>you walk on grass that people have possibly sprayed insecticides and
>other nasty stuff on and then you walk through your house and track
 
As an excuse for accepting unwanted smoke around me and my pets, this is
pretty darn lame.  To me it seems more like an excellent reason to ban
insecticides ALONG with smoking!  It's a pretty thin rationalization at
best.  Even if our ferrets are already exposed to this many dangers, how
does that justify exposing them to yet more?
 
Like someone else mentioned, I don't care one bit what you do or don't
put in your own body.  If you feel like smoking in private, be my guest.
But the one thing that so many smokers fail to realize, or arrogantly
choose to ignore, is that smoking is NOT a private experience.  Smoke
doesn't just go "up" - it travels several feet beyond the person smoking,
and absolutely does pollute the environment around them.  You smokers may
not be able to smell those side-effects anymore, but believe me, the rest
of us sure can.  My sinuses get irritated if I even sit near a smoker -
and it doesn't even matter whether they are currently smoking or not.
 
Smoking has been PROVEN to damage your health.  If you choose to do that
to yourself, fine.  Go right ahead.  But have enough respect for those
around you to realize that they may not want to share the experience with
you.  Some few smokers do realize that - and us non-smokers are extremely
grateful to them for it.
 
It has been PROVEN that cats raised by smokers are THREE TIMES more
likely to develop lymphoma than those who are not.  Still want to claim
that second-hand smoke isn't dangerous?  Researchers don't yet have
similar statistics on ferrets, but you can bet that a ferret's health is
damaged just as surely as a cat's is, even if the specific diseases are
different.
 
One of our ferrets came from a smoker.  He had trouble breathing when we
took him in and had to be on medication for months.  He himself smelled
like smoke residue for months too, even after bathing him.  Now, a year
later, he is much happier, healthier, and more lively.  But I still have
to wonder what kind of lingering damage was done to his poor little body.
Don't try to tell ME your habit is harmless....
 
roger & the weezul
missing bear and lancelot
[Posted in FML issue 4270]