This is an excerpt from a letter written by Bill Phillips of the CDFA which
we carried back in issue 039:
 
| One of the tragic incidents involved a 6 month old infant in England that was
| killed by her father's polecat-ferrets*1. The newspaper clipping of that
| incident included in their chapter to show just how misleading information
| can be when it is taken out of context and misrepresented by so-called
| "authorities".
|
| In every case that is reported there are common themes that seem always to be
| present.
|
| First, there is always gross parental neglect.
|
| Two short examples: In the English case the parents went down to the local
| pub for a few hours leaving the baby unattended. The home showed signs of
 gross
| neglect, not only of the baby, but of all animals therein. The animals
 involved
| in the incident were "polecat-ferrets". The term "polecat-ferret" has special
| meaning in England and refers to a polecat-ferret cross that is bred for
| hunting. (Handbook of British Mammals, Supra).
|
| In the Carson City case involving a 29 day old baby the facts established that
| while the monther was out drinking with friends, the father was home drinking
| by himself. He placed the animal in question, which had been found in the
| backyard the day before, in the baby's crib to quiet the child. He fell into
| a drunken stupor and when the mother returned several hours later, the baby
| had been chewed on by the animal resulting in disfiguring injuries. Who did
| the investigating officer (Det. Coffee) blame? The animal. It makes you
| seriously question the minimum standards for being a detective in Carson City.
 
[The latter infant did not die.]
 
This is the one probably you're referring to (issue 123):
 
|Date:  Wed, 6 Feb 1991 10:03:00 -0500
|From: Len Bliss <CONRAD.APPSTATE.EDU!BLISSLB>
|Subject: Alleged ferret attack on baby
|
|>From the Charlotte Observer (6 February 1991) reprinted without permission
|(of course!):
|
|              PET FERRET ATTACKS, KILLS 2 1/2 - MONTH-OLD BABY
|
|    Portland, Ore. -- A 2 1/2 -month-old baby died after she was attacked
|in her sleep by the family's pet ferret.
|    Vivian Bettencourt bled to death after she was repeatedly bitten,
|state medical examiner Dr. Larry Lewman said.  Lewman said he knew of no
|other fatal ferret attacks anywhere else in the United States, although the
|19- to 21-inch-long animals, relatives of weasels, minks and otters are
|blamed for numerous attacks on people.
 
These are the only serious attacks I have anything on.  No followup on the
latter.  But this may give you some leads.
 
[Posted in FML issue 0758]