It's a Ferret Life

Running a ferret shelter? Avoid the word 'weaselly'

Some things -- even for wacky Southeast Portland -- sound too nutty, like one of those urban legends. But what's going on in the basement of a tidy house in Ladd's Addition is true. A bit out there, for sure, but true.

Let's get right to the point: Elayne Barclay runs a shelter for ferrets.

Ferrets are that species of animal that needs a hard sell. Dogs and cats? Chocolate cake. A ferret, which looks like a cousin to an opossum or rat, is the tofu platter making the rounds at a party. The host keeps pushing it on guests, telling everyone they have to try it. Just once. And then they'll finally appreciate this most misunderstood morsel.

"I know it's odd," says Barclay, who in 1998 started the Cascade Ferret Network, a nonprofit organization that farms the ferrets out to foster homes scattered throughout the metro area. "It's kind of embarrassing to tell people what I do."

At one point, Barclay had 80 ferrets in the basement of their Northeast Portland home. When she and her husband -- "I have the most patient husband in the world" -- moved, they bought the Southeast home specifically because it would be perfect for a ferret shelter in the basement. Sure, she downsized -- 15 critters now call the basement their lair -- but her passion/commitment/obsession remains as strong as ever.

She has a Web site -- www.cascade-ferret.org -- and has mounted a webcam on the lair's wall. Every 10 seconds, an image of the ferrets at play or asleep is beamed across the Internet. She's heard from viewers across the United States, including a man in Missouri recently -- wouldn't you like to know his story? -- who wanted to know how a ferret he'd been watching was holding up. A few years ago, the BBC learned about the Web page and picked it as the featured page of the day.

Barclay's house is dedicated to ferrets. Scattered throughout the rooms are photographs, paintings and small wooden and ceramic ferrets. Her dining room features a print of Leonardo da Vinci's "Lady With the Ermine."

"That's a ferret she's holding," says Barclay matter-of-factly. "They're part of the weasel family, but they're also related to otters. That's what I like to say. No one dislikes otters. Ferrets have a lot of baggage."

She settles into a chair. "Ferret people," she says with a laugh, "are odd."

She tries to explain the appeal, and the words roll off her tongue: cute, personality, smart, mischievous.

Here comes that tofu platter again.

"A ferret appeals to someone who likes something unique," she says. "They need to be supervised. They get in walls or the dishwasher, and they like to steal things."

Barclay says she and her husband haven't been able to take a long vacation in years because they can't leave the ferrets alone, and she can't just slip the neighborhood kid a few bucks to pour food in a bowl. Ferrets, it seems, are like frat boys with a few kegs of beer.

"We can go out to a movie," she says, "but we have to come right home. Some of the ferrets don't get along, and we have to let one group out of their cage and put the other group back in."

When she and her husband made a rare visit to the beach, they stayed at a place where guests played a game called "two truths and a lie."

"No one believed us when I said I run a shelter for ferrets," she says with a laugh. "They thought I was nuts."

Barclay walks to the front door to welcome Kelli Carlson, a foster parent and a member of the organization's board of directors. Carlson arrives holding two cages of ferrets. The two women settle in the dining room to talk.

"My family tries to keep me away from ferrets," Carlson says. "I have five of my own and three fosters. I'm about to get two more. I live with eight ferrets."

She turned to smile at a ferret poking its nose out of the cage.

"Maybe," she says with a laugh, "that's why I'm not married. When I had a date, my grandma told me to hide the ferrets. I told her that people don't hide their kids, so why should I hide them? I did date a guy for a while, and every time he came over, one of the ferrets bit him hard enough to draw blood."

Barclay nods. Ferrets can be their own worst enemy when it comes to public relations.

"He asked me if I'd get rid of the ferret," Carlson says. "I told him no, but I might cut back."

Barclay understands.

So what happened?

"It was a one-month relationship," Carlson says.

Hey, life is all about choices. "I always have to have at least a couple ferrets around," Carlson says firmly.

If Barclay is an addict, her husband, Leonard Bottleman, was the pusher. He brought home a ferret as a pet.

"I'd seen them at the zoo," Barclay says, "but I never thought of them as a pet. I was mesmerized by the ferret. We had cats, and I thought I was a cat person. The poor cats got neglected and passed on. Ferrets definitely rule the roost. They have more on the ball than cats."

Barclay's house, she says, is ferret-proof. She gets on her hands and knees and "thinks like a ferret." Before sending a ferret out to a foster home, she visits the home. "I turn over furniture," she says, "to make sure the ferret can't crawl in the underside."

The ferrets end up in her home after an owner is referred by the Oregon Humane Society, which doesn't accept ferrets, or by people who say the ferret wore out its welcome. Barclay's organization pays to have the ferrets checked out and treated by veterinarians.

Once a year, the organization holds a fund-raising event. Last year, it was called "Ferrets of the Caribbean," a takeoff on the movie. Ferret lovers dressed their pets in pirate costumes and paid to have photos taken. Barclay also sells ferret outfits -- shirts and hats -- as well as bedding and toys. For $15, you can buy a 2007 ferret calendar. August features a ferret on a scooter.

Barclay's goal is to get the ferrets in her shelter and foster home system adopted. She posts pictures and descriptions on her Web page:

"Zima is a talker, and you can hear her voice her opinions on everything as she happily chortles while walking about. This girl has a lot of personality and would work in well with any ferret family."

"Tempest and Calaban arrived in a Medford pet store with problem personalities. Tempest tries to bite at every opportunity and Calaban reacts with an abnormal level of terror with everyday movements and procedures (like scruffing and ear cleaning) and defends himself by using his teeth."

"Boomer has a habit of interacting with human wrists and exposed skin in a negative way."

Tofu, anyone?

Tom Hallman Jr.: 503 221-8224; This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it