I find this to be a really interesting question.  I'm not sure whether
nature or nurture wins though.

I am a huge animal fan.  I currently have a dog, a cat and two
ferrets.  At one time I had the dog, cat and 5 ferrets.  I am seriously
contemplating getting my dog a dog of her own and taking on the stray cat
that's been haunting the neghborhood for weeks.  I would have infinite
numbers of all sorts of critters if I could afford it and had the space.
I like most things with fur and many things without.  I can't imagine
living without a pet in my life.

My sister however has a dog and will only have dogs.  She hates cats
and dislikes the ferrets.  My brother had a bird and wants a dog, but
currently has neither.  We had dogs growing up, but nothing else.  My mom
accepts the ferrets only because I love them so.  (My dad pretty much
likes most animals, though he's a dog person.  Ferrets wouldn't be his
first choice, but he does think they're funny.)  The siblings and I had
the same upbringing and the same gene pool to draw from and yet I am the
only one that's nuts over all manner of critters and has a house full.

My cousins grew up with no animals in the house, but outside barn
cats.  The older sister does not like any animals at all and has none.
The younger now has two indoor kitties that are her babies and is
contemplating a third.  Again, same rearing and same gene pool from
which to draw.

The grandmother that we share was not a pet person and didn't allow pets
in the house when our moms were growing up.  All the animals lived
outside (they lived out in the country).  Of her three daughters, one
strongly dislikes indoor pets, one is tolerant but has never had one
herself and the other has outdoor dogs.  All three of the men they
married like animals.  (An intersting note- my grandmother, even though
she disliked indoor animals, always allowed me to bring my fuzzies when I
came to see her.  Her love for me outweighed her dislike of the critters.
My aunt that hates indoor pets got her husband a pair of kittens as a
retirement surprise because she knew he had wanted a cat for a long time.
My other aunt routinely cares for her daughter's cats when the cousin has
to go out of town because of her love for her daughter.  It seems love is
capable of breaking past animal dislikes.)

My siblings and cousins and I are all within 5 years of each other in
age.  We share similar political and religious beliefs.  We share similar
personalities for the most part.  All of us have at least a bachelor's
degree and some of us have masters and doctorates.  All of us are pretty
easy to get along with and enjoy spending time with each other.  The pet
preferences are the only wild card among us.  I'm usually pretty
suspicious of anyone that doesn't like animals, and yet my cousin that
doesn't is still a delight to hang out with.  Go figure, huh?  So my
family shoots both nature and nurture theories all to pieces.

I will say that the ferret people I know seem to be more accepting of
others (perhaps because so much of the time we have to justify our love
for these sweet, unique little critters).  Ferret people seem to be
universally artistic, and unique as well.  I haven't heard of any ferret
owners that are compulsive neat freaks (how impossible would that be?!).
Most are passionate about their pets.  Ferret lovers are generous to a
fault, willing to reach out and help strangers.  Based on the stories
I've read on the FML, many seem to have a well developed sense of humor.
The list of attributes could go on and on.  The question might be, do
these traits lead a person to pick a ferret as a pet or does the
influence of the ferrets make us develop these traits, making us more
like the ferrets themselves?  Hmmmm...

A
[Posted in FML issue 5271]