this special boy forever. :)

(Surrendered May 04) Poor Elmer went through SO much during his stay with us. Elmer was surrendered with his long time buddy, Chet. Both boys were SO affected by adrenal disease; sadly their former home didn't do anything for either boy and left them both extremely affected and hormonal for quite some time. We quickly took both boys in for surgery, to get them some relief! But sadly both boys had trouble with surgery and we lost Chet only a week later. :( Meanwhile, Elmer had been having both health and emotional troubles. He had trouble healing...of course we think that the loss of Chet didn't help. For a time Elmer was grouchy and sad and we were very worried, but before we knew it Elmer turned the corner to happiness! Once this silly fellow decided life was good, he never looked back. We were thrilled with his progress and each day brought new happiness. So it was with great delight that we sent him to a wonderful new home in November, 2004. Elmer joined a crew of 3 other happy ferrets and was immediately a happy part of the new foursome. The happiness didn't last long...Elmer passed away just a few months later. But we're so glad he had such a happy end to his life!

Oliver was only middle aged when we met him, but his attitude was all OLD MAN! Poor fellow came in with pal Cash, who only lived a few days. The former owner waited until Cash was dying to surrender...nice, 'eh? Oliver went through stress and then settled into the single life, not wanting to have any ferret friends. Then one day we accidentally introduced him to a visiting family. It only took a moment for us to realize our error...but to our great surprise, instead of fighting with the critters he was surrounded by, Oliver was so happy to see them! After a couple of days of great success, we decided we'd better ask the family to consider taking Oliver home in Summer, 2003. And VIOLA! Instant happiness! Oliver continued to enjoy a wonderfully spoiled rotten life though some serious health troubles. He developed adrenal disease and insulinoma and we thought a couple of times he wasn't long for the earth, but this little champ came back time and again to continue enjoying his happy life of pampering. Oliver passed in February, 2005. He was the gentle gent of his crew, senior weezil in all ways and much beloved by his family. :)

(Surrendered June, 2004) Mehmet & Lynn were dear little sweeties. Lynn was one spunky monster who never slowed down. Mehmet was a gentle old soul, probably partly because he arrived with advanced advanced heart disease. Sadly his former home didn't pay any attention to his troubles...sigh...but we started him on meds and support and before long - POOF! He was happy and bouncing! Of course what really helped this neglected pair o' critters on towards happiness was a great new home, which they found in October, 2004. Oh how happy Mehmet was! Lynn was also happy, which she reminded Mom of frequently by biting her. HA! While Lynn never wanted to play with others, Mehmet found an additional benefit in his new home: shared playtime with the home's social crew! :) The two were having such a great time until Spring, 2005, when health troubles brought their life long love affair to an end - within hours of each other. :( So sad for the hooman beans...but how lucky these two were to have found such a happy end to their days.

(Surrendered July 2004) Kay is just the sweetest little friend in the world! This extra sensitive sweetie pie sure did have stress after being abandoned by her former home at the last minute before a move. We don't know what her life was like before coming to stay with us, but from her behavior we just don't think that she has had a very good life. The stress Kay went through was intense and she really had a hard time battling back. Fortunately she loves hooman beans and readily accepted our nursing care...but it sure was a long battle. At last Kay found a wonderful new home with good foster folk friends in November, 2004 - not long after being diagnosed with lymphoma. But did that slow our girl down? Not at all! She quickly trained her new hooman parents to bow to her every desire. :) Katie went on to become a grannie much sooner than she should have; serious illness will do that to a critter. But her positive, if not demanding, attitude stayed strong and she was the apple of her Momma's eye. Kay passed away in February, 2006. She had found a wonderful home and even made friends with the other weezils, all thanks to her devoted parents. :) We all miss her!

(Surrendered May 2004) Meredith & Gayle, along with pal (Surrendered June 04) Lindsay, were such wee little dollfaces! Meredith and Gayle came in as part of a group of 6. Lindsay had a much more adventerous road to our place: she wandered into a machine shop in the middle of summer! EEK! Fortunately she was none the worse for wear, except for being bald from adrenal disease. ;)~ We sure hope she wasn't simply let go because she was sick...but that's a likely possibility. :( Of course we were glad to have her! The ladies spent such a long time with us...and they became fast friends over time, so eventually we decided to keep them together. They're all so wee we figured hey, if someone were to consider them, they're sort of like having one big ferret! HA! We were just tickled with the gals found a super new home in April, 2005. They joined a ferret loving home as members 10, 11 & 12. The gals lived a very happy life until early 2006, when one by one they all decided it was time to scamper off to the Rainbow Bridge. Our wee ladies were spoiled rotten and so very happy. Their parents will forever miss these special little gals.

(Surrendered March 2004) Gwen was a dear little sweetie. She came in with Parker & Seymour. We didn’t get much of a history, but from how the trio acted over time we think their previous life was awfully tough. All three had big time stress upon arrival and we nursed them all for several weeks. Finally we were able to turn the corner with all three, with Parker coming out of the stress with insulinoma, but hey – we can manage that! Seymour then turned into a fun critter and joined a spunkier crew. Gwen and Parker then stayed together over the months, both being wonderful friends to other older or more timid critters who needed friends. Gwen was always snuggly with us but never really played…she was always interested in checking on the hooman beans and her pals. Over time, Seymour and Parker’s healh issues progressed, so eventually Gwen was back with both her boy buddies, comforting them as their time drew to a close. After we lost both of the boys in October, 2004, Gwen was ok…or about the same it seemed. We were very worried that sadness might overtake her. But then a bright light entered Gwen’s life: her new foster Dad, plus a brother and sister to pal around with! Within days of going to her new home Gwen was bouncing, pouncing and being generally happy. We were so thrilled for our special little lady's new found happiness. Gwen continued to live a happy life until she slowed down from old age and decided it was time to scamper off to the Rainbow Bridge. At the time she passed, she was being lovingly cared for by a generous couple with ferrets of their own. You see, Gwen's Poppa had some serious health troubles and had to have surgery, so boarding had to be arranged. After Pops had surgery he then had a stroke, so the boarding arrangement needed to be long term for Gwen and her pals Linus and Sera. Gwen was truly spoiled rotten during her twilight time by her loving caretakers, which was a comfort to her ailing Poppa. Gwen passed in March, 2006...and sadly, her Poppa followed her to the Bridge in August. We have no doubt that, if there is any sort of afterlife, Gwen and her Poppa have been reunited. She was such a special little angel and her Poppa just loved her to bits. They meant so much to each other during what turned out to be twilight time for both. We will always be grateful to friends Kim and Doug Ryan for taking such wonderful care of Gwen, Linus and Sera while their Dad, our friend John Pylat, was so sick. Although the story ends sadly for both Gwen and Poppa John, there is much happiness to be found in the generosity of others, and what hooman beans and weezils can mean to each other. :)

(Surr Mar 05) Pablo had to make two appearances at our shelter. :( He was adopted in January, 2002 after a short stay with us, but sadly he was returned in March 2005. We were very shocked over his condition when he returned, and it seems he knew best to come back to us, as he developed insulinoma shortly after returning! Pablo was such a wonderful friendWe couldn't believe how the former owner spoke of how he was treated...sigh...definitely a bad mark for us on carefully screening adopters! We were so glad to get Pablo back because not long after he returned he developed insulinoma. Fortunately Pablo was able to find a super home in April, 2006. He was spoiled rotten and ran the house, soaking up all the love he could from his hooman beans. Sadly Pablo passed away in June, 2006. Insulinoma came on strong for this little spunkster...his spark burned bright and went out far too soon. Pablo was a very special friend to us shelter folk, so he has many hoomans who will miss him forever.

(Surrendered Jan 04, part of the For20 in Ferndale rescue - check out this page for the story) Chewbiggie and Rusty have been through it as well after being part of the January rescue. Chewbiggie is quite an unusual name, 'eh? We usually pick hooman names that are all different to keep critters straight, but Big's name just came to us. When he arrived he looked like our Chewbacca's older, LARGER brother! :) Poor guy was nearly immobile from obesity. :( Over the months went through tons o' nursing to help him through his stress and the adjustment to live with insulinoma. During that time he lost his massive gut; nowadays he's back up to large but in a much more spry sense of fitness! Why, this old man even bounces around and is happy! YAY! As for Rusty, it's all about the attitude with this little critter. Note the golden glow...he sure does like to be the center of attention. Rusty also has insulinoma but unlike Biggie, he was able to transition back to happy life on meds with ease. These two handsome devils were lucky enough to find a super foster home in July 2004. We are so proud of both of them; Big is one of our greatest success stories! We get to hear about their newfound happiness often, as well as have them over for visits, and we're just tickled for both of them!
Update March, 2005: Sadly, our boy Biggie lost his battle with insulinoma. He sure had a happy ending to his story and will be missed by his family.
Update October, 2006: Our dear old friend Rusty passed away recently. He lived to be an old geezer who was spoiled to bits in his twilight time. Rusty visited us often and we will always remember this special friend, as will his family.

Surrendered May, 2005) Duke is such a silly boy! He's definitely what we call a "high maintenance weezil" due to his high intelligence, unstoppable curiosity and athletic ability. If it can be climbed, he'll climb it! If the ferret proofing measure can be overcome, he shall be the one to overcome it! He's such a cute, sweet little monkey...very social and always into having fun. Duke gave us quite a scare in the early part of 2006. We're still not sure what happened exactly, or if he has an underlying health issue, but he stopped eating all of the sudden and really went downhill fast! We nursed Duke for many weeks and honestly, for about 3 weeks we really wondered each night if he would still be here in the morning. Fortunately Duke has a fighting spirit, and although his spell was long and trying on all of us, he came back with gusto and turned into his old self! It seems strange to sum up Duke's ordeal in a few sentences...but why dwell on the sad past? We're just thrilled to pieces that Duke decided to get back to happy life. Of course after his ordeal we weren't sure if we should even consider finding him a new home, for fear of sparking anxiety which might lead to further troubles. But then long time foster folks of ours decided to consider him, so we thought "Hey, no better home awaits - let's try it!" So Duke joins the Neubauer crew, which has hosted over 20 of our beloved weezils over the past few years. And of course, now that he's officially back to happiness and spunk, nothing can bring Duke down and he instantly started having much fun in his new home! We're just so proud of this little champ. Would you believe he now lives with Eldon, another alum who went through a similar brush with death, only to come back better than ever? I say, critters like Duke really keep us motivated when the inevitable sad times come knocking on our door. :)
Update: Duke passed away in the Spring of 2007, after a long spell of ups and downs. Fortunately the downs were short lived and the ups brought extremely happy times! Only after a necropsy did we learn once and for all that he had lymphoma of the intestines. So Duke was living the high life on borrowed time, and boy did he ever make the most of it!

(Sur Mar 05) Patton is a doll face - but so much trouble! Patton loves to help hooman beans with whatever they're doing. Of course this usually means he's in the way! HA! Pat first defeated serious shelter shock, only to have to face coccidia in Jun 05 - along with many others in our crew in a horrible outbreak. Pat is one of the few critters to become truly sick from the coccidia and make a comeback and we're so proud of him! His spirit just can't be topped! As for (Sur May 05) Miss Mary, sadly she had to make two appearances at our place. First rescued from a horrible excuse for a "pet shop," Mary joined our crew and let everyone know who was boss! We think Mary must have been a Momma in her past; she wasn't spayed when she arrived and she sure does want critters to mind her wishes! We found Mary a home in Jul 02, where she took on Big Boris with his Big 'Tude! They became fast friends and enjoyed life until he passed away in early 2005. Then Mary was alone and sad. Finally in Dec 05 Mary returned to start having a happy life with friends and continue her quest for a permanent home! Mary is a tough old bird now but that didn't stop her new parents from falling in love and taking our little Irish Whities home in Dec 05. We were so happy to see them off and know this home is going to be their last! :)
Update: sadly, Patton passed away in July, 2006. He had such a great time in his forever home and will always be missed.
Update: Momma Mary joined her pal Patton and many other friends at the Rainbow Bridge in early 2007. She was a Weezil of Legend around here and will be missed.

(Surrendered May, 2005) Janel was such a dear little gal...but oh, the trouble she got into! Sadly, Janel is the only survivor of an original foursome. Pals Rodney, Phoebe and Ringo were lost in the terrible coccidia outbreak in our shelter in June, 2005. Then Janel escaped our home! Egads...talk about a horrible time at our place! Janel climbed up into the wee glass block window screen in our basement and tore a hole to get right through. Then two of her friends followed her! Fortunately Janel was picked up by a Samaritan and in a round about way, was returned. Janel also managed to get herself inside a wall and destroy one of our weezil gates! So this little gal was certainly "high maintenance," although being so clever surely isn't really a fault, right? :) Janel was lucky enough to find a wonderful new home in July, 2006. She joined several friends and was much beloved by her family until she passed away in July, 2007. Janel was only 3...she had adrenal cancer which was rather agressive. But boy, did she sure pack lots of life into her few years! We were very fond of Janel and so was her family, and she will be missed.

(Surrendered Feb 07) Miss Claire, Princess! Oh the drama from this tiny little gal. Claire came to us through the Michigan Humane Society so we have no history for her. But within a few days of being at our place Claire had made her feelings known: I am the only weezil that matters in the universe and I will NOT make friends! :) After settling into life at our place we discovered that Claire had insulinoma. Fortunately she adjusted well to meds and continued to have fun ruling the roost, all by her little self. But eventually we decided to try again to help Claire make a friend. We were expertly assisted in this task by shelter guest Maureen, who ignored Claire's protestations and didn't take her attitude personally. HA! Maureen just tried and tried to be her friend, and eventually she won her over. Which meant Claire was now ready to be considered to possibly join a crew! We were delighted when a long time Foster Mom for the Shelter considered adding Miss Claire to her crew in Jun 07. It wasn't easy going at first, as Claire had to try to rule her new domain just like she tried to rule ours for a time, but after only a short time she figured life really is fun with more friends around! UPDATE: Claire passed away quietly in late 2007. She is truly missed.

(Surrendered to Waters Wayward Weezils December, 2005, transferred to Motor City Ferrets December, 2006) Kara is a cute little gal. But boy, what an attitude! She just didn't have any luck making friends during her year long stay at the WWW Shelter, so we brought her to our place to try again with some new potential friends. During her stay she was pretty sure she didn't want to make other friends...but we'll never give up hope for this strange little gal! HA! Kara is a large lady who never misses a meal, so she has a bit of a large belly, which gives her quite a waddle when she's on the move. We were absolutely thrilled to send Kara off to a wonderful new home in January, 2007. She joins the "Neubauer Crew," which is always at least a dozen strong! The Neubauers have given a wonderful home to so many of our ferrets over the years; too many to list in fact. With so many personalities afoot, not only does Kara get a wonderful home, but she can continue her quest to find a friend in the herd! :) UPDATE: Kara passed away in the Fall of 2007. She was such a happy little thing, and her family truly misses her.

(Surrendered to the Chicago Ferret Assn Nov 03, transferred to Motor City Ferrets April 04) Cleo & Chloe were abandoned at a Chicago area Petco. Some people, ‘eh? Fortunately the gals made it to the GCFA and then on to our place. Cleo's leg sticks out in front of her, but this spunky little gal just bunny hops as she goes nuts in daily play. Sadly, we discovered Chloe had inoperable cancer back when we got her in April. But that didn’t stop this pair of best friends from finding a wonderful new home! Our good friend and foster poppa Chad took the gals home, along with Harrison and Wookie. Cleo tried to take over his heart by sleeping on his lap every day, but that didn’t stop him from spoiling Miss Chloe rotten. The gals lived in luxury until November, 2004, when Chloe finally passed away. There is no doubt in our minds that she would have been gone many months ago without such a devoted Dad. And now Cleo is happy in her home with brothers, so the stress of losing her lifetime pal has been lessened a great deal. We’re just so glad that Chloe was able to live her twilight time in such happiness. Many folks wouldn’t consider a critter who’s terminally ill…but if you think you couldn’t handle it, you just ask her Dad whether he was glad to have Chloe in his life or not. :) UPDATE: Cleo passed away late in 2007. She had a wonderful life with her devoted Poppa, who will miss her always.

Our dear little Sonja sure has been through it! She originally came to our shelter in September, 2005, with pals Coty and Graham. We're not sure what life was like for the threesome before we met them, but it might not have been very pleasant. All three suffered great stress and in fact, we lost Graham. Coty went on to spend many months with us; the time was happy, but he was terribly ill. He passed away from liver cancer in February, 2006. Meanwhile Sonja was a happy member of our social crew, but she was always a reserved, delicate little soul who clearly needed a home of her own. So we were delighted to send her to a new home in April, 2006. We met the new owner and her other ferret, Stinky. The owner told us Stinky's tail: she had taken him from a crazy neighbor who wasn't taking care of him. Something about "we want to get rid of the ferret so we can get some kittens for the kids, who aren't paying attention to the ferret anyway." The new owner went on about how irresponsible the neighbor had been and how pets should be a lifetime responsibility, so after visiting a couple of times we felt confident sending Sonja home with her new pal Stinky.

But there is no happily ever after to this tail. In September, 2006, Sonja's new owner e-mailed to say that she needed to return Sonja, and surrender Stinky as well, because she was moving to another state. What that has to do with anything we're not sure...for pete's sake, we moved to our current home in December, 2003 with 38 ferrets in tow! Anyway, of course we agreed to take both the critters. But when the time came, the new owner had some strange news: only Sonja would be coming because she was going to give Stinky to his original owner! What?!? The new owner said that her daughter had let slip when playing with the neighbor kid that the family was moving and getting rid of the ferrets, so the neighbor demanded the return of Stinky. Of course we counseled the new owner that since there was no paperwork in Stinky's situation, there was no reason whatsoever for her to take him back to his original neglectful home. But the new owner was adamant: the neighbor is crazy she said, so even though she was moving out of state in a few days she would not go to bat in any way for Stinky, and would simply be dropping him off - with the woman who was just SO "crazy!" We were heartbroken...Stinky was 4+ when all this happened, and we know what sort of stress the middle-aged-sters go through when they have to change homes. Now we can only imagine that Stinky is alone again in a neglectful situation, where the people around him don't care much for him. Sigh...sad, just sad.

Fortunately Sonja did return, and we were left wondering why in the world did we ever send her home with this irresponsible woman in the first place? Lifetime responsibility...yeah, sure...Sonja's "lifelong" home lasted for what, 7 months? Well, of course we were happy to have Sonja back and we are DETERMINED to find this sweet little soul a permanent home, where she will be spoiled rotten until her last day! We were absolutely delighted to see Sonja off to a wonderful new home in January, 2007. She joins pal Jeeter, who has been a friend of the Shelter for some time now. Sonja and Jeeter are the same "speed" of critter hee hee, so we know they're going to be fast friends. And we know their folks are going to love them forever!!!

Update: Sonja passed away in early 2008. She was such a spoiled little gal, and will be truly missed.

(Surrendered June, 2006) Boscoe is such a sweet little soul...and with such a strange history! His former owner was a young man who called to surrender, everything normal so far. While the man was here he just happened to say "Yeah, I think my Mom brought you the other two." Other two? "We used to have three ferrets, I think she brought the other two over a few years ago." ??? Intrigued, we looked up the other surrender and sure enough, we found the other surrender. Six years ago this Mother bought her son two ferrets for Xmas, since he had been begging for them. She complained that the ungrateful little snot could only complain that she didn't get one of the color he wanted! So a few weeks later she went and bought a third, one that was "the right color." Not long after...wait for it...the kid wasn't taking care of any of them! Shock! Awe! So Mom wanted to surrender the two he "didn't want in the first place since they were the wrong color," while keeping the third (the right color, for pete's sake) so he could take care of just one. You guessed it, at no time did it seem to occur to this Mother that perhaps she should step in and care for the animals in her home...sigh...anyway, at the time we got Tristan and Sandy, they were about three years old. We worried about the third ferret who would be left behind. If this family wasn't taking care of the ferrets, what would become of the last one? But Mom was adamant, and after following up we eventually lost track of the family. So now three years later we figure out that the ferret we worried about is here now, our Boscoe! Amazing, 'eh? How sad that it took three long years of loneliness and neglect for Boscoe to finally find refuge. Predictably, Boscoe went through great stress upon surrender. We nursed him for many weeks before he finally seemed to make the decision to get back to happy life. And once Boscoe got on his feet, guess what happened? Ok, so we had a hand in it...hee hee...we contacted the family that had adopted Tristan and Sandy three years earlier and asked if they would consider adopting Boscoe. Well after meeting him and thinking it over, they returned to scoop him up in October, 2006! YAY! Now he's happy in a large crew of 7, including his old pals. We're so happy for him, and quite proud of his positive attitude!
Update: Boscoe passed away in early 2008. He was a special little friend and his folks were so happy to have him - as were his pals that he had been reunited with! He will be missed

(Surrendered December, 2004) Tim is a wonderful boy. He came with friend Stefan, who has already been lucky enough to find a new home. Tim is such a snuggle-puss! He just loves to snuggle with friends, with hoomans, with stuffed toys...he's just a laid back kind of guy! Tim has lymphoma but he's been in remission for some time, so we hope he'll continue to have little trouble for a long time to come! This happy little fellow was lucky enough to find a new foster home in early 2005, but alas the home only lasted a few months before the family decided not to foster anymore. :( None the worse for wear, Tim returned a happy fellow with a large belly, which of course makes him extra snuggly for all! :) Then Tim got a second chance at true happiness when he was adopted again in October, 2005! We know his new family well and we know they're going to spoil him absolutely rotten. Tim joins alum Charlie, Kay and Marie in his new home, where he's friend to all!
Update: Tim passed away early in 2008. His folks miss him so...he was their very, very special boy. We miss him too. :)

(Surrendered September, 2006) Biskit & Angel have a terribly sad story - but one that has SUCH a happy ending! One night we received a call to the shelter from a woman who said "someone dropped a carrier off on my porch with some ferrets in it." She brought all five of them to one of our foster homes that evening and we picked them up the following morning. The three boys, Cecil, Nigel and Phineas, were all emaciated; clearly everyone had been starving. As for Biskit and Angel, they were nearly dead from starvation. Vivian was already cold and stiff when she was plucked from the carrier! Fortunately all 5 have amazingly positive attitudes and they all tried awfully hard to recover. The three boys immediately started pounding chow; they were in much better shape than Biskit and Angel. Our two little sweeties had a much more difficult time. Jason is obviously affected by adrenal disease, but his real trouble was starvation. And both Biskit and Angel were covered with wounds. Biskit had a puncture wound to his throat that was oozing goo...sigh...these two were truly in desperate shape. We speculate that the other three, since they were younger and perhaps more fit to begin with, may have rejected Biskit and Angel, to conserve what little food they may have had access to. That's just what happens sometimes when animals are starved nearly to death...so truly heartbreaking. Biskit and Angel both responded to nursing right away, although at first it was slow going. Vivian couldn't even use her back end! But looking back, what an amazing recovery they have made. Both were syringe fed for only the first day; after that they took to mushie on their own. Within a couple of days they were up to 8 jars of baby food per day! After only a week, both had gained many grams and were up to a regular amount of kibble per day, although it was in mushie form - and they also ate the regular amount twice a day! HA! Meanwhile, Angel's back end began working, she began grooming and the pair decided it was time to go exploring. And the best news of all, our good friend Lee (of KreativeLee Krafted fame) and her husband John fell in love with the pair and decided to adopt them! YAY! So now they're living in luxury with many other friends. The top right photo is not the best, but you can see how emaciated Biskit was when he arrived. He weighed 1.2#. The top right is a mere 15 days later when he went to his new home (he weighed just under 2# in that photo). And top right, inset, is Biskit at the end of November, using his melatonin implant to full effect to battle his adrenal disease! And now he weighs just over 3# - check out that belly, just starting to hang with pudge! We are SO proud of this pair of truly special beasties. Here's how these two got their names: Angel because she had all four paws in the grave when she was surrendered, and Biskit is short for dog biskit, since he was so chewed up. HA! Biskit still runs around manically like he's going to miss something or not be able to find food, but we know this pair will continue to thrive in their wonderful new home! YAY!!!!!
Update: dear little Angel passed away in Spring, 2007. While we're sad that she didn't stick around to enjoy her new happy life for a while longer, we are so glad that she was able to climb back on our of the grave for a reprieve - for she was truly happy and well beloved by her adoptive family. As for Biskit, he joined his dear sister in June, 2008. What a truly happy run he had as well with his wonderfully loving family. These two critters sure did get a wonderful reprieve!

Robin Found stray by non-ferret person September, 2007

We've decided to give Robin a middle name, and that name is "Lucky!" Boy is this one of the most fortunate ferrets we've met. We received a call from a woman who said "I found a ferret in my yard last night. I turned a trash can upside down over him; I think he's still under there." Not only was the weather too warm for an evening under a plastic trash can, but as you can imagine many critters would have spent the night digging their way out from under the darn thing! We were shocked when Robin arrived: he had virtually no fur and was rather underweight. But he appeared spunky, so we started in with excellent chow and some Nutristat (nutritional goo), you know, all that good stuff. But while it was so obvious that Robin had adrenal disease, we also discovered he has insulinoma not long after he arrived. Now, often when insulinoma starts showing up, critters will feel so puny they stop eating...which of course often leads to gastric ulcers, which in the extreme can be fatal! Well, let's just say that there was a time when we thought Robin wouldn't make it...he just got clobbered by gastric ulcers. Fortunately he has a fighting spirit (which of course we already knew since he managed to get himself found, 'eh?), so after what seemed like forever he started climbing back up the hill to a happier plane! Today Robin has a brand new coat, thanks to the melatonin. He's also doing well on the meds for his insulinoma. We have no idea how old Robin is; we guessed him a birthdate by looking at his teeth, etc. But he's definitely a Geezer these days, preferring the quiet life over mixing it up with the crew. We were so happy to send Robin off to a wonderful new home in May, 2008. He joined a crew with a very special Foster Momma and we knew he would be spoiled rotten as he should be! Robin enjoyed life in his new home until September, 2008 when he passed away quietly. He was such a special friend...we will miss him tremendously.

Maresa, Niklas & Pepe: a tough story with a sad ending.

Maresa was surrendered in October, 2004. She came in thorugh the Michigan Humane Society, so we have no idea what her life was like before we met her. She was a spunky, pretty little thing who made many friends during her stay.

In November, 2004, we welcomed Niklas, along with pals Djimon and Romeo. The trio belonged to friends of the Shelter who used to take great care of their ferrets, but it appears they were pushed aside once the family had a new baby. Niklas went through horrible stress after he arrived...in fact, we nearly lost him. His recovery was long, slow and difficult, but our little friend was a champ and he managed to get his feet up under him once more after two long months.

In November, while Niklas was convalescing, we met Pepe and his buddy Taz, when their Mom brought them over to find a new friend. Maresa was their choice, and the trio set about having a happy life together. During our visit, Mom really fell for Nik, who was still battling back from terrible ulcers brought on by the stress of losing his home. We visited with Mom a couple more times as Nik continued to get better, and since she had done such a good job with Maresa - who herself had some stress during her stay - we agreed to let her foster Nik, as we thought she would spoil him rotten.

And spoil the foursome rotten she did - at least for a time. Two more ferrets joined the mix in 2006 when Mom became aware of the bad situation they were in. Mom's health was poor, so we had occasion to go fetch the critters as Mom was on the way to the hospital in the winter of 2006. We had the trio for 3 weeks, which was just fine since everyone was well and eventually Mom was too! But over time the critters developed the health issues that older age will bring, so we began providing medications. We provide the meds our foster critters need, especially when their owners have financial difficulty.

Last fall we lost contact with Nik and Maresa's Mom. Since they were both on medication the Shelter was providing, we became truly worried when the Calendar told us it was past time for more medicine and we still weren't able to reach their Mother. We just didn't know what to do…then came that fateful night when Mom finally contacted us, in late March - more than 6 months late. Through many hours of listening to Mom's story, we learned that she battles mental health issues and had been neglecting her ferrets for quite some time. She kept good contact with the Shelter and always got the ferrets their needed care for at nearly 3 years before this time period, and we were just sick that we had missed it and couldn't intervene in time. Maresa died a few hours after she was returned that terrible March evening. Niklas, who arrived in about as terrible shape as we've ever seen (which, after rescuing nearly 700 ferrets by that time is unfortunately really saying something) and followed his sister to the Bridge a week later. We were just sick about losing both of them, but our attention quickly turned to saving Pepe, Taz and the other two ferrets in the home. We tried persuasion, we finally tried threats...in the end, Mom would only surrender Pepe because he was in such dire need of medical care that she could not afford.

Pepe had such advanced adrenal disease when we got him that his bladder was at least twice the size it should have been. He had trouble urinating and frankly, we expected his bladder to fail at any minute. But would you believe meds and some excellent care bought him 6 more months? We were delighted when good friends fell for Pepe and offered to provide him a wonderful place to live out his twilight time. Pepe fell in love with his new folks and buddies and enjoyed lots of time outside during the summer of 2008. Pepe passed away quietly in September, 2008. We were so impressed that he hung on for so long with such terrible troubles, and we know it was due in large part to his new parents - who spoiled him rotten!

This terribly sad situation was devastating to us here at the Shelter, for it surely should never have happened. In one regard we know that Nik's adoptive Mom helped him to enjoy life for much longer than he might have otherwise, but on the other hand her neglect caused Maresa's and even Nik's untimely deaths. We feel we let these special friends down and we can only hope to learn from the situation and try to prevent anything similar from happening in the future...for all of our critters surely deserve better.

(Surrendered Dec 06) Katie is such a sweet little gal. Katie was adopted from our shelter in 2002 as a friend for wee Millie. Sadly the gals had to return to the Shelter due to their adoptive Mother's illness. Both gals were immediately unhappy to find themselves at our place. T'was truly a sad time with our gals...sad to see Katie, who left us a happy 1 year old, now a sad and frightened little 5.5 year old. And as for Millie, she developed terrible ulcers from the stress. We spent 12 days providing intense nursing for our wee little friend and she put up a noble fight, but in the end Millie lost her battle and passed away…leaving Katie alone and rather unhappy. We gave Katie run of our home for playtime and tried to cheer her up, but she was up and down herself as she had developed insulinoma. Finally Katie's health and emotional state stabilized and she decided it might be time to find a home. Well, Katie had no idea what was in store for her!

(Surrendered Jan 07) Py sure has a Sad Tail. He and his pal were surrendered to the Michigan Humane Society. Both were apparently afraid to be at the Shelter (no surprise there with all that noise from dogs and all), so Py shrank back and didn't eat well, while his brother acted out and bit a Shelter worker. Sadly, though we offer time and again to take on any ferret, any time, any where and under any circumstance, the MHS decided that Py's brother was "viscous" and killed him because he bit the Shelter worker. Sigh…poor Py was left alone; we can only imagine how sad he was. Then someone came in looking for a ferret to join their existing crew and adopted Py. No introduction to the existing ferrets, just send him on home. Well, would you believe Py was returned to the Shelter a few weeks later because he "was beating up our Pit Bull?" Uh huh. We had a call from the MHS to take Py in January. The gal said he wasn't eating well and they suspected he might be in poor health. How long had he not been eating well? Three weeks was the answer. ?!?!? We rushed to fetch Py and sure enough he was thin and depressed. We began the nursing at once and happily Py rebounded, albeit rather slowly. We quickly figured out that Py did NOT want to make any friends!!! So we gave Py his own space and individual playtime and he got down to having some fun. Just like Katie…little did he know what was in store for him soon!

Would you believe Katie and Py found a home together? Well ok, so they're not "together" exactly...they are currently time sharing a cage, so that's 12 hours of playtime for each critter every day! HA! Their new Dad fell in love and decided that having two single critters wouldn't be difficult at all...and sure enough, he was right! They'll never be friends, but both are very lucky!

Update: Katie passed away in December, 2007. While Py doesn't miss her much (chuckle), her devoted Dad sure does.
Update: Py passed away in October, 2008. We know he will be terribly missed by his devoted Poppa.

(Surrendered to Waters Wayward Weezils February, 2004 - transferred to Motor City Ferrets February, 2007) Drac is such a character! Drac came to us through another local shelter that is now closed. We used to work more closely with the other shelter than we have in more recent times, so we actually remember Drac from when he first came in. He was intact, from a backyard breeder somewhere in Ontario; he ended up in the Windsor Animal Control office. Unfortunately Drac was rather unsocialized and afraid of humans, so he was quickly named "Dracula"! DOH! But over the past 3 years he has really mellowed out and today he's a big old teddy bear. When the WWW shelter closed the Director didn't take much time to give us information about the ferrets that were transferred, but we do know that Drac has lived with other ferrets from time to time. But these days it seems he's just too used to being alone to make any new friends. Fortunately Drac is happy about being on his own, and he's a predictable sort who isn't much trouble. :) We were just thrilled when Drac was adopted in August, 2007. He joins a home with other ferrets and a cat, so he has plenty of other critters to get upset about - but he can't get to 'em, so there! HA! Drac is already much beloved by his family and we're extra happy that he lives so close and will visit us - we just love this crochety old man! :)

Update: Drac passed away quietly in November, 2008. He was a crochety old geezer until the end - that's our boy! :)

Sarina: Surrendered June, 2008, Owner Surrender: dumped at pet shop

Sarina came in with pal Betty. When their former owner decided she didn't want them anymore, she took them to a pet shop that sells ferrets...sigh...sadly most often the pet shop won't provide any vet care for the ferrets brought in as unwanted, they just pop a for sale sign on them. Grrr!!! In this case the girls were lucky to land at this particular shop, where one of the workers is a client of ours. :) Our friend cleaned 'em up and interacted with them and right away discovered trouble with Sarina. After her bath, Sarina made no effort to get herself dry...??? Boy, a ferret sure has to be down not to do the after-bath-freak-out-dance, 'eh? And the girls are so young...what on earth could be wrong with Sarina? Since it was so obvious Sarina wasn't well the shop manager allowed them to come to our Shelter (that's opposed to making a quick buck off them grrr). We were stumped when we met Sarina, but a vet exam showed us her trouble: this little cutie had broken ribs and a big old area of trauma on her lung! No wonder she was feeling so puny, 'eh? We've all heard from people who break ribs that such an injury is very painful, so Sarina's behavior seemed to make sense after we discovered the injury. After all, while finding the injury wasn't exactly "good news" for Sarina, we were relieved to find what we thought was an answer to her troubles. Little did we know...

Not long after Sarina and Betty came in our Shelter was hit with another outbreak of the parasite coccidia - which can be pesky to eliminate and very dangerous or even deadly. Sarina was walloped by the parasite and she went through a terrible time trying to fight back. We actually expected to lose her a couple of times through her treatment, but she has always had a positive attitude. But after apparently getting the coccidia in check, Sarina only improved to a point. She turned into a "Mush Master" and started haunting the hooman beans for supportive mushie and packed in plenty every day to gain weight, but this little gal who doesn't amount to much even in full weight ended up spending 2 months absolutely emaciated - despite a great deal of chow going in every day! Fortunately she did eventually start to put on weight and by the end of 2008 she was up to a whopping 1.2#! Would you believe that's double what she weighed when she was terribly ill? But even after she put on some weight, she remained bony, her stools weren't the best and she still didn't have enough energy to play...sigh...and we were totally stumped as to what is actually wrong with her or how to help her!

On New Year's Eve, 2008, Sarina went to a new home. We decided it was time to get this special little lady in a home to make sure her lack of vigor wasn't in any way related to the stress of living at the Shelter. Sarina joins our Ambassador alumni Zeke and Stacey in a wonderful home with friends of the Shelter, where she will be spoiled to bits - which is a very important component of her life. Sure, we hope all ferrets get spoiled, but for Sarina it's really a couple of hours a day job for the hooman beans! We're still not sure what's going on with her medically...she breaths a bit funny from time to time as well but her rib injury healed well and Doc can't find anything in her chest, but hey - as long as she's happy, we'll all do the best we can for her. Sarina was a dear little friend during her stay and we wouldn't have let her go if we wouldn't be able to have visitation rights HA! But we're tickled to see her in a home where she belongs and we hope the future only continues to get brighter for her. :)

Update: Sadly Sarina passed away in January, 2009. We suspect that the length of time she spent without being able to put on any weight was the key to her demise…although we'll never be 100% sure what was going on with our little friend. We are so happy that she got to be the center of attention in her twilight time…she was such a special little girl…all she really wanted in life was a lap! We never did get to see her playful, but we know she was happy despite her many troubles.

Porter: Surrendered to Waters Wayward Weezils February, 2005, transferred to Motor City Ferrets October, 2006

Poor little Mr. Porter languished at our partner rescue for SO long before finding a home! And we can't imagine why...he's such a happy little character who's always up for being silly! :) Actually there is one reason: he HATES other ferrets! Sigh...why can't we all just get along! So Porter was passed over time and again, when all he needed was for someone to just pay attention to him for a minute or two! We happily accepted Porter into our brood, expecting he might have a long stay with us as well. But then something hit us: how much this handsome devil reminds us of our Pablo, a MCF alum. Well, after thinking a bit more...you see, Pablo passed away a few months ago, leaving quite the hole in his family's heart. Well now, we thought...maybe Pablo's family would see the same thing in Porter that we do and fall for him as we have? Sure enough, it worked! YAY! Of course there is no notion of replacing Pablo...just taking advantage of a critter who delights with both present and past, and remembering there's a hole out there that needs to be filled. We were tickled to pieces to send Porter to his wonderful new home in December, 2006! And would you believe only 2 short years later Porter joined the family weezil crew? HA! Yup, given enough time anyone can become social!
Update: Porter passed away quietly in January, 2009. He was a beloved member of his family and will be missed. :)

(Surr Dec 05) Kelli, Rick & Colleen are such sweetie pies! We absolutely fell in love with this trio. They were 6, 6, and 8 years old, respectively, when they were surrendered! Can you believe it? You certainly wouldn't be able to believe it if you met them, that's for sure. We took all three from an Animal Control, so we don't have any info on their history. All 3 had stress upon surrender, which is to be expected at their age, but they have wonderfully positive attitudes and just needed a little bit of extra TLC - which of course we were happy to provide! Kelli became Alex's shadow when she was nursing. She figured out that Daddy brings the mushie, so she started haunting him. Once she was back on chow it was Rick's turn to be Alex's little shadow. Rick is such a silly thing...he's naturally slender and has the silliest dance! Grannie Colleen is doing her best impression of the tree in her portrait. She is definately the Momma of the crew and she's even been a bit snotty with new friends, but that didn't last long once she figured out more weezils make for more happiness! Colleen has a very brown nose which always looks dirty...of course we think that's extra cute. We were absolutely thrilled to find a wonderful new home for these special beasties in April, 2006. They joined MCF alum Miss Jaime and soon Grannie Colleen was beating up the family cat as often as possible! Sheesh...Gran weighs maybe 1#?!? HA!

Update: Sadly, Grannie Colleen passed away in the Summer of 2007. She was so lucky to have found such a wonderful home for her twilight time and she will be missed.
Update: Sweet little Rick passed away in early 2008. He was such a happy fellow in his final home, and his folks and sister Kelli will miss him very much.
Update: Miss Kelly passed away quietly in April, 2009. She was quite the Grannie in her later years and such a trooper...she will be missed!

(Surrendered August, 2007) Volume and Slash are such great little friends. Volume came in with Mass and Density; they were all so fat and fluffy Shelter Dad Alex, the teacher who is always looking to educate, came up with their unconventional names. :) The trio were well cared for and really took the loss of their home hard...especially Vollie. Add in the emergence of insulinoma and boy did Volume have a tough few weeks! Fortunately after he started meds and soaked up some support, he was back in action. As for Slash, you can see how he got his name. Little guy was found stray and picked up by Animal Control. Make that after neighbors spotted him 3 days earlier - amazing he was found, 'eh? Well, we quickly found out how he got himself discovered: when he sees a hooman bean, he automatically comes up and stands up against a leg and starts scratching the highest point he can reach! :) Slash went to the Westland branch of the Michigan Humane Society and stayed 10 days; unfortunately the MHS does not offer ferrets playtime out of a cage, so Slash got frustrated. He decided to try to work his way out through the front of the cage, so much so that he scraped the top of his nose until it was raw! In his photo he's actually almost fully healed; the wound was much worse. ?!?!? Our buddy sure did want out of that cage! Once Slash came in and made some friends he was SOOOO much happier - but still always busy and always up for a romp! We were tickled to send Volume and Slash home together in December, 2007. The boys were such great friends during their stay here that we were thrilled for them. However, life threw them another curve after a new baby came into their home. The boys boarded with a good friend of the Shelter for several weeks during the baby's arrival, and once their folks decided they weren't going to bring the boys back home, the good friend of the Shelter stepped up and adopted them! We're tickled, since the Shelter is no place to live out your life - especially when you're middle aged and have health issues. We know the boys will enjoy their new, permanent home, where they will be spoiled rotten!
Update: Slash passed away at the end of 2008. He was one lucky boy and beloved by all who met him; he will be missed.
Update: Volume passed away quietly in July, 2009. He was such a sweet little guy...he will be missed by everyone who met and loved him. :)

(Surr Jul 04) Mindy & Eldon are super little friends! They're very spunky, playful and social - although sometimes Eldon decides he doesn't like one ferret or another. We're always so pleased to see Eldon so happy. He had an awfully hard time after his surrender. He crashed out one day and we discovered insulinoma, then it was a long road back to vigor for this handsome devil. Fortunately Eldon is young and has a positive attitude, so he decided he wanted to be nursed and get back to happy life! In fact, these days Eldon is so fat, fit and spunky he's managed to take himself off medication! So this little spunkster is doing wonderfully - and he's still a tough boy who wants to have his way! As for Mindy, she's just as sweet as can be. These two best buddies were lucky enough to find a great new home, complete with devoted four furry siblings in January, 2005. But after only a few short months, this special pair found themselves on the hunt once again after Dad decided to move and get rid of all his ferrets. :( It took some time, but finally our pals found a wonderful new home in Mar 05! They join a large crew of pampered fuzzies, so we know they're going to have a wonderful life!!!
Update: our dear friend Eldon passed away in late 2008. Eldon was such an amazing boy, outlived all expectations to become a legendary geezer. We will miss our large-headed friend, as will his family. ;)
Update: Miss Mindy headed off to the Rainbow Bridge to find her beloved Eldon in July, 2009. She was such a champ; she will be dearly missed.

(Surrendered October, 2005) Our friends Mystique & Amilie had to make two appearances at our place before finding a forever home. They were adopted in their youth to a wonderful home, but sadly things changed for their Dad and 3 years later, they returned to once again search for a permanent home. The girls returned 5 & 6 years old, and they sure were sad to be without their Poppa. They had been such wacky gals in their youth, we were worried about them when they came back to see us...but not long after they returned a wonderful family scooped them right up! The gals join a family who specialize in the wee ladies, and they immediately responded to all the TLC! They join a MCF alum who's now an 8 year old grannie. Gran isn't all that happy to have them around, but their folks are devoted and all the girls are happy! Update: Mystique passed away in December, 2007. She was a special little lady who is missed.
Update: Amilie headed off to the Rainbow Bridge to find her sister in July, 2009. She lived to a ripe old age and will be dearly missed.

(Surrendered January, 2004) Dana and Agnes are sweet little gals who sure have been through it. The gals came in with 4 others from a home in Toronto. The 6 were part of a group of 14 in total in the home...and based on the behavior of the group, we're sure that they were not only neglected, but mistreated in their former home. Both gals were quick to startle and lash out with a bite for quite some time after coming to stay with us, but over time we've won them over and they are no longer dangerous. ;)~ When we consider how Dana and Agnes used to react, as well as their pal Elyse (from the same home), we are certain these pretty ladies were hit, and that's why they didn't like hands coming at them in a certain way. But sometimes time does heal all wounds, and today the gals are happy, spunky and they actually enjoy rubbings from human paws!

We were told that of the 14 ferrets in the home, only Dana and Elyse didn't get along. Sure enough, they never have. And somehow Dana and Agnes have settled into life together, to the exclusion of other ferrets. They are bosom buddies to the extreme: they do everything together and just about always sleep curled up together. And we're so pleased with their health over time. They've both had adrenal disease for more than 2 years at least, and they are each sporting a full batch of melatonin implants, and while their coats are on and off (literally! HA), they are so spunky - even at 7+ years old as of January, 2008! And Agnes is truly a special weezil. Our Shelter was hit with an outbreak of deadly coccidia in the Summer of 2005. Agnes is one of only two critters to recover after truly have trouble (to the point we were certain she was headed to the great beyond). But this little champ fought her way back and we helped her all along the way, so we sure do have a special bond with this gal! :)

We're just not sure if these two special gals will ever find a home. They don't like other ferrets and, although they really have reformed, they're best for an adults only home...plus they're senior citizens these days...and although we've made mention of them so many times to friends and visitors, they haven't been able to find a home. We wouldn't mind if they spent the rest of their lives with us, but of course that's not ideal. Since they don't like to play with others, they need their own playtime. And while the Shelter schedule does allow for the gals to have their own playtime, surely they're not getting as much human attention as they should. All the critters in the Shelter don't get enough time, but for our social bears who hang with 20 others they have so much fun together...we worry about our singles and pairs and try to spend as much time as possible with them.

December, 2007 - Happy update! Would you believe that Dana has finally seen the light and has decided friends aren't so bad after all! Whoopee! We're just thrilled...the girls are SO much happier with friends around! We started them off with some fellow geezers, but it wasn't long before they were caging in our Geriatric Ward but were out for playtime with the crew. True, Dana is really slowing down and Agnes doesn't play like a 2 year old, but we know the gals are SO happy to have more friends to snuggle with. We just can't believe after only three short years these two have finally seen the light! :)

February, 2008: Dana passed away on 02/20/08. Dana lived happily for more than three years with adrenal disease and was past 7. It's so unusual for critters to be with us for more than a year or so...saying goodbye to Dana was especially tough. Fortunately Agnes is still enjoying having other friends about, which we're sure has helped her stay happy after losing her constant companion.

July, 2008: At long last we're thrilled to announce that Agnes has finally found a home of her own! YAY! Of course after having Agnes with us for so long we couldn't just send her anywhere, so we prevailed on one of our best foster homes to consider her. Aggie's new Mom has adopted so many of our special needs ferrets over the years, plus we get to visit often, so we felt sending her to a home where she could have some lap time every day was best for her. Agnes is such a trooper and seems to be made of some tough fiber indeed; we love her dearly and miss her, but we're so happy that she finally gets to live in a home where she can have enough personal attention.

July, 2009: Our dear Agnes has passed away. She was such an amazing weezil and she lived to a ripe old age. We're so glad she got to be spoiled rotten in her last year; she deserved it. We will always remember her.

Anastasia: Surrendered December, 2008: Young adult owner moving back in with parents; ferret not welcome.

Anastasia is such a sweet little thing; she really took the loss of her home hard. :( Even when she arrived in a healthy weight she didn't amount to much and after experiencing some stress she really shrunk down to almost nothing - truly scary times! But this little champ has a great attitude, so although she was really set back by some pesky gastric ulcers during her time of stress, she made it back to the land of the Happy Weezils! Ana was also a wonderful friend to others who were going through similar stress while she was with us...we'll always be grateful to her for being so generous to so many other friends who really needed an understanding fur-buddy to snuggle up with. :) We happily saw Anastasia off to a wonderful new home in March, 2009. She joins MCF Alum Hubert, Heinrich and Leigh in her new home and we know she's going to be spoiled beyond all compare! YAY!

Update: Wee Anastasia passed away in August, 2009. She had cancer of the spleen and likely carried it for some time with grace. She was only in her new home for a short time but we're so glad she got to be such a spoiled rotten Princess in her last months - she deserved it!

Jason Surrendered September, 2007, Temporary Owner Surrender: ferret found stray, kept for almost a year, poor pet choice

Oh Jason...what a road he has traveled! The fellow who brought him said he found Jason stray in his yard the year before. He was eating a crummy chow and didn't look great, but no obvious troubles at surrender. However, shortly after he arrived he started acting really puny, and then insulinoma emerged. Of course when critters are feeling so puny with their glucose levels in the basement they'll often stop eating, which can bring on gastric ulcers. Poor Jason was absolutely walloped by terrible ulcers - so much so we actually thought we would lose him at one point! But this tough little fellow fought his way back, helped in part by a serious addiction to mushie (this spoiled little guy would only eat mush for over 3 months before going back to kibble - sheesh!). Once he had some weight back on his bones he turned into one happy, silly little fellow who is tough to tire out!

We were delighted when Jason finally found a wonderful home in July, 2008. He joins other pals in a wonderful foster home that has had so many of our extra special critters, so we know he's going to be spoiled rotten and always happy! :) Jason passed away quietly in August, 2009. He was spoiled to bits in his home for the past year. He was such a character; he will be truly missed.

(Surrendered May, 2007) MetroNoam is truly a special weezil. This little fellow came to us through Detroit Animal Control so we have no history on him. Noam came in with what seemed to be a serious problem: his knees flex in both directions, so he had no stability in the joint with which to stand up on. Thus when Noam would motor his legs would slip out perpendicular to his body and he had to drag them along. As his front end would go back and forth in the right, left motion, his tail would follow - giving him the tick tock appearance of a Metronome! And thus our little friend was christened...although we changed the name a bit since we're fans of Noam Chomsky. ;)~ Noam went through some stress after he arrived and we diagnosed insulinoma; fortunately with proper medication and some nursing Noam was back on his feet...or his scoot if you will...in no time!

Noam was lucky enough to find a wonderful new home in July, 2007. We were absolutely thrilled for him, as this special guy sure needed to have his own home where he would have enough attention every day. You see, Noam isn't keen on friends...and around here, the single critters never have enough time with the hooman beans! Noam was adopted by the same family that adopted our friend Snuffleupagus, who also arrived with a strange ailment. But Gus had a miraculous recovery once he went to his forever home, and since Mom is a physical therapist, we told her we expected great progress with Noam! HA! But of course we were kidding...we figured his problem was official, so what progress could be made?

Well now, something is going on out at the Share household...since we're so happy to report that not only has Gus figured a way around his problems, so has Noamie! Today Noam has found a way to walk about, jump, ramble and play normally! Can you believe it? We're not sure exactly how...his knees still flex both ways. Surely increased fitness has helped, and clearly he's found a way to develop muscles that are compensating for his weak joints. But we never expected this little champ would actually walk so normally it's hard to tell he has any trouble at all! Ok, so we know when it's time to get a message: we've let our friends Nicole and Mike Share, who are the proud parents of many of our critters, know that they will now be required to take on any ferrets with physical challenges - as they must have special powers to heal what ails a ferret! :) We're just so happy for Noam...he's such a happy little friend, and of course he is beloved by his family. YAY!

Update: The Noam-ster passed away quietly in September, 2009. He was so loved by his family and had that rootin'-tootin' personality intact until the very end! :)

(Surrendered to Greater Chicago Ferret Association, transferred to Motor City Ferrets January, 2004) Rolf & Antonio are swell little buddies. Antonio is showing off his natural grimace in his photo - he has a snaggletooth! His lower canine is crooked, but of course he couldn't care less. ;)~ Rolf and Tony spent SUCH a long time at our place - and that was after spending quite a while at the GCFA shelter too! Tony used to look much sillier, as he has adrenal disease and he would lose most of his coat. But then he discovered the wonders of melatonin, which often not only adds fur, but weight as well. Sure enough Antonio put on over a pound of blubber and we thought it only appropriate to modify his name to Fat Tony! These two sweeties were with us for so long that they were good friends to us and many of our shelter guests. Then finally we were able to find them a swell new home in July, 2006! We were absolutely thrilled to see the boys join an existing crew and immediately start having fun in their super new home! :)

Update: Our dear friend, "Fat Tony" passed away in March, 2008. He had such a wonderful life these last few years, and fortunately his brother Rolf has lots of other friends to help him past his sadness. Tony will be missed!

Update: Rolf passed away quietly in November, 2009, at the ripe old age of 8! He was such a sweetheart and he will be truly missed.

(Surrendered May, 2007) Maureen is such a special little gal! She came to us through Oakland County Animal Control so we have no history for her. Maureen was quiet when she first arrived, but we soon learned that this little gal has mad skills in the friend making department! While she doesn't care to get beaten up by the more aggressive types, she is the most patient little girl in the world when it comes to helping other nervous weezils make friends. Maureen single handedly helped Shelter guest Claire make friends after a long spell of living all by herself. Claire then went on to find a new home with other ferret friends! So we're impressed all around by little Miss Maureen and her incredible friend-making skills. :) Maureen has adrenal disease but since she doesn't care, neither do we. :) Would you believe that Maureen found a home with her old pal Claire in Dec '07? We're delighted for her, as she will surely be spoiled rotten. She is now best buddies with our legendary Miss Queenie, and the two are always up to no good! :)

Update: Miss Maureen, aka "Molly Moo-Moo," passed away in January, 2010. She was so loved by her Mom, who will miss her always!

Shelby & Jinx Surrendered August '07, Owner Surrender: "not enough time," "moving," take your pick, etc. Truth? No longer fit into social schedule. :(

Jinx & Shelby are sadly only two of a group of six ferrets that were surrendered together - 3 of whom had been adopted from Motor City Ferrets in years past. Together with River, Wendall, Jackson & Bear, the group found themselves inconvenient to their former owner after a divorce, and the decision to take a new path in life. The crew were pretty much ignored in the months before being surrendered, so they did all appreciate having more attention, but of course many were stressed over the situation. We boarded the crew during the divorce for four months and after they went home, life should have dramatically improved...but sadly, t'was not to be.

River, Jackson and Bear have all moved on to wonderful new homes. Sadly Wendall died during his stay...poor little fellow passed in his sleep with his pals sleeping on top of him, which we reckon is the best way to go, 'eh? So Shelby and Jinx were the last of the crew to find new homes. But would you believe that when they did, they were reunited with their buddy River (Spring, 2008)? YAY! We were tickled when River's home decided to take these two sweet little gals home. The girls were instantly happy to finally have a permanent home - and what a wonderful home it is! :)

Update August, 2008: Jinx lost her battle with insulinoma. We're sorry to see her go far too young; she will be dearly missed by her family and the folks at the Shelter.
Update: Miss Shelby passed quietly in January, 2010. She was such a special girl to her family and was a Legendary Little Baldie Miss (adrenal)! :)

Bear & Jackson Surrendered August '07, Owner Surrender: "not enough time," "moving," take your pick, etc. Truth? No longer fit into social schedule. :(

Bear & Jackson are sadly only two of a group of six ferrets that were surrendered together - three of which had been previously adopted from Motor City Ferrets! Together with Wendall, Shelby, River and Jinx, the group found themselves inconvenient to their former owner after a divorce, and the decision to take a new path in life. The crew were pretty much ignored in the months before being surrendered, so they did all appreciate having more attention, but of course many were stressed over the situation. We boarded the crew during the divorce for four months and after they went home, life should have dramatically improved...but sadly, t'was not to be. Jackson had perhaps the most difficult time finding himself back at the Shelter. When Jack first stayed with us he was only a year old, but when he found himself back at our place - at 5 now - he was very nervous about having so many other ferrets around. So Jack decided that he would stick with his crew and not make any new friends. Well that's fine from his perspective...but what on earth are the odds of finding a home for 6 ferrets together? Make that just this side of nil. :( So as time went along...with Wendall passing away during this time...then River found a home with lots of new friends...we figured we would keep Bear and Jack together so that Jinx and Shelby could stick together. We were so tickled when Jack and Bear found a wonderful new home in early 2008. The home has many other ferrets, so Bear - who is very social - gets to time share between life with buddy Jack and extra fun playing with the crew! We're so happy for these two special friends, who we've known for so long now...we know they'll never again become a burden simply by being who they are!

Update: Jackson passed away in October, 2009. He lived to be an old man and sure had an interesting life, and he is missed.
Update: Bear passed away in December, 2009. He too was a happy old man and he loved life and all his friends, who all surely miss him.

Leland & Dolly are a truly special of ferrets. We brought them home after visiting the GCFA in February, '03; our good friends the Chase family had already spoken for the pair. Dolly hated other ferrets so the pair needed to be separate, but their real issue was with Leland, who had either neurological or inner-ear trouble that caused him to circle about and keep his head at funny angles. He also just HATED to be in a cage! The pair received extra special treatment and long playtime at the GCFA shelter, but of course nothing beats a permanent home - which turned into a home where they didn't even have to live in a cage! Their new family accomodated them wonderfully and they so enjoyed life there. Leland passed away in June, 2006. Dolly went on to live a happy single life without her best pal for quite some time and she lived to be an old lady, finally passing away in January, 2010. This pair sure went through it...so much time at the Chicago Shelter where life was quite institutional...and then on to being the most spoiled rotten critters you'll ever meet - such a happy ending for a very special pair of weezils.

Stretch & Shrink: Surrendered to Ingham County Animal Control May, 2009. A Good Samaritan brought them to Motor City Ferrets.

Stretch and Shrink: ok, so they're unusual names for our critters, but hey! :) Stretch was so loooong and lean when we met him, the name just seemed to fit. Then of course we needed a corresponding name for his gal and since she is a wee lass...there 'ya go! :) We have no idea what these two have been through, we just know they were in the Ingham County Shelter for 3 weeks (on a "livestock hold" if you can believe that) before their Samaritan was able to get them to our Shelter. Shrink walked in the door and immediately began having fun, but Stretch had a bit of a tougher time adjusting to life at the Shelter. Over time we worried that Stretch's medical issues are taking a toll on him, but he's still a happy fellow. Shrink rarely slows down enough for us to really get a look at her so we reckon she's pretty happy too. ;)~ We were so happy to send these two very special weezils off to a great new home in November, 2009. They join several other MCF Alums and we know they're going to be spoiled rotten. We also know Stretch will finally get to live the life of the Lap Ferret that he's always dreamed of, and that his family will be delighted with that as well! :)

Update: Sadly Mr. Stretch passed away quietly in January, 2010, and his best friend Shrink followed him in February. We were shocked to see these two pass so soon...sigh...sometimes you just never can tell! But we're so thankful that both of these special friend were able to enjoy a great home of their own, where we know they were spoiled nearly to bits!

Garrett: Surrendered January, 2009: Generally unwanted
Garrett is such a sweet little fellow! We have no idea what his life was like before he came into the Shelter but we can tell he is a sensitive soul that truly appreciates some Daily Affirmation. :) Garrett arrived reasonably happy but soon began to pout and get into spats with friends and such...we just couldn't figure out what was troubling him at first. Soon we started looking for a health issue and wouldn't you know it, Garrett was just starting to have trouble with insulinoma. Well no wonder he was feeling grouchy! So Garrett started the meds and, after being waylaid for a time with some serious gastric ulcers, he was back on the road to recovery. Today Garrett is still a sensitive boy but he loves friends and he tries to have some fun every day. :) We were delighted to send Garrett off to a great new home in May, 2009 - along with pal from our crew Dylan!
Update: Garrett passed away quietly in February, 2010. He was a beloved member of his crew and will be missed. :)

River Originally surrendered to MCF June 2005, adopted December 2005. Returned to the Shelter August 07 - unwanted
Sophia Surrendered September, 2007. Terminally ill at surrender
Carson Surrendered November, 2007, temporary owner, not a good match

River has been to the Shelter far too often! He spent months here in 2005 before finding what should have been his final home around the holidays in December. But sadly River was one of a group of six ferrets that were surrendered together - three of which had been previously adopted from Motor City Ferrets! Together with Wendall, Shelby, Jackson, Bear and Jinx, the group found themselves inconvenient to their former owner after a divorce, and the decision to take a new path in life. The crew were pretty much ignored in the months before being surrendered, so they did all appreciate having more attention, but of course many were stressed over the situation. We boarded the crew during the divorce for four months and after they went home, life should have dramatically improved...but sadly, t'was not to be.

Sophia is such a dear little thing. She was only 3 at surrender but clearly terminally ill. She had cancer of the spleen and was emaciated and going fast when we met her; fortunately some serious supportive care help a little bit and she was more comfortable during her stay. Sophia came in with Stella and Fester, but she couldn't keep up anymore, so we matched her with some slower critters who she could enjoy snuggling with. :)

Carson is our miracle boy! We don't know much about his life before coming to stay with us...the owner said she took him from a bad situation of neglect but only had him for 2 months. Carson arrived and immediately turned into Mr. Bouncy Pants, having a wild time of sheer glee! But the happiness only lasted for a few days; he crashed with an insulinoma episode. We quickly started meds and mush feeding, etc., but gastric ulcers appeared and gave him serious trouble. Our best weaponry against ulcers didn't seem to be helping at all and Carson struggled for about a week. Finally he had lost so much blood from the bleeding ulcers he could no longer move, was producing nothing but bloody stools, he lost all his color (due to the blood loss)...we were certain he would die. I'm not really sure why we didn't euthanize him at that point, when things looked so bleak. I think it was because he always tried to hard to perk up when it was meds or feeding time...he wanted to keep fighting, so of course we obliged! After that terrible day when we were thinking he would go at any moment, would you believe the bleeding stopped and he started climbing out of the crevasse he had fallen into? Sure, it took a few weeks for his body to replace all those lost blood cells and for him to regain his lost weight, but out little champ recovered completely from his ordeal! Carson ranks up there as one of the top recoveries we've ever witnessed, and we couldn't be prouder of him. After only a few short weeks of trouble, Carson was back to being Mr. Happy Pants and was going crazy once more!

Would you believe these three cuties found a wonderful home together in December, 2007? Oh, we were thrilled for all of them. We knew Sophia's time might be quite short, but we knew she would spend her twilight in spoiled rotten luxury. Sure enough, Sophia only enjoyed her great new home for 6 weeks. But what wonderful weeks they were! Sophia had her hooman beans trained in no time, and she enjoyed snuggling with her pals - all 5 of them! Sophia will be truly missed, while Carson and River pick up the slack of soaking up all that spoiling!

Update: River passed away in March, 2009. He was always such a spitfire that his passing really made an impact on his family. River will be dearly missed.
Update: Carson finally headed off for the Rainbow Bridge in February, 2010. He enjoyed 2 bonus years of life absolutely spoiled rotten, which we think is swell! :)

(Surrendered Oct 06) Nikita & Picasso are a terrific pair of friendly ferrets. No big problems in their past, except their former parents decision to throw them away after they had a baby. Some people, 'eh? We'll never be able to figure out how people seem think it's perfectly normal to have pets until they have kids, then the pets are tossed aside like so much garbage. Huff puff...anyway, these two special friends sure had a hard time during their stay with us. Nikita sometimes wants to rule the world and Picasso is often afraid of new friends, so of course both had a hard time making new friends. We figured out that they didn't like life in the large social crew, so we kept trying small groups of friends to help them get to being happy on a daily basis. But as for finding a new home…well…we thought their habit of beating up new friends might just make such a thing nearly impossible! Fortunately a long time foster family for the Shelter decided to consider this special pair - and their trio of weezils did as well in Jun 07! While there were a few scuffles at first, all the critters at the Chase household know how good they have it, so it didn't take long to achieve harmony. We're absolutely thrilled for them and we know they're going to have a wonderful life in their new home.
Update: Nikita passed away in late 2007. Fortunately her brother Picasso has many other friends...but he and his family will always miss Nikita.
Update: Picasso passed away quietly in February, 2010. He lived to be an old, old man and was so happy in his home...he will be missed!

Flynn: Surrendered October, 2008 to the Westland branch of the Michigan Humane Society, transferred quickly to Motor City Ferrets
Flynn is a darling little guy. He and pal Hugh (adopted March, 2009) came in through the Michigan Humane Society. We quickly diagnosed Flynn with insulinoma (we already figured out he has adrenal disease as well), which went far to explain why he was feeling so puny. Flynn has responded very well to his new routine of being on daily medication, but he REALLY doesn't like living here. He's bored with life at the Shelter and SO wants a home of his own! Flynn has put on so much weight thanks to his recovery that we've nicknamed him "Milkshake" as he has quite the booty going on at the moment. :) Flynn loves other ferrets and he's very playful, so he would love to find a home with another ferret about to have fun with every day. We know that Flynn would truly love a home where he could be the center of attention. Oh, and did we mention he's a great kisser?
Update: Flynn found a great new home in May, 2009 - in fact, he was reunited with pal Hugh when his family returned to adopt him. YAY!
Update: Flynn passed away as a result of his adrenal disease in March, 2010. He was such a happy guy and he loved his family, all of whom will miss him.

Emmy: Surrendered September, 2008: found in her cage in the backyard of an abandoned house by a Samaritan
Well isn't Miss Emmy one lucky lady! We can't imagine how she came to be in the situation her Samaritan found her outside in October with no food and water locked in her cage! Sheesh! But would you believe she wasn't in bad shape when she arrived, and she is as loveable as can be? Someone must have been taking some sort of care of her.??? Emmy was immediately thrilled to meet friends and started having fun almost immediately in our social group, but we diagnosed her with insulinoma pretty quick and she kind of had a downward slide that became a challenge for her to climb up out of. We were thrilled to see Emmy off to a wonderful new home in February, 2009. She joins several other critters from the Shelter in her new home, including our Renee - who quickly became her best friend! We know she's going to be one very happy gal in such a great home!
Update: Emmy passed away quietly in March, 2010. She was so beloved and although she went too soon, she was one lucky lady to have made it through such cruel abandonment. Her family will always miss her. :)

Arianna: Surrendered June, 2007 by the roommate of her former owner after the owner left her for the roommate to attend

Arianna is a delightful little sprite. She served as a Shelter Ambassador for a time and did a GREAT job meeting the public and helping new critters get past stress, but Ambassadors only hold their positions for a short time until new troops are sent in to relieve them. :) Amazingly Arianna developed adrenal disease when she was not quite 2 years old, which is always sad to see - but she's doing great, so we were thrilled to see her off to a wonderful new home in November, 2009. We know she'll be very happy in her home and we'll get to visit with her often! :)

Update: Arianna passed away in March, 2010. She was only 4...sigh...damn the mill breeder that created her! Oh Arianna was such a joy to have around. She spent some time as a Shelter Ambassador and we so enjoyed having her around, and she helped many weezils get use to Shelter life. Arianna will be dearly missed by her family and everyone who met her during her time at the Shelter.

(Surrendered to Waters Wayward Weezils Shelter Jan '06, transferred to MCF Feb '07) Kirsten, Ian & Quincy are an interesting trio. All are friendly as can be with humans, but boy are they the most anti-social-with-other-ferrets ferrets we've ever met! Ian is a mad dog around others and Kirsten likes to bite the feet of anyone climbing her cage. ?!? But other than not wanting any new ferret friends, these are very special weezils. We don't know anything about their history, but we do know they spent over a year in a Shelter that closed in early 2007 - and should have closed at least a year prior! Things were not good at the other Shelter, so we can imagine that our friends rarely had playtime or proper care. Quincy has insulinoma and Kirsten and Ian have adrenal disease, but they don't care one bit! :) We were absolutely thrilled when our dear friends found a wonderful new home in Dec '07. The family has other ferrets but has time in the day for two playtimes, so the trio are going to be truly spoiled and treated as they should be! YAY!
Update: Ian passed away in the Spring of 2008. We're so glad he was able to find a home for his twilight time. :)
Update: Quincy passed away in late 2008. He was a happy fellow, though quite the geezer, until the end. He will be missed, especially by his sister Kirsten. Happily though, Kirsten has decided life is fun when you're an only ferret! She could make friends but no, she's quite content on her own. :)
Update: Kirsten passed away in June, 2010. She was one oooold Grannie for a long, long time and she never did make any other weezil friends! Dedicated to the single life to the end, she was a special little gal and her family will always miss her.

Eileen
Surrendered June, 2008, Owner Surrender. Owner got the ferrets from someone else, not sure how long they were in the home
Adopted December, 2008
Returned to the Shelter November, 2009. Child in her former home developed allergies.
Eileen sure has been through it...sigh...Eileen came in with pals Johnny and Julie, plus Charles & Chanel, but we know they weren't originally a fivesome. Eileen, Johnny were and Julie were very neglected. Can you believe that they arrived with urine burns on their feet?!?!? And after only a couple of days we realized that they are very tidy, so they must really have been living in squalor. :( We think the former owner only had this trio for a short time, and apparently she didn't feel the need to care for them very well. Unfortunately the trio arrived not long before we had an outbreak of the parasite coccidia in July, 2008. Johnny wasn't affected and Eileen was only affected in a mild fashion, but poor Julie was seriously affected and she passed away. Fortunately Eileen made many new friends during her stay. Being such a social gal helped Eileen find a great new home in December, 2008 - complete with pals that she loves, including buddy Johnny! Sadly her happiness didn't last when she was returned to the Shelter in November, 2009, along with Johnny, Jenna and the family's original ferret, Sid. But Eileen is a trooper so she adjusted to life at the Shelter with ease and immediately began having fun. But then, after a few weeks, insulinoma emerged and once more we had to help Eileen get back on her feet. Oh, she is such a little trooper this one!

Leonard Surrendered June, 2009 to the Michigan Humane Society (Detroit), transferred to Motor City Ferrets
Poor Leonard was considered "unadoptable" at the MHS simply because he had an abscessed tooth! I say, that's no big deal! So Leonard is missing a fang today - so what? :) Leonard's abscess sure did prove to be pesky and we never were able to help him kick it, but today he manages life with it and since he doesn't care, neither do we! Later during his stay we found adrenal disease and insulinoma in Leonard, then later still he developed some trouble walking that we were never able to pin down...boy, Leonard sure does have a list o' health troubles! But he has adjusted well to everything that has come his way. When his legs stopped working so well he decided laying in the tube waiting for someone to come by to play with in the tube was the way to go! HA! Such a trooper...and always happy, he's an inspiration!

We were thrilled to send Eileen and Leonard off to a great new home in April, 2010. They join many other MCF alumni and we'll get to visit with them often! YAY!

Update: sadly both Leonard and Eileen only got to enjoy their great new home for a few months. Leonard passed in June and Eileen in July after battling their respective illnesses. But both were such happy little things...we were so proud of them! They will be missed by their family and of course, us Shelter folks.

Karen Surrendered January, 2009: Mother surrendered the ferrets that belonged to her daughter; the family no longer wanted them.

Karen is such a sweet little thing! When she and pal Ingrid first arrived Karen was NOT willing to make friend at all! She and Ingrid were quiet but seemed content, as long as they could play by themselves - they both were happy to play in the ferret room and run through the tubes and such. They both also ate well right off the bat, so we were very surprised when Ingrid passed in her sleep just a couple of weeks after she arrived. At first, Karen seemed to take her pal's death pretty hard. We wonder if perhaps she knew that Ingrid was in her twilight and that's why she didn't want any new friend around? We spent lots of time with Karen and tried to help her out of her depression, but she was very sad and soon she decided she didn't even want to get up to eat. But would you believe a wee bit o' nursing - plus meds for her newly diagnosed insulinoma - worked like a charm, and this little gal was back on her feet in no time? We were amazed to see Karen recover so quickly and delighted when she decided friends are swell and play is fun! YAY! So today Karen has two health issues on board but she doesn't seem to care at all, so then neither do we! In fact, we're pretty sure in 2009 that Karen is 7 years old, but to watch her play you'd sure never know it! We were delighted to send Karen off to a great new home - complete with many MCF alumni already afoot - in December, 2009. She was immediately happy in her new place and FINALLY has the wonderful home she deserves!
Update: Miss Karen passed away quietly in July, 2010. She was such a special little thing...she will be missed by her extended family. :)

Wanda: Surrendered April, 2008: Owner Surrender, young person with unstable housing couldn't keep after a shakeup in living arrangements.

Wanda is a darling little gal; she came in with pal Wade. The two weren't looking their best when they arrived, but they both started having fun right away. It wasn't long before they joined a large social play group and they both really enjoyed making many new friends. Sadly, Wade died suddenly in early July. We know the cause of death was a perforated ulcer, but we're not sure exactly how that happened since he had been his happy little self right up to the day before he died. Wanda took his death pretty hard and went through some depression; fortunately her positive attitude helped her quickly get over Wade's passing to start having fun again. Wanda has adrenal disease but she doesn't care, so we try not to tease her too much about her bad hair days. Wanda was lucky enough to find a great new home in March, 2009 - joining MCF Alum Dylan and Benji!:)
Update: Wanda passed away in September, 2010. She was such a character, and she will be missed by her family and all her pals.

Roosevelt & Lincoln: Discovered by a property management company in an abandoned house along with 7 cats; brought to Motor City Ferrets July, 2009. Visit this link to see photos from the home these two sweet boys were living in. We have no idea how long they were in these conditions; from the looks of that hammock they were trapped in that cage for a long, long time.

Well now, these two handsome fellows sure are lucky to have made it out of that house, 'eh? A charity that developed out of a property development office learned of the plight of the ferrets and cats and arranged for someone to feed and water the animals while rescues were contacted. This worked out ok for the cats, but of course ferrets stuck in a cage are different, so someone stopping in every 2 weeks just wasn't doing a very good job. But the help kept them alive and we were thrilled to get them - and we heard the cats went to a rescue as well! We named Roosevelt in honor of another famous fellow who's legs didn't work so well. Both boys arrived emaciated and covered in fleas. Lincoln (we had already chosen a President for one, so we thought we'd have a matched set ha) was pretty manic first, hoarding food and such, but he ate well and clearly wanted to recover and start living life again. But Roosevelt seemed slowed down by his troubles. Doc discovered an old back injury that's affecting his legs and seems to be interfering with his nerve signals; he'll poop while fast asleep in bed, for example. We had to nurse Roosevelt just a bit, but after getting some food and meds into him he perked up - at least, as much as we came to expect from him! Lincoln was eager to make friends and get down to playing, but Roosevelt seemed to just enjoy being clean, warm, comfy and if he could do all these things on a hooman bean's lap, even better! :) We worried about these two boys finding a home, since once you tell someone a ferret isn't very tidy due to injury, he can be all to easily overlooked. Plus he has a hard time getting around a cage. We figured we could solve the problem by sending the boys home with a playpen...they're kind of small for a play space - at least for every day - but as a "cage" for a cripple, they're great! We found that given the right setup, Roosevelt is able to keep himself tidy and get around much better. Well these two boys just let their personality shine through and they had a new home in no time at all! They were only with us for about 6 weeks when they were scooped up and taken home in August, 2009. YAY! One of our foster families recently said goodbye to our beloved Volume (of Density, Mass and Volume fame), and since she had an opening for a special'un and doesn't even use any cages at home, she thought Lincoln and Roosevelt would be a perfect match. We agreed completely - and sure enough, they are loving life in their new digs! Mom does a bit more cleaning but hey - you know that many able bodied ferrets aren't very tidy either! We're so tickled for these boys...life at the Shelter would have been so much tougher to handle for our dear Roosevelt. We're so lucky to know so many wonderful families with hearts big enough for our truly special weezil friends!

Update: our dear friend Roosevelt passed away in May, 2010. He was so happy in his home...spoiled rotten, free range to help with his walking issues...we're so glad he had such a wonderful time in a great home with lots of friends and a devoted Momma. We'll all miss him.
Update: Lincoln headed off to the Rainbow Bridge to find his pal Roosevelt in September, 2010. He was very comfortable in his great home and together with his pal he made such an impression on everyone that heard his story. We're so glad to have been able to help these special little guys.