Re: abuse at ferret show
I was not there, did not see the incident, and don't know any of the people
involved. However, what Kathy described certainly sounds like serious
abuse to me:
>"...this breeder grabbed this ferret and HIT IT...I mean SMACKED IT on THE
>HEAD...not once but TWICE and then proceeded to YANK his WHISKERS and pull
>his head to one side..all the while screaming "Bad ferret..NO, NO" "
I found Ms. McKimmey 's post "Re: perception of abuse" very disturbing.
>I am so glad to see that the AFA public persecutions are coinciding with
>the Easter holiday season.
No one is persecuting the AFA. This is about possible ferret abuse and the
lack of interest in following up on it.
>When the AFA gets multiple (more than one) complaints concerning a
>breeder, shelter or vendor, then and only then can steps be taken to
>determine if the accusations are true and action is warranted. AFA will
>not take action with information based solely from a single individual.
Why is one person's complaint not valid enough to look into? Perhaps this
policy should be changed. Other organizations who investigate cruelty will
do so at one person's complaint.
>Just because one person does not agree with something another individual
>is doing does not necessarily make that person s actions wrong or in this
>case abusive.
From the description, this sounds like serious abuse to me, not just
disagreeing with methods.
>This breeder s 10 year track record and reputation have always been clear
>of accusations of abuse, neglect or any other perpetration against ferrets.
This doesn't mean the incident didn't happen. Anyone is capable of abuse.
>Fact #2: Of all the people at the breeder s table, the people looking at
>the ferret in question, only one person, out of all those around, saw this
>disciplinary action as abusive. If Kathy thought the action was obviously
>flagrant disciplinary abuse, wouldn t the other people around at that time
>have considered the same and reported it?
No, not necessarily. First, perhaps other people did see it as abusive.
Second, many people do not want to get involved or do not know what to do
when they see cruelty. It still doesn't mean the incident didn't happen.
It just means only one person was courageous enough to try to do something
about it.
>Fact #3: The breeder, when questioned within 30 minutes of the alleged
incident, did not remember disciplining any of her ferrets while showing
them to others.
That still doesn't mean it didn't happen.
> Kathy s first action should have been to speak directly to the breeder to
>discuss her viewpoint of the actions she observed. Then, if Kathy wasn t
>satisfied with the response, her next course of action should be to report
>the incident to officials.
Kathy did what she thought was appropriate. Sometimes confronting a
potentially violent person directly may not be the wisest course of action.
>Animal abuse should not be tolerated, child abuse should not ss tolerated,
>and the public character abuse of an individual without substantiated proof
>should not be tolerated.
Yes, I agree. Therefore, I think this incident should be looked into. If
the AFA isn't interested in pursuing it, then an outside agency should be
called in. I also agree with the people who have suggested that perhaps
ferret shows need to be monitored, especially if reported incidents of
cruelty aren't taken seriously.
>If you really want to make a difference in the ferret world, then please
>volunteer for the AFA. If there is something you don t like about the
>AFA, then YOU work to make it better! Don t just sit there on your
>computer and bitch about it!
It goes without saying that there are many people on the FML who are very
actively involved in helping ferrets. Reporting animal abuse is not the
same as "sitting on your computer and bitching about it."
I find it disturbing that the president of the AFA is not interested in
pursuing allegations of animal abuse at their own show.
I hope this incident will be looked into.
Ronnie DiComo
[Posted in FML issue 3006]
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