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I haven't head much about Carolina Farms lately. I have not heard anything bad about them in the past, though. I'm waiting for raml to share her secrets regarding longevity.
My wife and I have had 25(?) ferrets, all but 2 Marshall's. My first 3 were allowed to escape by careless youths leaving doors open and 1 died in an accident and 2 were killed by dogs. 6 of mine were rescues, so ages unknown when they passed, but most were at least 5-6. We've only had 1 who was known to be over 8 when she passed. That said, Eddie (rescue) died during surgery to remove bad teeth, and Poppy (got her at 2 months old) died at 5 of a tooth abcess that we caught too late. Prissy is our current oldest, at 7 1/2, but she is a Real Canadian. Jaffa is our only private bred ferret, from a small ferretry in central Ontario, and he has both insulinoma and adrenal. He's 5 1/2. Alice passed last month, 2 months shy of her 6th birthday, of kidney failure. Polecats live 2-3 years in the wild, so even if ours make it to only 6, we're doubling their life expectancy.
I should add that I also adopted 2 from an older couple who fed them purina cat chow their first 2 years. One had insulinoma just as he turned 2 (he was being treated when I killed him in an accident), and neither lived past 3 years old. Lots of losses from lots of causes, and it seems like even when we take extraordinary measures they pass anyway. I can't even believe that I lost 2 of my favorites from dental issues. We brush a lot of teeth now, let me tell you.
After the third escaped, my son told me I was like the Underground Railroad for ferrets. Looking back, it was his fault to a great degree. I should go belt him, lol.
My wife and I love our ferrets, but I've learned a lot of lessons the hard way and we're not ones to spend thousands of dollars for surgeries. Right now we have Rosa, the only Marshall we've ever had that is still biting at 2 years. We got her from a shelter, where she lived for a year, and her prior history is unkown. Every other Marshall was at least not a biter, some have been loving, some have been sort of in their own worlds, but almost all were playful and willing to be held for at least a few minutes. I'm not pushing Marshall's. I might prefer Path Valley as well, based only on breeding practices, but don't know where to get them.
Sorry, I rambled a bit there, but that's my story.
<message edited by unclejoe on Tuesday, November 04, 2014 5:13 PM>