We in the MA FFZ have had such fun getting together and letting our ferrets
meet and play.   Several of us have gone to ferret shows in neighboring
states and had a great time.  It is intoxicating to see open appreciation of
ferret ownership.  We have even discussed the possibility of celebrating our
ferrets' liberation with a frolic of our own.  Experiences of Tracy Bussey's
new friends and Debbie Riccio give me pause though.  In our isolation we
have remained free of the dreaded Greenies.  Will we repeat the experiences
of the Native Americans in MA who greeted the Europeans, and unknowingly,
their diseases?
 
I worked in a hospital and no one thought it screwy to wear isolation garb
around infectious patients.  Now I might consider doing the same at ferret
conventions, but what can my ferrets do?   Until the contagion vectors can
be defined (e.g., how long can the virus live in the open air on clothing),
we don't know what is safe practice and what isn't.  We've been isolated
here, so we won't miss something we never had.  I sure won't miss the lack
of opportunity to get the Greenies.  If everybody is looking for a cause to
support, how about funding research on this?  I'm sure Uncle Sam isn't doing
everything possible to fund Dr. Williams in his research.
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My crew tear into the squeeky toys like they are prey.  They get shaken and
stolen from one another just like the shots of lions shown feeding on a
fresh kill.  The last thing I would say is going on is tender love.  We
can't understand the ferret mind, we can only observe behavior.  Be careful
about attributing human motivations to their actions (anthropomorphism).  We
have a tough enough time understanding the feelings of people from other
cultures and we are all humans.  Let's not start laying a false guilt trip
on playing with squeeky toys because we think it's a violation of ferret's
protective spirits (no one can know this, not even after three days of
"tests").  If you don't want to do it, that's fine.  Respect the rights of
others to do what they want.  Last time I checked, there is no "Thou shalt
not harm the squeeky toy" commandment.
   ( )--(a)
   (@=@=) \     Till next time.......Rudy the ferlosopher
   O__)  \ \___
      \   \
      /\ * )  \       I'm the wacko (with my sister Dot) in the isolation
suit.
[Posted in FML issue 1206]