>From:    CHUCK PULLIAM <[log in to unmask]>
>In regards to E.  Lipinski's post entitled "abusive ferret control", where
>he suggests squirting water IN THE EAR of the "abusive ferret", GET REAL !
 
Dear Chuck,
 
Thank you for you obvious concern for the ferret and his ears.  If you care
to reread my post, I specifically wrote that a 2 to 3 foot distance should
exist between the sprayer and the sprayee.  Squirting a stream of water at a
moving, wresling ferret shaking its head with its victim in its jaws is
hardly the same as, as you say, above: ""squirting water IN THE EAR" or
"force a stream of water into the ear."
 
You'd be damn lucky to get any water in its ear from that distance and under
the circumstances I've described.  And, if you did, it's not exactly a
river, and since the inertial force of the water stream is just about
expended at the point of contact, can it amount to more than a drizzle?  If
you have ever had your ferrets dive in a pool of water for raisins, you may
recall that they immerse their heads totally - way over their ears - with
both their eyes and mouth wide open, as they grasp the submerged raisin in
their teeth.
 
Water in a ferret's ears, when done purposefully by the ferret, as in
diving, seems to cause them very little,if any, discomfort.  However, when
administered suddenly and without warning, whether in his ears or not, must
be shockingly abrupt to the ferret's sensibilities.  That is precisely the
effect we're after to dissuade abhorent behavior.  It works !  Hey, it's
meant to be abusive.
 
As an added note, the waxy accretions in most ferret's ear canals and the
convuluted creases, and the downward pathway, all these factors do not favor
the acceptance nor the retention of water.  If you would please explain how
the use of tap water used as I've suggested produces ear infections and can
rupture the tympanic membrane.
 
Again, thank you for your concern.
 
Edward Frettchenvergnuegen Lipinski, Der Frettchenlustbarkeitsfuerher !
[Posted in FML issue 2109]