Madison - November 6, 2011 - November 1, 2020 - RIP

On the eve of what would be her 9th birthday, I'll share the heartbreaking news that we lost our sweet girl Madison this past weekend. While her passing was not unexpected, it's taken me a few days to process. We were so fortunate to have such an extended amount of time with this sweet, joyful creature. Most ferrets pass during their 7th year, so the fact that we were able to enjoy her for so much longer is something I am so thankful for. I'm also thankful that she was a healthy girl, only suffering from adrenal disease that was basically a non-issue for her thanks to advances in veterinary medicine and an implant that kept the disease in check. Madison passed away in her sleep, in her favorite bed, sleeping in her favorite position, surrounding by her ferret and kitty siblings. I am grateful that she went peacefully and with no pain, and in these crazy COVID-19 times, that we did not have to take her in as we would not have been permitted to stay with her while they administered the necessary medications.

Madison was our second ferret. She came into our world four years after we had gotten our first, Clooney. He was very uncertain of exactly what this new critter was. I believe he thought he was a cat. Madison was a very vocal ferret and taught Clooney, who had never made a sound, that he had a voice. As our business of ferrets grew, Madison was most definitely the matriarch, accepting each new addition with open arms and loving each of them fiercely. She also had a very special relationship with our kitty Oliver and she was heartbroken when Oliver passed a couple of years ago.

She was an intuitive girl who could sense what you were feeling. There were always ferret kisses at the ready and when she was around, there was no way to be unhappy. She filled our lives with so much joy and I am so thankful she was a part of our little zoo. Rest in peace my sweet girl.

RIP Sweet Miss Violet - 2013 - 2020

I am so sad to share that over the weekend we lost our perfect Miss Violet. While this loss was not altogether unexpected, we are feeling at loose ends here. Violet was seven years and two months old. Getting a healthy ferret to the age of seven is sometimes a challenge and Violet had both insulinoma (a blood sugar disorder) and adrenal disease so her long life was more than we thought we would have with her.

Violet was a fiercely independent little girl. Despite that, she was always so cooperative for me when it came to taking meds or eating when asked. We used food to help keep her blood sugar stable between doses of prednisone so I was with her every four to five hours for the last two plus years. There were many late night/early morning feedings, many times of worry when she wasn't doing as well as I would have liked, but mostly many days of feeling like she was happy and active and doing well in spite of her illnesses.

I am thankful that her decline happened very quickly and that she only felt poorly for a matter of hours before she passed. The day before she was outside in the playspace soaking up the sun and playing with her siblings. I am also thankful that she passed peacefully in her sleep, at home, surrounded by her family.

I always feel like it is such a privilege to care for them as they get older, a way for me to give back to them for all the joy and happiness they have brought into my life. Saying goodbye is always so difficult. I hope my sweet girl is at the rainbow bridge, reunited with her littermate Finn, her brother Clooney and her sister Harlow having a ferret party free of any ailments or pain. Rest in peace my lovely girl.

One of my favorite shots of her

Posing

Violet and her littermate Finn

Gotcha day

Beautiful girl

Pig Mom Gets a Win - Tusk Maintenance

I have been working hard on coming up with ways to train Winston so that we can do his annual exam with no sedation and without flipping him on his back. Both of us absolutely hate the process and its stressful so I am motivated to come up with new ideas.

Around Thanksgiving I started working with Winston on the first item on the list - tusk maintenance. I ordered this lovely tool called Bark and Boop Dog Nail Grinder from Amazon ($21). This is basically a Dremmel but its much quieter which we needed because W hated the loud motor of the Dremmel tool. We started our training in very short spurts. It was literally getting him to let me touch his tusk with the tool at first. It would touch for a split second and then he would pull away. He didn't like the vibration it causes but over time he got more used to it.

Earlier this week, I was able to declare a win when I got out the tool and once I turned it on Winston flopped on his side (the position he takes for all maintenance activities) and he let me file for as long as I wanted. His tusks grow at very different rates - one is super long and one is just barely poking out of the side of his mouth. He lets me get both now - another win. He wasn't very excited about me accessing that shorter one at first.

Now, I will say, he is a very tolerant pig when it comes to maintenance. I clean his ears, eyes, snout, brush teeth, file hooves and clean out scent glands regularly. He loves the attention. So, it was just getting him used to this new thing. I still have a ways to go, filing down the longer tusk, but once its short like the other one, it will just be a part of his regular maintenance routine and I will be able to keep them from ever getting long again. He also lets me use the tool on his hooves which makes that maintenance task much faster than filing with a nail file.

So, step one in what the vet does for annual visit is off the list. I can do both myself and I don't need him flipped for trimming of hooves or using the gigli wire to cut back his tusks. Next, I am working on building him a chute - for lack of a better word. I am working on design now and have enlisted the hubs to help me construct. I will post about it once we have started the training, but, if it works like I want it to, the vet will be able to complete his physical exam and give injections without sedation or flipping. Fingers crossed.

Stay tuned for updates!!

2019 Year in Review

So, I did a horrible job of blogging in 2019 - I was busy with other things - writing books, working, life in general. Perhaps 2020 will be better.

In 2019 we experienced some losses - our sweet Agatha kitty passed at the ripe old age of 23. She is missed greatly:

We also lost our Emma dog - she would have been 17 on her next birthday. This one is still new and difficult to think about as her passing was on the 23rd of December:

We were also fortunate to experience a somewhat status quo year for our other critters which is nothing to take for granted given that some of them are getting up there in age.

Miss Madison - our eldest ferret. She turned 8 years old this year which is quite old for a ferret. While she does have adrenal disease it is well controlled with a implant under her skin. She has a bit of hind leg weakness but it doesn't slow her down one bit. She is always first in line for a meal and is quite active and happy for a little old lady:

Theo - my eldest male ferret - he turns 7 years old on January 6. He is in exceptional health and a sweet and mellow boy. He is the patriarch of the group of ferrets, always looking after anyone who is unwell:

Violet - my lovely girl who has both adrenal and insulinoma (low blood sugar). She is on medication two times a day for the blood sugar issues and has the adrenal implant and we are quite fortunate that she has been very stable all year. We work hard to keep her blood sugar steady throughout the day (and night) and we have settled into a great routine. I hope 2020 goes as well for my girl - she also turns 7 on January 6.

Kai - my ornery boy - even at 6 years old he is a pistol. I love his enthusiastic kisses and his desperate need to try to remove your toenails. He is such fun, always ready for a wrestle or a cuddle or both. Life is an adventure with this boy around:

Tabby - my elusive and somewhat aloof girl Tabitha. She is Miss Independent - has little need for humans but is quite attached to each of her ferret siblings. Tabby is sweet and gentle but is much more geared to the critter side of life. The only exception was earlier this year when she had a bit of a respiratory bug. She wanted her mom and I was happy to oblige. Once she felt better - she was done with me:

Bash - my baby boy - he is going to be five this year. Bash is a big guy but is quite shy and a bit fearful of new things and loud noises. He is very affectionate and loves to play. He is attached to his brothers and the three of them are often found cuddled up together, snoozing their days away:

Fiona - my youngest girl. She is the mellowest of the ferrets, loves to be held, is very affectionate and is determined to make a jail break from her area every time I enter. Fiona is always good for a kiss and is quite content to be carried around while I complete all my critterly duties:

I do adore this little group of ferrets and hope that 2020 is a great year for each of them.

Phoebe - our lone kitty. She and Aggie were not particularly close and she has adjusted well to being an only feline. Her health is good - just a touch of hyperthyroid - she has been on the same dose of the medication for years and is doing well for a kitty who will turn 15 this year.

 

Then we have the three pups. I am so thankful for them as they have distracted us from the heartbreak of losing Emma. These three keep us on our toes. We have the instigator - Charli, the protector - Tango and the pleaser - Juliett. It's fascinating how three siblings from the same litter can be so different. We love these three and can't imagine our days without them:

And last - but most definitely not least - our Winston. He is 5 years old and such a character. He continues to mellow out as he gets older and we are fortunate that he is a pretty well behaved pig. He is constantly learning new things - his big accomplishment this year was learning to let me file his tusks with a dremel like tool (only quieter). It didn't take long for him to figure out what we were asking and while he doesn't like it much - he is good about letting me work on his tusks. He also lets me use the file on his hooves which is new as well. 

All in all our 2019 was good - we are blessed to share our world with these amazing critters. While our hearts hurt with the loss of Aggie and Emma we were so fortunate to have had them with us for well longer than the normal kitty and pup life expectancy. I'm sure our 2020 will be filled with many more critter adventures that we can't wait to share. 

Happy New Year from our Zoo Crew to you!

Emma - 2003 - 2019 Rest in Peace Sweet Girl

Now that the holidays have passed and we've had a few days to let this sink in, I am very sad to share that on December 23rd we made the terribly difficult decision to help our Divine Miss Em cross the rainbow bridge. Emma would have been seventeen on her next birthday in March. She was fortunate to have good health for the bulk of her life. It was only in the last year or so that she experienced a slow decline in her mobility due to muscle atrophy in her hind legs.

She was a bright and fun loving dog who had quite the life, sharing her days with many different species and openly loving them all. She was well traveled, visiting 14 states and spending lots of time at her favorite place - the beach.

Emma came to us when she was sixteen weeks old and we have enjoyed every moment of our time with her. Our hearts are broken and our household feels incomplete but we know that she is no longer shackled by the body that failed her. Our lives were made so much better because of her companionship and loyalty and she will be fondly remembered every day.

We miss you, my sweet girl, and love you more than you could ever know.

Wylie - our resident coyote

We have a coyote that lives in our woods somewhere and we often see it wandering through the meadow. I am unsure as to whether it is male or female. If I had to guess I would say its a girl because its not all that big. Wylie is a good name - it could go either way.

Wylie is respectful of us, never getting too close to the yard, the dogs or the pig. Whenever the humans are out he/she goes in the other direction. Its a peaceful, symbiotic relationship. If he/she could step it up on snakes and mice I would be greatly appreciative!  :)

The camera traps often snap some great pictures of this gorgeous creature. These were all taken between mid April and today.

Agatha - 1997 - 2019 - Rest in Peace Sweet Girl

It brings me such sadness to share that yesterday morning we lost our sweet Aggie kitty. I had gotten up early (4:30 am) to feed Miss Violet (ferret) and at that point Aggie was fine. She ate, got some loves, gave me some purrs and found a spot to snooze on her bed. When I went in around 8:30 am I found her in her forever sleep. She was comfortable, had been basking in the sun and slipped away peacefully to the rainbow bridge. It was quick and painless and she no illnesses or aliments - I wish that for all my critters, family and friends - a long life with no issues and a peaceful passing.

Aggie has been with me literally for half my life. She came to me as a three week old kitten when I was 26 years old. She has lived with me in three states, and five residences. She has survived me getting my 26 year old act together and finding my way to being an adult. She warmly accepted having a dad - my husband - and grudgingly dealt with the stream of new critters that found their way into our lives. She has known all of my critters from my first kitty Isabel to the latest addition of the three pups. While she wasn't always a fan she was a pretty go with the flow cat and always adjusted well.

Aggie was incredibly healthy - I never had to take her to the vet for anything other than routine checks, shots, etc. She has never been sick or taken medication. There was no indication that yesterday was to be her last day. I think her almost 24 year old body just gave out. While we have known that this day was coming and we have tried to prepare ourselves, it doesn't really feel easier now that she's gone. Our family feels incomplete.

We have been paying some extra special attention to Phoebe. She is our only kitty now and while she and Aggie weren't particularly close she is still having to adjust. Yesterday had me out of sorts for the bulk of the day. I wasn't overwrought with sadness, but more feeling an emptiness that something important is missing. It's so hard to lose your furry kids. I take comfort in the fact that Aggie had an incredibly long life. She was healthy up to the very end and she was spoiled rotten for the duration.

I will miss you terribly sweet kitty girl. Thank you for a lifetime of companionship and love.