I was visiting my local people doctor a few days ago and noticed this
bulletin tacked on the wall : [I'd like to find the folx who wrote this
and correct them on it...]
 
(without permission)
 
"The New Hampshire Division of Public Health Services'
 
Epidemiology Bulletin
 
Volume VIII Number 2 .. March - April, 1993
 
Health Advisory
 
FERRETS POSE RABIES RISK
 
Ferrets are now available for purchase as pets in New Hampshire.
Although they appear cute and playful, the public needs to be fully
informed about the potential danger of injury and rabies from these
animals.
 
Ferrets, which are being sold commercially as pets, were developed from
European polecats as fierce and aggressive fighters used for capturing
and killing rats, rabbits, and snakes.  They are not afraid of people
and remain potentially dangerous, especially around infants, because of
their tendency to attack without warning.
 
A California Department of Health Services study of 452 ferret attacks
on humans in 18 states and London, England occuring from 1978 through
1987 included 64 unprovoked attacks on infants and young children.  Many
of the children's injuries were severe and required plastic and
reconstructive surgery.  Most of these injuries were located in the head
and throat areas;  and most attacks occured when the victims were lying
down or sleeping, often when adults were not present.  It is thought that
human infant sounds (such as sucking on pacifiers and baby bottles),
odors and behavior which are similar to those of baby rabbits, which are
natural prey for ferrets, may be trigger for ferret attacks.  Two years
ago, a 2-1/2 month old baby was killed by a pet ferret in Oregon.
 
Ferrets are also considered to be high risk animals for rabies with at
least 12 documented cases record in the United States.  Rabid ferrets
have been found in pet shops, people's homes and in the wild.  There is a
rabies vaccine available which offers some protection for the ferret.
However, so little is known about the period of infectiousness and the
clinical signs of rabies disease in this animal that the New Hampshire
Division of Public Health Services and the Federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention recommend that any ferret (immunizied or
unimmunized) which has exposed a human by its saliva through a bite or
by salivary, brain, or spinal cord tissue contamination of a person's
eye, inside of the nose, or mouth or contamination of a scratch,
abrasion or open wound should be killed immediately and examined in the
laboratory for rabies.  In one instance where a rabid ferret had been
taken to school in another state, over two dozen people were exposed to
rabies.
 
Ferrets are very skillful at escaping from cages and from houses; so the
ferret which is caged indoors cannot be considered safe for people in
the house and people in the neighborhood, epecially infants.  New
Hampshire residents are urged to consider the potential risks of ferret
ownership for themselves and especially their children before they buy
these animals as pets."
 
#eof
 
(all typos are mine)
 
[Posted in FML issue 0529]