Temptation - thy name is "Ferret"

I received a call Sunday early afternoon about a healthy two year old ferret in Carlsbad needing a home. I just lost Augie, I thought I'd move myself to the top of my adoption list.

I wasn't expecting the call so soon. It can take six months for a ferret to be available. But this was Carlsbad, 2 year old ferret.

Sounds awfully familiar to Daisy. Daisy was the best ferret who ever lived. She was 2 years old when I adopted her from a family in Carlsbad. I had just lost Chester, and said I'd take the next ferret needing a new home.

Daisy was a lone ferret. She taught me that yes - ferrets can scream. Preferably at 2:3o am. She was terrified of other ferrets. But she bloomed. She became motherly. She was one of those rare "lap ferrets" you might have heard about.

So - I thought, I might sneak up to Carlsbad today and pick up this ferret. I'd have to stop enroute at the vet for a distemper shot and ear mite check. The real problem would be when my partner, Jim came home.

If I had $25 for every "your are not getting another ferret" lecture I could pay off the mortgage.

Better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission.

But then this morning I went to file my unemployment check I noticed the second week x'd out. Yes - I'm on the dole. Perhaps I should wait until I find a job or have some stable income before I bring in another pet.

Damn logic - I really want to drive and pick up that ferret. That's why I called it temptation.

(Actually - I want to go to Las Vegas, stay at a nice hotel, see some shows and bring home two babies. But that ain't gonna happen)

Update on the EIR

I did manage to have contact with Tom Gibson at the Department of Fish and Game, he is in their legal department. So far he seems like a very nice guy.

I had to explain, we want to do what is required of us to legalize ferrets in California - and, by the way, what exactly does the Fish and Game Commission require of us?

Mr. Gibson wasn't sure - he'll have to check and get back to me. He's only been with DFG for a year. But why didn't we ask this question ten year's ago? D'oh!

I have also asked help from Assemblyman John Pérez's office. When running for the state asssembly Mr. Pérez was kind enough to answer our survey - and unlike most respondents - he won. We need to know these people in the legislature.

Relations Sour With the Working Group

Unfortunately the "working group" isn't happy. They have asked I remove the survey that was emailed out (results will be in Sunday's CLIFFNotes) and have brought up the idea of another version of CLIFFNotes.

With all my heart I believe in transparency and communication. Nothing will happen without them. I have faith in the people who read CLIFFNotes. I will accept suggestions, criticisms, anything except insults. It is an open forum for all people interested in the California ferret issue.

Ferret owners are rightfully angry and impatient. We've been kept in the dark and waited too long.

Good Bye Augie

I found Augie in a coma yesterday about 5:30 pm. Luckily the Avian and Exotic Animal Clinic was still open - I had him there by 6 pm. His blood sugar was 28. He was given a sugar solution but still looked like he had left us. He died during the night.
The picture above was taken the day I bought him in Las Vegas, clearly marked September 22, 2003, which makes him only 5 1/2 years old.

At the vet's office I was talking to someone else and mentioned the serenity prayer. How do you handle such things - change the things we can, accept the things we can't.

So Augie, I'm sorry you never got to places with me. But thank you for your kind soul.

Stuffing the Ballot Box

Someone added about 100 votes to our poll saying we should "wait for the working group." Looking at who clicked the link to the poll I see three people since the 100 votes appeared. Two of those three are members of the working group.

Was Yesterday a Holiday?

No one returned my phone calls yesterday regarding an EIR Consultant. I will wait until late morning today to try again.

There was a comment on our poll which showed diametrically opposed view points on this. The person said people were not educated enough to vote on this issue.

One thing that is very important to me is transparency. We are not doing anything shady or to be ashamed of. It is a simple bureacratic hoop we have to jump through. Sure there is politics involved - but we want to be scientific and credible. It is very hard to build support when you can't tell people what you are doing.

Dr Graening did provide a very useful information I'd like to share:

1. "have an academic institution update the 50-state survey and publish the results in a peer-reviewed journal.
2. using a neutral 3rd party, begin discussions with CDFG; establish the requirements needed to remove the ban, and determine the CEQA process/strategy that CDFG will follow, etc.
   
   with these 2 tasks accomplished, writing the EIR will be straightforward."

I will update this blog daily until we have a proposed consultant or strategy.

A New Day For the EIR

It is Monday morning before 9 am and I have calls into a large environmental firm recommended by our previous hoped for consultant, the California Department of Fish and Game and Assembyman John Pérez.

The search for an EIR/CEQA consultant has started again. I know a little more than before and I've always known to leave it to a professinal.

It is rather humbling to call the Department of Fish and Game and ask their help in legalizing ferrets - but I have no pride. That disappeared a long time ago. Have you heard my story about size 41 underwear at the George Bailey Detention Center?

The goal is to legalize ferrets - it should be a simple goal, but not in California.

But I feel good now that I've quit waiting for the "Working Group" to finish their project. We need to proceed and get the work done. And if the bids come in higher than we expect, I'll be out there selling plasma and lining up sponsors to get this project finished once and for all.

I didn't go to jail wearing size 41 underwear for nothing!

Free the ferrets - and their owners. I will be keeping this blog up to date with progress on the search for our consultant.

UPS Loses Our T-Shirts

Box 2 of 2 our "Ferrets Are More Fun" T-shirt arrived from the silk screener on Thursday, March 5th. Odd, I thought, but Box 1 of 2 will probably arrive Friday.

It didn't. So I did a tracking and was told both boxes arrived Thursday at 4:22 pm.

UPS doesn't make it easy to file a claim or complaint, but I made it through.

The UPS driver tried to leave a note on my front door, but the dogs alerted me to his presence and near-escape. My dogs alert me to everything.

The driver says he specifically remembers delivering two identical packages a week earlier. Stuck me as odd, since I can't remember s*, (let's say much.)

In talking to the driver, I harked back to one TV show I've started watching, "Lie to me." I didn't see any tale tell signs of lying, but I don't believe the driver. I think he delivered them to a wrong address and was too lazy to go get them.

Once he left it also struck me as odd that there were no packages on our front door at 4:22 pm. My car is in the garage, it looks like no one is home, but I'm always in my home office and I was home all day. The one package did not show up until 6:30, after dark.

Oh how'd I'd like an FBI investigation into this serious crime. But this being California I'd be hauled off to jail (again) for the ferrets downstairs.

So today's plans include a big chunk of time inventorying the shirts that went out, the shirts that are here and filling a new order with Jimmy Jams T-Shirts, who is graciously going to reprint the lost shirts at his expense. I will be using him a lot in the future.

Still Worried About Fausto

Fausto stopped eating. Damn ferret, makes me worry so much.

His blood work came back normal. No obvious problems. He passed a physical without anything noticable wrong except weight loss. The guess now - iritable bowel syndrome.

Last Sunday was the low point, both emotionally and weight-wise. Since then he has been on Marshall Pet Products Duck Soup. Early in the week his vet had me add prednisone. And he'll take it and his weight is back up. Normal weight for a ferret, still skinny by Fausto standards.

Equally odd, he won't drink water out of the lixit bottle any more either. I have to have a bowl there for him.

I am supposed to take him back to the vet if he doesn't gain weight, but he has.

I've always had a special talent for knowing when an animal is sick. While others say wait before going to the vet - I can usually tell when something is serious before it is too late.

But Fausto has me stumped. He looks fine, won't eat and a certain spark is gone. For a moment this morning he did torment the dog. But not with the usual joy that task entails. Is he depressed? Nothing has changed.