Dear FMLers,
        Can I pick your brain on a question?
        It just crossed my mind that if horses have never been studied
for the incubation period and yet these outdoor animals are granted a 10
day quarantine period, why hasn't anyone been able to sue the government
for discriminatory practices if their ferret was seized and killed? Even
though they are not "bitey" carnivores, they bite people often - I have been
bitten by horses and know many people who have been bitten by horses. As
animals with
unproven rabies incubation period, it would seem they are more of a
threat to the spread of rabies than pet domestic ferrets since most horses
live in barns and encounter wildlife more frequently, yet if a horse bites
someone the animal is granted a 10 day quarantine period and not
instantly killed as a ferret is. If the horse doesn't show signs of
illness, it is not killed.
        Horses are companion animals just as much as ferrets are. This
appears to be an extremely discriminatory practice on the part of the
government. What is to stop anyone whose ferret was seized and killed
from sueing the government for this unjust practice? Does anyone know of
any reasons that justify this difference?  (except for the fact that
horse owners would be up in arms if their pets were confiscated and
killed anytime someone was bitten)
 
                        Kari
[Posted in FML issue 1085]