Ok this one is going to go to some dark places, and i must start by saying this is how I acted in this situation, but i would not necessarily recommend that anyone else follow my example.
This story started about three years ago. At this point i had already had pet ferrets for about 6-7 years (not including the one i had as a child).
Many days, as i was walking to the station to catch my train to work, a neighbour tried to start a conservation with me. I was polite but understandably rushed but he kept at it, we learned each others names and eventually that we both had ferrets.
I thought he was much older than he turn he turned out to be. The flat cap, and mention of keeping pigeons... He seemed to belong to a previous generation and maybe he does.
Anyway, one day i was walking back from the shop and i saw him standing at his front door talking to someone, and now know which house was his. So one day after i may have had a few drinks, i decided to pop by and ask if i could see the ferrets.
I was not prepared for the backyard crammed with hutches and 11 ferrets. The smell was obviously overwhelming but in my current state i didn't think further into it until later. Apparently his nephew had a couple of them at first, got bored with them so he offered to take them. I assume they'd just been breeding since.
I started going round more often. I noticed how rarely the hutches were cleaned out, and that cleaning time was pretty much the only time they got out of their hutches. They were fed once a day, a mix of dried ferret food and tinned dog food, both the food dishes and water bottles were filthy. I realised that i was going to have to try to convince him to surrender some or all of them to the ferret rescue so they could have a decent life.
I started to help out a bit. If he was out at the allotment he'd ask me to feed them if he wasn't going to get back in time. I gave him my number as otherwise he'd turn up at our door, asking for a favour. So instead he'd call almost daily, either asking for help with the ferrets or to borrow money/cigarettes, or just ask if i could pick up something from the shop.
So at this point I'd started mentioning the rescue. Dropping hints at first, then suggestions. If i asked why he wanted to keep them, when it was a struggle of time and money to look after them, and even then he never played with them, he would say 'I'm used to them". Sometimes if i asked a question he'd just pretend he didn't hear.
Of course this is where someone else might have just cut ties with him. He wasn't listening to me, and really just seemed to want me around to do him favours and lend him money (at least at this point he was paying me back). But i was also so worried about these ferrets, and wanted to do whatever i could to help them. As i said at the start, this is what i did but i wouldn't suggest anyone else put up with something like this.
I did consider ringing the RSPCA and just seeing if they would take them off him, but there were a few problems with this. First of all it was the start of the pandemic, the RSPCA were only able to respond if animals were in 'immediate danger' and just having a shitty life didn't seem to count (as i was advised by a friend who works at a rescue).
Also, i had no idea what would happen to ferrets taken by the RSPCA, would they be handed to a specific ferret rescue or would they end up being put down?
And finally, if he knew I'd reported him, well that would be unpleasant. Really it would be better if i could persuade him to let them go to the rescue.
So this was a pretty stressful time for me. I was constantly worrying about the life these ferrets had, trying my best to make sure they were cared for, while at the same time knowing that, as long as i was helping him, he'd have less reason to give them up.
And then two litters of kits appeared.
Apparently he had no idea how to tell boys from girls, so one hutch had contained a hob and two jills, resulting in five kits. The other jill was on her own, but one of the boys must have got in at some point, because she had eight kits. If you're keeping count, that's 24 ferrets.
I now started to be even more insistent that some of these ferrets needed to go to the rescue, surely he couldn't be 'used to' these kits already? But he still didn't trust the rescue, he didn't know them. Eventually i asked if i could take a few of the babies when they were old enough, and he agreed to that, as long as i was keeping them and not passing them on to the rescue.
At this time we had four of our own: Bobbi, Rocky, Rikki and Morty. We thought they wouldn't take immediately to some kits, so we were able to get a hutch for the backyard, which we were in the process of fixing up.
Then one day our neighbour rang me and asked if i could take one of the older ferrets immediately. This was the hob who was in a hutch with two jills and five kits, and he was being 'nasty' to the babies.
We took him and put him temporarily in one of our smaller cages that we use for shows. This is Fergus. He was a little nippy at first, then after a day or so took to following me right by my feet (nearly tripping me up) wherever he was out. He was and remains the sweetest ferret ever.
When it came time to take some of the babies, i decided to take the girls from the oldest litter, so reduce the number of potential babies if i didn't get them away from him by next year. However i had miscounted and there were actually five girls! However they were happy in the hutch together and got LOTS of playtime out.
Finally, there was Stevie. Stevie was in a hutch on his own, and whenever i was round to feed them he would be pacing up and down at the bars, almost like when you see that video of the tiger in the zoo going mad from boredom. He seemed to be one of the older ferrets in the bunch, and it broke my heart to think he might live the rest of his life like that. So i asked both my partner and my neighbour, and we took him too.
Stevie lived with us for a few months. That first night we didn't even put him in a cage, i sat him on the sofa next to me and he didn't even leave the sofa to explore, he just curled up and fell asleep looking happy, and i didn't want to disturb him so we just left him in the living room overnight.
He and Fergus both quickly got on with our existing lot (something we still haven't managed with the young girls). Unlike Fergus, Stevie didn't even go through a nippy stage with us, he was the gentlest natured, barely even knew how to play with other ferrets, was just happy to sniff about the place and cuddle up.
Sadly, one day Stevie seemed a little more tired than usual, not eating as much, and a little later we noticed he seemed to be having a little trouble breathing.
We took him to the vet where an x-ray showed her had fluid in his lungs. Attempts to drain it were unsuccessful and it was considered kinder to let him go.
I'm still angry with my neighbour. Maybe Stevie was unhealthy from the way he lived for so long. Maybe not, but he spent way too long like that and not enough time with us. I have to tell myself that in those last few months he got to know comfort, fun, good food, new friends and as much love as we could possibly give him. At least he died knowing he was loved, not alone in a filthy hutch.
I want to end this on a happy note, but I'm mentally drained from going over all that so I'll be brief. I was able to persuade my neighbour to surrender his remaining ferrets to the rescue. I was there to help them gather them all up in carry boxes, advising as best as i could on ages (my neighbour of course could barely tell them all apart). I know some are still with the rescue or being fostered, others are in homes living great lives.
At some point my neighbour started borrowing money faster than he could pay it back, probably not even keeping track of how much he owed me, and honestly I've just written it off. He's not getting anything else from me, but I've pretty much paid him to get those ferrets rescued.
I've suffered anxiety throughout the whole thing and now I've finally cut ties with him.
He still has a dog, who i walked in the past, and i know probably still should have better care than she has. But for my own mental health I've had to say 'not my problem' - if i offer to take her for the occasional walk, it'll turn into me being expected to do it every day, I'll be asked to lend money or pick up shopping again so, no. Sorry Pepsi, I'll miss you.
Shit, this was meant to end on a happy note wasn't it? Well i got 24 ferrets saved during lockdown. Not bad, even if it did almost cause a mental breakdown.
