Petree arrived in May of 2004 as a frightfully skinny scrap of fur and bones. He was supposedly 2 years old, but could easily be older. He had been rescued from a neglectful home where he had been fed dog food. This may have accounted for his stunted body, he isn't much larger than a female ferret. His rescuers were worried about him because of his chronic loose stools, lack of appetite, and lack of activity. I was hoping coming to the shelter would result in a dramatic change of Petree's condition and attitude, but I was frustrated by his lack of improvement. He did gain weight and his coat became softer, but he continued to have loose stool and a poor appetite with bouts of horrible stool and not eating at all. He has been on lots of medications, mostly antibiotics and has had multiple blood tests and lots of different foods have been tried. Just recently he has been on a regime where he is eating pretty well a (expensive) prescription diet for digestive problems and he has started really playing for the first time, which is so wonderful to see, I was afraid he would never show any joy in life. He recently went to live in a foster home and has taken to cuddling with the other ferrets there.