I will be leaving for Christchurch on April 10, so you Northern Island
Kiwis need to be on your toes! ;-) Please email me and I'll stop by for
a visit. Please! I need your ferret's DNA! I have to leave New Zealand
by May 2, although I have not totally eliminated the idea of a short
return visit before I head off to Europe.

I could do so much more work here on the North Island, but I'm already
ahead of what I expected. I just have to say that there is a point
where staying in one location hurts research in the others. It is time
to go.

Still, Dr. King has become a great friend and I look forward to
publishing with her in the future. Both she and her husband have gone
out of their way to make my stay comfortable and profitable. Ken is
quite the cook and I have new recipes to try out in the future. Kim is
funny, highly insightful and intelligent. I gave her one of Jeanne
Carley's calendars and Kim loved it. She laughed out loud and marveled
at the beautiful work done by Jeanne. It made her very happy. So now
one of the top mustelid experts in the world has a copy of Jeanne's
Ferret Calendar.

I have made a lot of friends on the North Island that I wish I could
mention by name, but I can't and keep them anonymous. Still, you all
know who you are and how much I appreciated the visits and you allowing
me to collect DNA. Please hug your ferrets from me and please keep in
close touch so I can send photos to you when I return home to the USA.
Remember to brush your ferret's teeth! ;-) It is very exciting to see
ferrets so beloved in New Zealand. Californians have it made compared
to Kiwi ferret owners.

I have already tentatively confirmed two of my dental hypotheses.
Genetics -- while it may play a minor role in the excess wear of ferret
teeth -- is not the primary factor in the excessive wear of pet ferret
teeth (it is diet); and ferrets that eat a whole carcass diet, or those
containing raw whole foods, have much better dental hygiene (less
gingivitis, periodontal disease) than ferrets that eat kibble. It is
very exciting and I have photos! Also, and not so well documented yet,
ferrets (feral or not) that eat kibble have significantly elevated
rates of insulinoma compared to ferrets on a low carbohydrate diet --
regardless of the carbohydrate! I've only done crude statistical
analyses thus far, but if the numbers from the rest of the trip follow
the trend, it will be a major paper for a vet journal, and one that
would be extremely hard to rebut.

By the way; as I always expected to discover, California ferrets cannot
form the same types of populations as feral ferrets in New Zealand.
Also, regardless of what the New Zealand government (DOC) and the CDFG
says, the damage done by ferrets is minor to the damage done by cats,
dogs, rats, sheep, pigs, red deer, possums, and cattle, to name a few.
Being able to talk to people and get the evidence has made a world of
difference. I am pretty damn sure I can write a devastating rebuttal
to the feral argument when I return. HOWEVER -- and this is why I've
recommended the Californians hold off a little until I get back --
there is a pitfall that requires some scientific empirical data to
back up the rebuttal.

The key is the DNA. It can sink the CDFG argument and perhaps blow
holes in the argument presented by the DOC. The DNA is also the pitfall
for the Californians. It could show modern feral ferrets have been
breeding to modern pet ferrets (very, very bad; it probably means
escaped pet ferrets are surviving and breeding) or it could show the
modern ferrets have little modern pet ferret DNA (very, very good;
it probably means pet ferrets are not getting DNA into the feral
population). It could also be inconclusive and not mean much of
anything (not so bad, but not great either -- at least it can't be
used as evidence against us). If the Californians are presenting and
the research comes out to show pet ferret DNA in the feral population,
it can whack them on the butt. So, I guess timing is the issue. Get it
done quick or wait for the DNA results, but don't get caught with your
pants down!

Good or bad, the DNA results will be published. I have already sent in
the first 55 DNA samples. That small sampling alone beats the majority
of the genetics work done on mustelids of any type, and will end up
being the largest and best rounded ferret/polecat DNA study ever done.

I want to thank Meg Carpenter (again!). She read of my recent hard
drive crash and sent funds to cover the loss! Thank you so much, Meg!!
Every cent helps in this endeavor and Meg has helped tremendously! For
a research trip of this magnitude, money equals time, and time is the
thing I need most. Time to travel, time to visit collections, time to
made precise and accurate measurements, time to do necropsies, time
to collect husbandry information, time to collect DNA, and the time
afterwards to keep all documents and logs up to date. Meg has helped
me make up that lost time. I cannot thank her and all the other
contributors who have made this very important trip possible.

Bob C [log in to unmask]

[Posted in FML 5937]