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| Name: |
Opal
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Age: |
Four and a half months old
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| Gender: |
Female
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Kind: |
Domestic Ferret
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| Home: |
Tampa Bay Area, Florida, USA
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My brother passed away recently. He was nine days shy of his 49th birthday. I knew it would happen eventually, addiction ravaged his body and his mind. His final weeks were spent bedridden and in pain in the hospital. We had been close when I was younger, but grew apart as I got older, and our relationship wasn't very good towards the end. But after his passing, I felt a lot of unexpected sorrow and guilt. I'm working my way through it, but there are times I stumble over old photos or belongings that I was holding onto for him, and I am again overwhelmed with mixed emotions. My husband is wonderful and supportive, but it will take time for these wounds to heal. And I have found that our two new baby girls, Opal and her sister Onyx, help a lot as well. They are so sweet, adorable, playful, and they're even becoming affectionate towards us. And they help a lot. When I am feeling down, I can go over to their playpen and pet them, play with them, and cuddle with them, and that goes a long way to helping me get through the grieving process. Overall they've brought a lot of joy into our household, even despite the hard work and expense, and we are so happy to have them in our lives.
Opal is a gentle sweetheart, calm and curious even around strangers. She's also very athletic, a good climber and jumper! She was perhaps a bit under-weight when we got her, but she eats every type of food and treat that I present to her, so she's putting on a bit more healthy weight now. She may have Waardenburg syndrome, which means she may be partially or totally deaf, and a bit of a slow learner. But she is clearly trying to learn, and has already improved in the three and a half weeks since we got her. She loves to play just as much as her sister, but she never bites and is much more relaxed about the whole thing. But she also loves to explore, and will climb and jump and find a way into the most inaccessible places. (Which then paves the way for her sister to try and follow in her footsteps.)
While her antics outside of the cage can have me racing to keep her out of trouble, she's an angel when inside her cage or playpen. She's content to chew on the chew-toys that we provide, and tries not to make a mess of things. She's taking longer to litter train than her sister, maybe due to possibly being a Waardy, but it's clear that she does try to keep things mostly tidy. (Aside from occasionally wanting to fling her food everywhere and climb into the food bowl!) Even though she's smaller than Onyx, she can hold her own during playtime. She's an amazing little girl!
Talk about Opal in Pet Talk!
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