I don't remember where I read this, but cats and ferrets were used on ships
crossing the oceans to control rat problems on board.  The ferrets would
flush the rats and mice out of the grain bins and other crevices, and the
cats would kill and eat the rodents.
 
Ferrets have also been used for rat fights (a crude sport like cock fighting
or dog fighting), where the ferret was turned loose in an area filled with
rats, and the winner of the matches was the owner of the ferret who killed
the most rats in the allotted amount of time.  Thankfully, some sports die
with time.
 
Pam
[Posted in FML issue 2087]