Bless The Beasts And The Children
Bless the beasts and the children
For in this world they have no voice
They have no choice
Bless the beasts and the children
For the world can never be
The world they see
Light their way
When the darkness surrounds them
Give them love
Let it shine all around them
Bless the beasts and the children
Give them shelter from a storm
Keep them safe
Keep them warm
Light their way
When the darkness surrounds them
Give them love
Let it shine all around them
Bless the beasts and the children
Give them shelter from a storm
Keep them safe
Keep them warm
The children
The children
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Sean needed a ferret. He informed me it had to be special, like him. For months I looked in pet stores, and was tired of seeing
babies that were too little to be taken away from moms and too little to have had surgery. I have had Marshall Farms ferrets
before and all have been very sweet natured. But I wanted to do something different this time. So I toyed with the idea of going
to a breeder or shipping in a ferret with special bloodlines, etc.. I worried about temperament though. As I was fooling
around with these idea's my son's patience was wearing thin. He needed a ferret, and he needed one now! This special boy had
battled autism and had finally made a connection with these angelic creatures. I had to act now. So in the magazines I dug, online I searched, and on the phone I went. I found a reputable shelter a couple hours away. I hesitated, as our car would never make it. But I called to talk to the shelter to see what they were all about and what they had as I was new to this shelter business. I was very leery because this was all new to me. I spoke to the sweetest couple I have ever met! Finally people that not only were educated on ferrets, but people that understood them. We shared information on how we care for our ferrets and I learned a lot. They in return learned a lot about us from out talk, and felt good about us being a good adoptive home. The shelter was just a warehouse of information. They were so honest. They told me of the histories of all the ferrets they had, not leaving out one detail. They told me their health histories, their past before they came to the shelter, their habits, everything. At this point I was realizing how nice it was going to be to know the ferret before I thought about him joining the family. This was entirely too important to take a crap shoot on. They were able to instantly match Sean up with a ferret just by speaking to us on the phone. The ferret was so perfect for us it was like a dream come true. We got together money, and borrowed a car from a friend and off we went. When we arrived, we pulled up to a little, warm house on some nice land. There were cute ferret signs on the door so we would look down. Good thing too, because when we entered there was an adorable bald fuzzie named Lulu wagging her tail, looking up, greeting us all. My oldest son scooped her up and she licked his whole face. He went off into a chair with her for the next 30 minutes ha-ha! The living room was shared with 35 other ferrets. So the ferrets are in the hub of family business 24/7. There were cages everywhere, and toys galore! There was pipe, and balls, baskets with shredded newspapers, and even a miniature wagon with fleece blanketing in it. There were liter pans in corners all over as the ferrets get free roam as much as possible. This home was 100% dedicated to these ferrets. So much seemed sacrificed for these sweet creatures. The Glasgows whom run the shelter were both there, and we got to meet 35 ferrets! Most were older (but not old), and were big, gorgeous, and soft. There was every size, color, and sort of ferret imaginable there to choose from. Many ferrets had what they call special needs like abusive pasts, or health conditions to keep up with such as adrenal conditions, etc.. But they were all pretty, and all were happy. Each ferret had it's own story. Each ferret had it's own personality, way of life, and preferences. I was introduced to most of them and was able to love on them. They all loved to be held, none were squirmy, and most loved to kiss and lick your face. There was one group cage of biters that were being trained. Some may never stop biting. I'll tell you that's a small amount compared to all they had though. It was a bit hard to see some of them. There was one that was paralyzed from an abusive home. There was yet another that had a tail cut off. Yet these were very sweet babies and did not bite. One ferret was separated from the living room as the poor thing was so depressed and had been through so much, it had stopped fighting. You can love someone all you want... but if they stop fighting… how are they going to live? All the cages were so nice. Everyone had hammocks, toys, full clean water bowls, Totally Ferret and Eukabana (and whatever else they liked), everything they wanted. But I could see hammys were getting very worn. Newspapers were greatly needed I was told. Thankfully many neighbors chip in here and there with papers. I don't know how they provide for their ferrets so well. I could never ever imagine the cost. It was obvious that this family sacrificed much. Some of the ferrets were permanent residents and had very serious health problems that require a lot of veterinary care and tons of work. This place was being run by people that sacrifice not only finances, but time, and emotion. How do you stay up nights hand feeding sick needy animals, administrating medicine, holding them, only to see some pass on to the bridge anyway. How do you keep your sanity when an animal comes into the shelter with it's life barley hanging by a thread and being handed over by someone who could give crap. How do you stop from missing the little faces when you adopt them out and stop worrying about them? Even if finances get by, even if you are emotionally strong, there is all the work. How do you keep up with poop scooping 35 ferrets? I'll tell you I only have 3 and I have to do it three times a day to keep up so it won't get smelly. I have to do ferret laundry every few days, etc.. I can't imagine the work entailed. It is virtually impossible. When you walk into this home you will not find some sort of sterile hospital setting. You will see worn hammocks, poopies filled in the pans, and a lot of work to be done. If you are smart, and caring you will see past those petty things and see the real picture. What you will also see are big healthy, happy ferrets with coats soft as silk. You will see toys that are out and used, not put up. You will see full dishes of food and full water bottles. You will see a couple that is educated and gives their all for these sweet animals. You will see treat bottles filled with Ferretone, and tack boxes filled with top supplies. You will NOT see abuse, filth, ear mites, ECE, fleas, or the like. If you can't see past petty things … you will miss seeing something very beautiful. For those that can not see this, then good rittence. I hope that weeds out people that wouldn't be very good adoptive parents anyway. If you see what I saw… a caring, sweet, beautiful place then to me you are just as special as the Glasgows and other shelter owners. I dare you to leave without a little one. I dare you to leave and forget all the little faces that need so much love. |
Ferret Education & Rescue of TN
Without them none of this would have been possible.
I would like to give eternal thanks
to the Glasgows at the
Other Sean Pages
| Christmas time 1999 | A Christmas Miracle for Sean |
| 2-19-2000 | Sean's Valentine |
| 2-19-2000 | Sean's Valentine part 2 |
| 1-17-2001 | Sean Rocky Pink Sunrises |
| No Date | Tribute to the Glasgows shelter / Bless the Beasts and the Children |
| 3-11-2001 | Sean and Rocky's Fairy Tail... errrr ... Tale
|
| Christmas 2000 | Sean's Anniversary Update ... an update |
| No Date | Baseball with Ferrets |
| No Date | Modern Ferret Sean and Rocky Feature Press Release and Reprint of story in PDF |
| No Date | Sean and Rocky Slide Show. |
| Dec. 2005 | Rocky's Memorial Page |
| Dec. 2005 | Condolence Letters for Rocky |
