I have a couple of comments regarding the seizure of ferrets from
Carole McCraig on 1/29/08. Before I go into my comments and opinions,
I want to give some background information on Animal Control and the
SPCA. Virginia Beach Animal Control has taken in ferrets and adopted
or released ferrets to shelters and the public for as long as I have
lived in VB. That being said, while the vets on staff may not be on
par with say my personal ferret vet, I believe that they have the
essential knowledge and skills to make judgment calls on whether or
not to humanely destroy a ferret based on the condition and overall
well-being. Many times I have picked up ferrets from VBAC that have had
medical conditions including adrenal gland disease (obvious alopecia),
insulinoma, chordomas, lymphoma, etc. I was informed of those
conditions prior to pickup. In the Commonwealth of Virginia, ACOs are
required to investigate every complaint thoroughly and make decisions
based on what they observe. They are not storm troopers who break down
your door, grab Fifi from your loving arms and rush to destroy because
they can. Every ACO whom I have met and worked with, including in this
seizure, work this job because they love animals and as a group are
caring, professional people with a sometimes terrible job to do.

The SPCA has never taken in or released/adopted ferrets -- at least not
in the past 15 years or so. That decision was made by the executive
director, Sharon Adams. So this is a very unusual situation for the
SPCA.

Both the SPCA and VBAC have vets on staff who care for the animals in
their charge. They are professional veterinarians who chose to work for
these government agencies instead of branching into their own practice
because of the animals.

The seizure that took place last Tuesday was building for some time.
How can I say that? Based on the number of people posting to the FML
who were aware that Carole was having problems with her health for an
extended period of time. If any one of these people had reached out to
someone local, this whole situation might have been avoided. Nothing
much more than a phone call or email saying, "Hey I think Carole may
need some help with the ferrets -- do you think you can call her/email
her and offer assistance in taking care of the ferrets?" Some folks
have asked me privately why I didn't call her and check on her. I
didn't know that she was sick and unable to care for her animals. I
have a job, my own shelter and it never dawned on me that she needed
help. If I had, I would have been the first out there to help. So do
I perhaps carry partial responsibility for what has happened?

I was not on site when the seizure occurred -- I was in Richmond, VA
attending a Business Meeting when I got the call.

I did not see the condition of any of the ferrets until 24 hours
later -- the 21 at the SPCA. The ferrets at the SPCA range in ages
(approximate) from 2 - 5+ years, based on a physical exam and condition
of the teeth. What I saw was not cruelty, but it was neglect. All the
ferrets reeked of urine. All of the ferrets had nails longer than 1/2"
in length and front and back paws were caked with excrement. Two of the
ferrets still required subcutaneous fluids because of dehydration. All
of the ferrets had flea and ear mite infestations, requiring treatment.
All of the ferrets were underweight and had prominent rib cages. One
ferret has a broken toe, requiring treatment. One ferret has either an
injury or growth on the back leg. One ferret has either early onset
adrenal or urine burns on the vulva. All the ferrets have significant
gingivitis, requiring treatment. A number of these ferrets have
problems with their teeth that may require extraction (grey/black
teeth at the gum line). One ferret has a broken canine down to the
nerve and irritation on the lower lip, requiring treatment. Two
ferrets have either broken or kinked tails. One ferret has a possible
upper respiratory infection. This list of problems may seem minor but
remember there are 18 more ferrets at the VBAC I have not been able
to see yet, on top of the 61 that were humanely destroyed.

I feel sympathy for Carole because of the public manner in which this
was handled but I feel that had she asked for help, that she would
still have these ferrets. I saw the ferrets at the SPCA and there is
no question in my mind that they were being neglected.

I think that every shelter, every rescue and every person that takes
in ferrets needs to use this as a valuable lesson -- I'm sure that she
did not see the decline of these ferrets as she saw them every day
but someone coming in from the outside could have immediately spotted
problems. I believe AC when they stated that the ferrets had no water
or food. They have no reason to lie. I do not believe that AC acted
irresponsibly in euthanizing ferrets but in fact acted in the best
interests of the ferrets. We need to address the issue of
responsibility - you can only take in those that you know you can care
for - no more, no less - and each shelter has different limitations
but the most important part is to be able to recognize what those
limitations are and stick to them. Shelters are supposed to be a second
chance for these unlucky ferrets that were given up by their owners. We
need to as a community reach out to shelters and ask if they need help.
We need to police our own house so that situations like this never
happen again.

While some reading this may think I do not believe Carole is a good
person that is a wrong assumption. It is good that Carole has so many
supporters who are aware of the good she has done for ferrets in the
past, and have brought this to everyone's attention. I am sure this
support is a comfort to her at this time, when her situation has been
made so very public. She *is* a good person and has done a lot for the
ferret community but somewhere down the line, she lost her way and
sight of what needed to be done to help the ferrets in her care.

Lisa  Leidig, Head Ferret
Shelter Wench in good standing
The Ferret Haven  "By-the-Sea"
www.ferrethaven.org

[Posted in FML 5875]