Adoptions

Adoptable Ferrets         Adoption Application       Previously Adopted Ferrets

Rocky's Ferret Rescue & Shelter has many ferrets available for adoption. You will find that they are ferrets of all colors, ages, and sizes. One thing they all have in common is a strong desire to find a FOREVER home. Before you take a look at them, please read the following information pertaining to our adoption process.

In order to adopt a ferret from Rocky's Ferret Rescue & Shelter, you must go through our adoption process. This process may seem a bit long and in-depth, but we want to be sure we find the perfect home for our ferrets. They've already become homeless once, and we want to make sure their next home is forever. This is our adoption process:

*Application: Please fill out an adoption application. This will help us to learn some basic information about you. Please note that this step is MANDATORY.

 

*Telephone Interview: After we take a look at your adoption application, we will want to have a telephone conversation with you. This allows us to get to know you a little better and discuss the adoption application. This process gives us a better idea of which ferrets might match your adoptive needs. Telephone interviews are sometimes supplemented with or replaced by email, especially to avoid long-distance phone charges.

 

*Shelter Visit: Each applicant is required to visit the shelter before adopting a ferret. During this time, you will be able to meet the ferrets available for adoption. Please note that we welcome out-of-state applicants, but you MUST visit the shelter to adopt. We will not ship ferrets. Also, please note that visitors are NOT allowed to bring personal ferrets to the shelter due to the threat of infectious diseases, such as ECE, Canine Distemper, or Aluetian's Disease Virus. Assuming you have been approved for adoption, you will then be able to take your new ferret(s) home with you after signing your adoption contract and paying your adoption donation.

 

Each ferret at Rocky's Ferret Rescue & Shelter is different and has unique needs. Approval for adoption is made on a case-by-case basis. We do have some guidelines in place, however. If you have any questions about these guidelines, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We will only adopt to individuals who:

*Are 18 years of age or older. We will consider the application of a parent of a child under this age. If this is the case, all members of the family must be in agreement with the terms of the adoption contract since the ferret will be living with all members of the family.

 

*Adopt the ferret for themselves. We do not allow people to adopt a ferret as a gift. Adopting a ferret, or any other pet, is an important responsibility that is not to be taken lightly. Animals do not make good presents.

 

*Demonstrate a thorough understanding of the needs of ferrets and/or responsibility required for ferret ownership. Those applicants who wish to learn more are invited to volunteer at the shelter where they can learn first hand the knowledge and responsibility necessary to ferret ownership.

 

*Have the financial ability to provide appropriate food, medical care, and attention to a ferret. We do not ask potential adopters about income or financial status, but provide we them with an overall estimate of the possible costs of caring for a ferret. Your financial commitment is for the life of the ferret.

 

*Wish to adopt a ferret for a family pet. Ferrets are not to be used for experiment, working, hunting, classroom pet, petting zoo animal, etc. Ferrets are domesticated pets only.

 

*Agree to all the requirements listed in our adoption contract. If you would like to review a copy of our adoption contract, please contact Barbara Clay, Director of Shelter Affairs (barbclay@juno.com).

After you adopt a ferret from Rocky's, we welcome updates and we have the right to contact you in order to follow-up on your ferret adoption. This helps us keep track of the ferrets that we have placed and provide help and assistance for the ferret owner as they continue to learn about ferrets and their care. We welcome all previous adopters to visit us during our two annual events, Ferret Stock (May) and Oktoberfest. Unfortunately, ferrets are not welcome to attend these events in order to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, such as such as ECE, Canine Distemper, or Aluetian's Disease Virus. Adopters are also welcome to volunteer time at the shelter by cleaning cages, grooming ferrets, or helping with grounds care.

All ferrets currently in the household must be tested for Aleutian's Disease Virus (ADV) prior to being or approved, or visiting Rocky's for adoption. The United CEP or the AVECON ELISA (send-in-the-spit test) are the only acceptable tests because they have proven to be reliable and are processed with documentation for the specifically named ferret being tested.

The tests for ADV can be done at home. Here, Kim Sikorski, Rocky's VP, has provided a step-by-step to do the CEP test at home. http://www.pooflinger.com/advtest.html.

Information about the Avecon ELISA (send-in-the-spit test) can be found here. http://www.avecon.com/adv_collection.html

Both of these tests are less than $15 and well worth it. The AVECON at-home Quik Test is unacceptable.

Rocky's Ferret Rescue & Shelter requests a $95 adoption donation for single ferrets and $150 for bonded pairs. (Please note that not just any two ferrets qualify as a bonded pair. Bonded pairs are usually ferrets that are older and have lived with each other their entire lives. They are labeled as such on our Adoptions pages.) This donation may vary depending on the age, temperament, health, and special needs of the ferret.

Your adoption donation helps us give each ferret spay/neuter, current Rabies vaccination, current Canine Distemper vaccination (plus free annual booster for the LIFE of the ferret), United (blood) ADV testing, and grooming for the life of the ferret. The trust we put in you when you adopt makes you a life-time member of the Rocky's family!

Rocky's is a non-profit shelter. Your adoption donation helps defray the high cost of caring for the ferrets in our shelter, including food and medical expenses. When ferrets are surrendered to Rocky's, they receive Canine Distemper vaccination, Rabies vaccination, United (blood) ADV test, glucose test, and weight check. Other necessary medical needs include spay/neuter, descenting (only if anal glands are problematic), dental cleanings, fecal floats/smears, adrenal surgery, Lupron, Prednisone, or other medications and/or procedures.

Rocky's Ferret Rescue & Shelter often has elderly and/or ill ferrets in our care. Although they are available for traditional adoption, many times they are passed over and end up living in the shelter much longer than they should. For this reason, some of our ferrets qualify for a Special Needs adoption. In order to adopt a Special Needs ferret, you must go through the same process as in a traditional ferret adoption and be approved to foster. If approved, you make a smaller adoption donation and agree to care for the ferret for the rest of his life, including his Special Needs. General ferret care and medical expenses then become the responsibility of the adoptive party. You can obtain more information my contacting our shelter director, Barb Clay.

The choice to adopt a Special Needs ferret is a very loving, unselfish act. These ferrets bring love, happiness, and gratitude into your home. It is important to note, however, that these ferrets are available for Special Needs adoptions because they might have a terminal illness and a shorter life expectancy. This needs to be taken into consideration before making the committment to adopt. Many people who adopt such ferrets have the loving outlook that it doesn't matter how long the ferret lives... they are content to provide unconditional love in the final days, weeks, months, or years the ferret does have.

Many of our new ferrets are looking for Sponsors. For a one-time donation of $20, you can become a Sponsor. Your donation will help off-set the cost of Rabies vaccination, Canine-Distemper vaccination, ADV testing, and glucose testing. If you choose to sponsor a special needs ferret, you will have the option of continuing your sponsorship until the ferret is adopted.

In return for becoming a Sponsor, we will email or snail mail you a certificate and your sponsored ferret's picture. We also like to thank our Sponsors by mentioning their name with the ferret's description on our Adoptables pages. However, you do have the option of remaining anonymous and we are happy to honor that request.

If you are interested in becoming a Sponsor, please look on the Adoptables pages to find a ferret to sponsor. Then please email please contact Barbara Clay, Director of Shelter Affairs (barbclay@juno.com), for more information, where to send payment, etc.

Adoptable Ferrets         Adoption Application       Previously Adopted Ferrets