>From:    "Capt. Nodrog" <[log in to unmask]>
>After reading of all the ferret horror stories and all over the years and
>also here, I can only deduce that these animals are grossly not understood
>and the public at large are not very well educated on the needs ane ways
>of these magnificant animals.
 
One could also make the same statement regarding any animal.  How about
horses?  Llamas?  Gerbils, chinchillas, snakes (see my sig), iguanas,
lizards, goats, tortoises, degus, parrots, monkeys, cichlids, hamsters,
etc, etc, etc.  The number of books and TV programs about taking care of
cats and dogs could lead one to assume that these animals are not very well
understood either.
 
>I do not mean to suggest they be made illegal, but I do mean to offer
>the need for legislation to qualify potential owners prior to taking
>possession, and licensing the owners as well as the pets to insure the
>continued health and well being of the animals.
 
Um.  Why do people think that more laws will fix all problems?  And who do
you propose is going to make and enforce these laws?  Who is going to
decide what constitutes "proper care", hmmm?  People on this list can't
even agree on certain aspects of ferret care-taking that basically boil
down to personal preferences; can you imagine trying to get input for
legislation?  Are we talking about dictating minimum cages sizes and types,
food brands, and required toys, as well as veterinary care?  And what about
those who don't believe in cages?  Are they not going to be allowed to have
ferrets?  Or if the non-cage people make the laws, will they deny ferret
ownership to people who believe in using cages?  And once all these
"qualifications" are in place, who is going to pay for and organize the
probable class(es) and tests that would be required before someone would be
allowed to buy a ferret?  What about home inspections?  Are they going to
be required each year (six months?, one month? - heck, you can't be too
careful you know) before renewing the person's license?  Who is going to do
this?  Do you know how many people in the US (I'm being US-centric) keep
ferrets?  I don't, but the numbers have got to be prohibitive for any kind
of do-able licensing scheme that requires someone to come inspect your
house before deciding you are worthy.  How many of you would *really*
welcome some governmental agent into your house to make sure you are
keeping your ferrets according to their list of rules?  I wouldn't.  Any
kind of list of requirements would either have to be so strict as to be
prohibitive (and the CA F&G stood up and cheered), or so loosely written
that they'd be essentially useless.
 
We had a similar discussion on my snake list, with several people thinking
that we need to "approve" potential snake owners by making them take a
one-day class before they can buy a snake.  Would that really guarantee the
eternal well-being of the snake?  Puh.  Leeze.  I'm sure there are owners
and shelter operators that deal with those more common pets such as cats
and dogs that think that all people are morons who shouldn't be allowed to
keep even a goldfish without being "approved" by some agency.  The idea
comes from good intentions, but is simply not workable.  The type of
screening that most people go through when adopting from a shelter is about
as complicated as you can expect to get.
 
>I can only ask all of you to contact your state and local politicians
>with the notion of creating laws to so qualify owners and to control the
>whereabouts of ferret pets.  Of course, this would fully enact the means
>to take action against those who fail to properly care for such pets in
>the event they are caused to be removed from the owners.
 
Please don't.  It sounds great (sort of) on paper, but would be a
logistical nightmare that I believe would not really fix anything.  If you
make it sound so difficult to keep a ferret (which it isn't), you are only
going to lend credence to the opinions of those who believe they should be
either kept illegal, or banned.
 
You said that people aren't educated regarding ferrets.  Many people
aren't, that's true.  Working with and through pet stores (where most
people encounter ferrets), will do a whole lot more practical good than
having some sort of extensive law on the books.
 
My two cents and then some,
 
Karen
[log in to unmask]
===========================================================================
"The snake is an animal. It has a backbone and heart. It has red blood and
drinks water and eats food. It breathes air and feels fear, just like every
other animal in the world. And it's in a body that is the hardest thing for
the average person to understand."
                -- Dave Barker, herpetologist
===========================================================================
If you love ferrets, check out:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~crassi/index.html
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[Posted in FML issue 2838]