I thought I would drop a line before I was unable to get online for
the next few days.

New Zealand (North Island)people: I will be in the Taupo area for the
next few days working on feral ferrets. I will probably be offline most
of that time and I will not return to the Hamilton area until after
the weekend. You can call my NZ cell phone at 021-068-9503. It will
probably be turned off while I am in the lab, but leave a voice mail
and I will return your call later that evening. To save money, I am
trying to limit all calls to just a few minutes, so the voice mail
feature is quite economically helpful.

Auckland people: please call and leave me a message; I think I can
travel to the Auckland area this coming weekend, either Saturday or
Sunday (the other has to be for work). I've misplaced some of my New
Zealand contact numbers, so if I have yet to contact you, please email
or call me. I will probably find the numbers as I sort through my stuff
to travel to the South Island, but until then you can easily contact
me faster. I know I've misplaced the contact for at least one northern
person, who I hope reads this and gets back to me asap.

South Island people: I will be in Christchurch approximately April 5
to May 2 (I'll have to return to the North Island for a couple of days
during the end of that time). The amount of work on the Southern Island
is staggering and I'll be working night and day to get as much done as
possible. I will take a day a week off for visits.

Australia people: I am scheduled to fly to Melbourne on May 2. My OZ
schedule is tight and being administered by local people, so you need
to get hold of me so we can get everyone on the same page.

England: You will be next after Australia (I might return to NZ for a
week or so first). I'll do a bit of England, then Scotland, and then
finish in England before traveling to the continent in mid-June.

In other news, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks and deep
appreciation to Meg Carpenter, who has made a sizable donation towards
this ferret research project. Meg has been ill and out of the ferret
community in recent years, but says she is recovering. Bless her heart,
not only was the amount of her donation quite generous, but she has
also indicated more will be on the way in the future. With the other
recent donations from the AFA and the KC Ferret Hotline (likewise
extremely generous), Meg has insured I will be able to afford a week's
expenses while in Europe, helping to prolong my work at least that
long to maximize the amount of data I can collect. The more data, the
better the questions are answered.

Another person (who wishes to remain anonymous) has donated funds to
buy me dinner in Christchurch at a restaurant they once visited. My
only wish is that I could have them there to share the meal. Thank
you very much for your kindness and generosity. It is heartfelt and
extremely moving, and I deeply appreciate the thoughtfulness of the
gesture. I will accept your recommendations and enjoy every bite, I
am sure.

All non-anonymous donators will be on the acknowledgement list that
will be published with all papers originating from this research,
including (but not limited to) feral ferret research, domestication
studies, DNA studies, ferret husbandry studies, ferret dietary studies,
ferret pathology, ferret dental disease, and more. Barely two weeks
into the research project and I have already discovered some profound
information and generated some astounding data, especially on the
feral ferret issue that has particular interest to California ferret
legalization. With the recent devaluation of the dollar, every single
penny donated helps, but more important is the sense of appreciation I
feel when someone elects to support this very important research. For
example, tomorrow I will be collecting DNA and various data on organs.
The DNA data will hopefully help identify disease markers in pet
ferrets, and the organ data will help vets determine what the normal
variation is in organs such as the heart, pancreas, liver, and spleen.
At the present time, no one knows what size and volume those organs
should be in non-farmed ferrets!

I will remind people that I hold the needs of ferrets foremost, so
please only offer a donation if your ferret's needs are already met
and you are sure you can afford it.

Thanks so much to the AFA, the KC Ferret Hotline, and Meg Carpenter!
Your gifts will go a long way towards funding the basic research needed
to help all ferrets, everywhere. The ferret community owes you a great
debt, as do I. Thank you.

Bob C [log in to unmask]

[Posted in FML 5923]