Hi
 
This is in regards to Mr. Lipinski's post yesterday.  Mr. Lipinski seems to
posses a knowledge of hunting predators, yet I wonder about his knowledge
of evolution.  The domestic ferret is thought to have been domesticated for
about 2000yrs.  During that time evolutionary pressures probably differed on
the animals.  Some cultures might have bred them as pest control, while
others bred them as simply pets.  In both cases the breeder is going to be
selecting for different traits.  The ferret bred for pest control would most
likely be a better hunter and more "wild", since this would aid in their
function.  These same traits would not be desirable if you wanted a ferret
as a pet.  I would think a breeder would look for temperament and
characteristics such as color and size for pets.
 
Obviously basic instincts in any animal, person, dog, or ferret will never
be totally removed no matter how long they have been domesticated, but it is
only natural that these instincts that become less and less necessary would
not be as prevalent in these animals.  While I do not doubt that ferrets
still have a predatory nature to them, I would highly doubt that ferrets are
closer to wild animal, than to other domestic animals such as a dog or cat.
 
Mr. Lipinski seems to be basing his entire argument on an experience that he
observed with one ferret.  This can not be considered the norm and be used
as the basis to judge the amount of predatory instinct still left in
ferrets.  That is just poor logic which has no scientific evidence to back
it up.
 
If one example of poor behavior is used to asses the temperament of an
animal think what an outside observer might think of humanity if their only
experience with people had been through the observations of people like
Charles Manson or Ted Bundy.  I surely do not want my character based on a
few bad humans or a few bad instances.
 
Travis, Loki & Powder
[Posted in FML issue 2258]