Well, I survived the first three weeks of May

Many will think, "Ok, so what is the big deal with that?" Back that statement up, make it it has been one heck of a train ride since April 27th, the date of Alvin's Big Adventure.

May has been one heck of a month, turn ins are up, and vet bills are higher, our bill was up to $900 and I gave them $1000, figuring I'd have a small cushion. Surprise!! No cushion, I forgot about the ferret that I had brought home to try to save, and with in four days it is back up to $1200. Like I said, this month is one heck of a month, and to top that off I feel like I have spent what seems like the whole three weeks in the car.

We had Alvin and his great Adventure, which was nerve racking, and really sent me into a tizzy. I also had a couple of kids to go to the vet the next day, so when he was brought home, I wasn't there, but Jane was.

Now for me a trip to the vet entails approximately, two and one half hours, sometimes three. First it is getting the carrier ready to go, (no I do not just put them into a carrier if I can help it. There is a hammock, sleep sack, food, water and litter box), then the drive to the vet's clinic in Avon Lake. Time at the vet's office, and then the trip home. Some times there are two or three of these trips in one day (he is at the clinic until 9 PM), that week there was a trip every day except for Tuesday, when Doc. is off.

So back to the story, Alvin is brought home, happy and none the worse for the wear of his great adventure.

Later that evening when I go look at the fresh water tank (yes, I even rescue fish, sigh) I hear this squeak, squeak, squeak coming from Asia's cage. Asia is a ranch mink that was rescued in a back yard, she decided that running around this lady's feet was great fun, and when the lady put a carrier down for her, she told her to get in, and being the smart, good mink that Asia is, she got into the carrier. Picked her up the next day, March 18, and ran her to the vet, gave her a quick once over, and decided that we had to get her altered in the next couple of weeks, and work on her teeth. She had two canines missing, and one needed work.

Every time I scheduled her to go in and get fixed, something delayed it. Well, now I know why. Asia gave birth on April 27 to 5 baby mink. She never looked pregnant. So now life is really going to be interesting.

FIRST, LET ME PUT THIS HERE, MINK ARE NOT GOOD PETS. THEY ARE MORE DEMANDING THAN ANY ANIMAL THAT I HAVE KNOWN, THEY ARE MORE DEMANDING THEN CHILDREN, IN OHIO YOU NEED TO HAVE PERMITS TO OWN MINK, AND TO BREED THEM. NO I DO NOT BREED. I WILL NOT BREED. THESE GUYS WILL NEVER END UP AS COATS.

Asia is a good momma, so I really don't have to worry about her and the babies, just keep her cage clean, and keep a supply of soup, steak, chicken, eggs, and anything else she will eat that is good for her.

So Thursday, May 4 I leave for Columbus and the Convention. I go down the night before so I don't have to drive there from Cleveland on Friday, and then have to set up. Besides, a friend of mine who moved to Utah is coming into town to surprise a couple of people, so I met up with them for dinner. Nice dinner, got three calls about sick ferrets, take them to the vet, and call the vet telling them who was coming and yes, the shelter is taking responsibility for them since they are surrenders from today after I left.

The convention was great. Sold enough stuff to break even. That means, it covered the cost of gas, the room, and the mini van rental. Yes, I have to rent one. Our Lumina is at the shop, and the mechanic told me that is year is probably going to be the mini van's last year, I may be able to STRETCH it out to 18 months, but the frame is starting to rust, and she is just getting tired. Our Lumina APV has 250,000 ferret miles on it.

Come home Sunday, get the van unpacked and returned. The living room is starting to look like someones' night mare from a garage sale. Monday, got two surrenders, Thursday, got 5 surrenders, Wednesday got two lost ferrets, and Lin from Tiffin brings in a ferret that someone found in her area, a SWEET old lady that is adrenal. Will be getting surgery.

Get the van packed up, we are off on an adventure to visit Rocky's in Parkton, Maryland. Last summer, Barb made the journey here to show support for us at our open house, so 6 of us Ohioans made the journey there. And along on the trip went four baby mink.

In order for the mink to be raised so you can handle them they need pulled by three or four weeks so that you can spend 24/7 with them. And I do mean 24/7. Even doing that there is no guarantee.

Asia freaked out on Wednesday. Someone outside really freaked the dog out, and she went nuts, barking and growling at the front door, I mean, this dog was not being nice, and whoever was causing her to get that upset would have been her dinner if they walked through the front door.

Unfortunately, it freaked Asia so bad that she started moving the babies. And at this age, mink babies are very active. She kept putting them up near where the food bowl attached to the cage, and the opening is enough for a baby to get out of. So after getting two off of the floor, and losing one to hypothermia, I decided to pull them. There was no calming her down.

So every two hours, we stopped to feed the kids, every two hours I am up to feed the kids. Unfortunately, I don't get to sleep two hours straight.

That weekend wasn't too bad, hubby was home and made sure the ferrets were all right. Now the following week gets to be fun.

Jane was here on that Monday, she is leaving on Wednesday to take a boat trip down the Danue River in Europe with her husband, he is the one who put the whole trip together, isn't she a lucky woman???

Anyway, that day it is just Jane and me, and the silly woman said she would take ferret laundry to do, I told her no, she had to get ready for the trip.

When she leaves, she tells me she hopes the people that promised to show up and help Wednesday and Thursday show up. I told her I wasn't counting on it, cause that is just the feeling I got.

You see, Thursday was the Max and Erma's fund raiser, and Thursday my husband and I had to leave to go to Washington DC. My son graduated from George Washington University with his MBA, Friday night was the business school ceremony, and Sunday AM was the big commencement on the National Mall.

Oh yeah, Wednesday involved trips to the vet. LOL!!

So no one shows up, and I am behind. I throw clothes in the washer, and clean all the mink rescue cages (only three cages) and start in on the front shelter room. And try to get dishes done, and clean up in the kitchen. By 4 PM I finished the front shelter room, my laundry which just got shoved into a suitcase, dishes, and got in a surrender.

I didn't make it to Max and Erma's, and we should have left three hours before. Thankfully, Jessica, one of our volunteers emails me, I answer and she sends me a note telling me that after work she'll come over and take care of the back shelter room. That way we can leave.

I was so grateful for her being willing to do that. We missed the dinner Thursday night, but we were able to be there for lunch with the kids. (Yes the baby mink traveled with me)

Jessica, you have no idea how much you saved me, and I owe you a debt that I'll never be able to repay.

So now all that is behind, and hopefully the nightmares of coming home from one of those jaunts to a house full of dead and dying animals will stop. (Yes, it stresses me out so back to leave that I have nightmares)

June is going to be interesting, but all of the stuff is local.

June 3, we'll be at bark in the park, June 9th and 10th is our garage sale, June 17 is the adopt your best friend event, and I even to add one more year to my age in June.

I'll be putting up a calendar of events, there are a couple of things brewing for July, but I need to solidify them before mentioning them, that way no one gets their hopes up just IN CASE they don't come to be.

And that my dear readers is a part of what May has been like for me. I left lots of other "little things" out.

Life in May has been nothing short of an adventure.