On my fourteenth birthday, I’ll never forget it, I bought myself a pet ferret. I was a bit hesitant about the present, but my dad assured me that the ferret was a great gift. Wow … thanks, I thought. Who wants a stupid ferret? I wanted a dog. Not just any dog, a rotweiler. I guess my father had other plans. So to be mean, I named the ferret ‘Dookie’, because it had some spots of brown hair. In the first few hours playing with ‘Dookie’, I realized that ferrets were fascinating creatures. And the more I got to know ‘Dookie the ferret’, the more I started to realize just how cool ferrets are. I came to love my ferret.
Three years passed and ‘Dookie’ was by my side. We’d survived most of high school, several girlfriends, and all the late-night sessions together. He really was one of my best friends. I took great care of my ferret, made sure to bathe him every day. I cleaned his cage with a special deodorant for ferrets, three times a week. I made sure to completely ferret-proof my house and give him the proper diet. And due to the care of my ferret during those three years, ‘Dookie’ became a strong and intelligent ferret. What was special about my ferret was the way he found a way to make me laugh, every day. You know how people say that dogs have personality, and they do. Well, ferrets have their own unique personalities and, to me, their fun, hilarious animals.
By the age of 4, my pet ferret had reached the peak of his life. ‘Dookie’ was a fully mature ferret, cunning and fast. But ‘Dookie’ was no match for one of his most feared foes; a reclining sofa also known as a crushing ferret. One day, after a long soccer practice, I let ‘Dookie’ out. I was always pretty sure where I would go. Really, ‘Dookie’ roamed the house like he owned the place. I knew recliners were potential ferret killers, my family had the sofa before I got it. I see my dad didn’t check his ferret’s information. Anyway, ‘Dookie’ never, in the four years that I had him, got on the couch. The key word is “in”. When my mom sat on the recliner, the chair buckled and there was a loud howl. He immediately knew what had happened. I didn’t want to believe it at first. Worse still, I could bear to look under the couch, to make sure that this is what happened to my precious pet ferret. Half an hour stuck and my mother came into my room. I will never forget what he said: “All ferrets go to heaven.”