Hi howard;
on 11/8, FML you said" I am acquainted with at least one case in which a
ferret subjected to regular doses of CS was recently diagnosed as suffering
from severe heavy metal toxicity, with no other apparent cause."
 
    I would be very interested in learning from what company the product
was obtained, what ppm strength, how long it was used, the health history
of the ferret in all other respects, and exactly how & what numbers it was
"diagnosed as having heavy metal toxicity".  Was that a lab report, or a
seat of the pants "feeling".  Also, what metals exactly were present in
what ammounts?
 
    I've never heard of silver being called a heavy metal contaminant like
mercury.  We don't make "mercuryware for eating, as we do, or at least used
to be able to afford, real SILVERware.  Lots of history records increased
health benefits from using silver in connection with human food
consumption.  The phrase "he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth" had
real meaning as a person who could afford to use silver did enjoy better
overall health than the peasants that used wood.
 
    The biggest difference concerning a hazzard, is the way a CS preparation
is made.  If if it is in a salt form, it can accumulate under the skin,
causing greying of color.  The Silver Wings company (which I have no
connection with or profit from at all), uses clusters of 15 atoms of pure
silver, or fewer, attached to a molecule of a simple protein, These
electrically charged particles of silver range from 0.01 to about 0.001
microns in diameter, and are suspended in deionized water.  The force of the
electric charge is stronger than gravity, so the silver particles remain
suspended.  (Of course the electrical charge spoken of is like static
electricity, nothing like what is in your wall plug, so it poses no danger
that way).  (I realize younger people might be reading this, and I add that
for clarity).
 
    I am not "reacting, or flaming" at all here, but would really like to
see data on this claim, as I do use the stuff with noticable benefit, but
want to be aware of any possible side effects, if there are any.  There is
just about nothing more important in my life than my children, two or four
legged!
 
    The reason CS lost popularity was after the 1920's stock market crash,
silver & gold prices went through the roof, and the "new" synthetic
antibiotics were simply cheaper then.  Now the reverse is the case, and as
the synthetics have side effects, some very bad or even lethal especially
when doctors mix them, and they cost an arm & a leg.  The drug companies
would like nothing better than to put the "competiton" out of business with
some scare campaign.  That's what happened to canabis even though the US
surgen general at the time testified in 2 weeks of closed hearings that
there was no health risk from it's usage at all.  But Dow chemical wanted
to eliminate the competition to their newly patented synthetic fibers
nylon, orlon & rayon.  (the plant produced a long plant fiber that can be
woven into linen quality cloth.  The dept.  of agriculture even had a film
asking farmers to grow the plant as it was 7 times more productive than
trees for paper pulp, didn't cause acid rain, and fixed nitrogen to the
soil like legumes did.  So they could not use the commonly known names of
canabis the the medical industry knew, or the name that the farmers knew,
hemp, so they developed a lie/smeer campaign & borrowed a slang term that
no one knew to make the public believe some new threat had appeared that
needed to be outlawed.  I think you can guess the "m" word.
 
    Anyway, the reason for that is simply to point out that history reveals
that things that work too well and too cheaply are the terror of big
business that wants to empty your pockets!  (for the above story I have
copies of government documents that absolutely proves the content, and is
not a solicitation of argument or flaming).  The most common tactic used is
dis-information, where the "threat" is discredited with mis-information.
I've heard lots of "I'm concerned", & "I hear", but that is what the Cal.
F&G has been saying about the domestic ferret for several years now.  (I
just saw a tape of the hearings last week).  Lots of concerns & fears they
have, and distorted "facts" that the pro ferret lobby "shot full of holes"
in the words of the commissioner, (about the F&G report!  ) -Job well done K
al'ifornia!
 
    So to close, I'm not "defending" anything, nor am I attacking anything,
except maby corporate greed at the expense of our health & purses, as I
make no profit one way or the other.  I AM very concerned with ferret
health, including my own, and simply seek the most accurate information on
which to make intellegent decisions.
 
     Sincerely, Gary
 
Violence is not strength,  Compassion is not weakness.    From Camelot.
[Posted in FML issue 1374]