Sukie, I was not sure whether you meant Steve wanted a card with the Oxford
English Dictionary definition of "ferret" or of "business".  You probably
wouldn't want the former, as it is one of the only references I have seen
that calls the ferret "half-tamed", and it is also closer to the way the
British regard ferrets: "a half-tamed variety of the common polecat
(Putorius foetidus), kept for the purpose of driving rabbits from their
burrows, destroying rats, etc." (supporting text from 1398-1496 e.g.  "a
fyrette hyghte Migale and is a lytyll beest as it were a wesel").  Business
has a obsolete definition #9 of "A company of ... ferrets" (supporting text
from 1486).  My OED is the 1933 edition, though, so these definitions are
perhaps from about 1888 (letter 'B') - 1895 (letter 'F', Fee-Field).  Maybe
someone who has the more recent version can tell us whether any more
scholarship has been added for these definitions.
 
A medical question for our vets: I wish to know if anyone thinks a ferret
with one adrenal gland removed might produce less of the adrenal
corticosteroids similar to our (synthetic one) prednisone than normal, and
that since this type of chemical is apparently linked to blood sugar
regulation (?), having only a single adrenal therefore might in some cases
have any possible link to occasional low blood sugar episodes in animals
with one adrenal.  A vet I talked to seemed to think low blood sugar is
indicative of insulinoma and only insulinoma, but she didn't really have any
medical response to my prednisone/corticosteroid/low blood sugar idea.  If
this holds any possibility of truth, would there be any way to tell the two
situations (one adrenal-low blood sugar vs.  insulinoma) apart?
 
Finally, I got a what looked like a canned response from Megan Mullin,
Legislative Aide, Sierra Club CA.  She very politely repeated the language
of the web page and said that the policies were generated by the Sierra Club
California Legislative Committee ("a group of volunteer activists, under the
guidance of local chapters, regional groups, and the statewide Conservation
Committee"), to which she would forward my concerns.  She said the policies
were democratically decided upon within the Sierra Club.  I think it might
be good to look into this and help her get our views to the right people.
 
Todd Cromwell (Dors and Seldon)
[Posted in FML issue 1950]