About Motor City Ferrets

Opened in the spring of 2000, Motor City Ferrets is a private, no-kill ferret shelter & rescue service.  We are registered as a Non-Profit Charity (501(c)(3)), licensed and annually inspected by the Michigan Department of Agriculture.  Located in Hazel Park, we serve the greater Detroit metro area.  Browse our site to learn about the Shelter, meet the critters up for adoption, get health & care information, find supplies, or locate a vet or ferret-sitter! 

5/27/21:  We currently have 28 critters in the Shelter!

An old man was walking along a beach after a particularly high and violent tide had receded, leaving thousands of starfish stranded above the waterline to die. Up ahead of him, he saw a youth repeatedly bend down, stand, then fling something into the waves. Coming closer, he saw that the youth was tossing starfish back into the ocean.  "Why bother?" the old man told the youth. "There are thousands here. You can't toss them all back before they die. You can't even toss a small fraction of them back in time. What you're doing doesn't matter."  The youth pondered what the man said for a moment, looking at the starfish he held in his hand.  
   
"It matters to this one," he replied, and threw it back into the water.
 

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
- Gandhi

Rescue ONE until
there are NONE!

If you or someone you know plans to surrender a pet to a municipal type shelter, please click here.

Please don't breed or buy 
while pets in shelters die!

Ferrets rescued to date: 1211

Operations in the time of Covid-19 Update 

VISITS:  In normal times, we have Open House events most Sundays.  Open House dates are for folks to visit the shelter to play with the critters, bring their ferrets for a playdate, or if they're interested in adopting, to have a first visit after applying to adopt.  We closed for normal visits mid-March of 2020, when schools shut.  We will be reopening Summer 2021 for social visits, but on a limited basis, and all visitors will need to mask up.  Remember that we operate in our home, and we want to welcome everyone to the shelter.  While Shelter Mom Nanci and Shelter Dad Alex are vaccinated, we're still in a time when kids can't get vaccinated, ferrets can contract Covid-19, some immuno-compromised visitors may not be able to be vaccinated, and we continue to worry about variants coming up to bite us if we just go back to business as usual.  So safety first, and since our ferret crew can potentially harbor and perhaps spread Covid, we need to be extra careful to keep the virus out of our home and ferret population.  Stay tuned for upcoming events!

VET CARE:  Our vet, North Hills Veterinary Hospital in Rochester Hills, is open for care now, but only critters are allowed in the building.  Curbside service will see your critter(s) picked up from your car, then you and the vet can have a regular consult via phone.  We trust North Hills completely and are pleased to see them moving forward with a safe plan.  Keep in mind they have been absolutely overwhelmed with appointments, so for anything non-urgent it's likely you'll have to wait a few weeks to get in.  If the matter is urgent, best to call in as soon as the office opens at 8:00 am, to see if they can fit your critter in that same day.

If you don't have an established relationship with a vetnow is the time to do some planning, as many local vets are still not accepting new patients.  On our Health page (link above) you'll find a list of SE Michigan's owner recommended ferret vets.  Make some calls now to figure out which vet(s) in your area would see your ferret(s), should any of yours develop medical needs.

And of course we're always here for advice.  But remember to always call in to the shelter if the need is urgent!