> From:    Nancy Rhyner <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Ann Arbor Ferrets
>
> I don't know how many (if any) FML people are in the Ann Arbor, MI
> area, but you may want to pick up the July 23 issue of the A2 News.
 
indeed, there are a few of us. i even posted several times about it. :)
 
> It's got a big writeup on ferrets, accompanying a story about a four year
> old who is undergoing a series of rabies shots after being bitten by a
> ferret.  The little girl's father is vowing to "go after the Legislature
> to stop this menace".
 
General summary: there were two articles, one which was the main article,
and one 'hangers-on' article. The main article opens up, "Melissa
Litwicki is alternately stroking and scolding her sable-coat ferret. The
cute little critter named Noodle is trying to nip her <sic> mistress's
<sic> fingers and burrow under her sleeve." *wry grin*  Well, i was, and
/he/ was. The article next blurbs about the recent legalization and
subsequent boom in ferret sales, then gets into the rabies bit and starts
throwing MI Dept. of Pub. Health quotes everywhere. Lots of people have
talked to me about this section and the additional article on rabies in
ferrets, and it seems every one of them can sniff out the difference
between a person who is educated and responsible towards animals and a
person who, like the man in the article, decides to put his 4 year old
daughter through a series of rabies shots 'just in case,' even though 1)
the ferret had been vaccinated, and 2) it tested negative for rabies.
It's frequently not enough that someone's pet has to be put down,
unfortunately.  Emotion and reason are often not compatible.
 
The article continues with Dr. Daldin (who had been harrassed by the DPH
a day or two previously for stating that ferrets made good pets)
stressing that to be a ferret owner, as with ANY pet, you have to be
responsible. They have unique needs, and if you can't accomodate those,
they're probably not the pet for you. Rah! the HSUS only gets a brief
blurb saying they refuse to release ferrets to homes with children.
 
The gist of the article: People are easily scared and the government
would prefer to have matters in its own hands. You need to be a
responsible, sensitive and dedicated pet owner to own a ferret.
 
> are awfully hypocritical.  A 150lb Rottweiler or pit bull can do a lot
> more damage than an entire pack of ferrets.  Yet the carpet sharks are
> outlawed.  Has any explanation ever been given for this?
 
Vicki stated that in the article, actually.  You know, nobody who read
the article and came up to me thought it was a bad or misrepresentative
article. Not the people who know my ferrets (who think what i stated
above) or the people who dont (who said it was a cute article).  Im
trusting in the general intelligence of the ann arbor community. There
are a lot of ferret owners here, and most people are pretty darn well
educated. "That guy was obviously a freak," said most of my friends (and
my mom).
 
> Has any reasonable explanation ever been offered for the prejudice the
> uneducated hold against ferrets?
 
Unfortunately, there are many different predjudices out there. As ferret
owners, we can educate a lot of those people. Carry your ferret down the
street. Youll be stopped by at least two people. Take it to the park.
Show kids. Show parents. Ferrets uber alles. :)
 
Melissa & her little troop o' teachers
 
  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Melissa Litwicki                                    [log in to unmask]
    Radio Controlled Operation In Vivid Six Ways Of Movement With Reality!
[Posted in FML issue 1265]