Q: "I read how you bought some books at a ferret conference, I'm gonna
assume the books are to do about ferrets. Could you list some books you
recommend or bought about ferrets."
A: I could, but then people would read them, know all I know, and then
no one would ask me to talk to their group anymore. And since I live to
talk, well, you see the problem...I would die from public speaking
malnutrition.
Well, ok, since you are so nice. I bought six books at the conference
since I only had one child left that was willing for me to spend their
meager inheritence:
1. Exotic Pet Behavior: Birds, Reptiles, and Small Mammals. 2006 TB
Bays, T Lightfoot, & J Mayer. Saunders.
2. The 5-Minute Veterinary Consult: Ferret and Rabbit. 2006 BL
Oglesbee. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
3. Radiology of Rodents, Rabbits and Ferrets: An Atlas of Normal
Anatomy and Positioning. 2004 S Silverman & L Tell. Saunders.
4. Small Animal Dentistry. 2006 C Tutt. Blackwell.
5. Stereotypic Animal Behaviour: Fundamentals and Applications to
Welfare, 2nd ed. 2007 G Mason & J Rushen. CABI (pre-ordered, soon to
be released)
6. Small Animal Dental Equipment, Materials and Techniques: A Primer.
2004 J Bellows. Blackwell.
Ok, these books -- while interesting -- will probably not end up on the
average ferret owner's reference shelf, in part because they are so
expensive. Insead, I'll give you a list of my favorite books that are
aimed more towards the average ferret owner. In random order that does
not indicate preference:
1. Ferrets for Dummies. 2000 K Schilling. For Dummies. (A second
edition is in the works, but you can get the 1st edition in the
meantime. Kim uses the income from her book to help fund her animal
awareness and rehab programs).
2. The Ferret: An Owner's Guide to a Happy Healthy Pet. 1996 M R
Shefferman. Howell. (A bit dated now, but still very good. I don't
think Mary gets anything from Howell, so buy a copy direct from
Modern Ferret).
3. Keeping Unusual Pets: Ferrets. 2002 J McNicholas. Heinemann
Educational Books. (Dr. McNicholas is one of the very few animal
behaviorists that studies ferrets. This is a small, inexpensive
primer, but nonetheless outstanding).
4. Het Frettenboek. 2001 P van Zalinge, N Smeding, & Dr. J
Moorman-Roest. Stichting "De Fret". (Even though this is in Dutch,
the book is outstanding! It has the best ferret illustrations I have
ever seen and the book is worth every Euro just for the cartoons!
Look closely for the pooping ferret illustrations).
5. Lab Anatomy of The Mink. 1997 WJ Radke & RB Chiasson. McGraw-Hill
Science. (This is not about ferrets, but the schematic diagrams are
outstanding if you want an idea of the ferret's anatomy, which is
very similar. I suggest that ferret owners take the book with them
to the vet, and ask the vet to point out the exact anatomy they
are discussing. This is a standard dissecting manual for college
undergraduates, and cheap second-hand copies are common).
6. Ferret Husbandry, Medicine and Surgery. 2000 JH Lewington.
Butterworth-Heinemann. (A second edition is being published shortly.
Dr. Lewington's love for ferrets is clearly evident in this book,
which I highly recommend).
7. Ferrets: Health, Husbandry and Diseases. 1999 M Lloyd. Blackwell. (I
think a second edition is in the works, but the first edition is still
wonderful).
8. All About Your Ferret. 1999 S Crompton. Interpet Publishing. (A
very nice introductory primer from a lady who has been keeping ferrets
longer than I have been alive and probably long after I die).
9. Essentials of Ferrets: A Guide for Practitioners: An Update to a
Practioner's Guide to Rabbits and Ferret. 1999 K. Purcell & S Brown.
American Hospital Association (An easy read and well organized;
essential book in my opinion).
10. Ferrets, Rabbits and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery. 2003
K Quesenberry & JW Carpenter. Saunders. (Another outstanding book).
There are numerous other books on ferrets, and more are published
each year. As far as I am concerned, you can't have too many ferret
references!
Bob C [log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML 5492]
|
