Bill Killian wrote:
 
>Small breeders do not have the gene pool of a larger breeder so more close
>in-breeding will occur.
 
Bill, I'm going to 'somewhat' disagree with you on this - it might have been
better if you said "may occur"......I am a *very* small breeder, but also
very careful about my breeding practices.  I do not in-breed or line-breed -
when Libby was 2 yrs old, I started looking for new kits that year, to raise
and breed for the following year - any kits from my litters that I have
kept, have been spayed and neutered - I have not inbred them with my hob.  I
most likely will keep a hobb from Halo's litter, but will either breed it to
Heaven next year (Heaven and Halo are NOT related at all) or some other
non-related jill.  You know that I am putting out feelers now for a good
black sable kit.
 
>....wild animals.  No attention to detail and gene lineage is performed
>and yet they often thrive.
 
Again, maybe "sometimes" would be a better word than "often" - we don't
really see all of nature's mistakes - some are stillborn, some are re-
absorbed, some are non-viable at birth and die soon after delivery.  Weak
babies are not taken care of by their mothers and are left to die - those
that do make it are often food sources for predators as they can't keep up
with 'normal' sibs.
 
Don't get me wrong - I am very concerned about the breeding practices of
some small breeders, based on the telephone calls and email I receive from
concerned owners - the hogwash some breeders pass off to unsuspecting and
inexperienced ferret owners is appalling.
 
And some private breeders have more than they can handle - which - IMO -
makes them no better than a ferret farm.  This is not a knock against MF - I
love their ferrets and always have - but one reason I breed is to give kits
a better start on life and jills a safer, healthier pregnancy.  When one has
so many ferrets they have to keep them outside in separate buildings - OR in
separate bldgs I meant to say - when kits are socialized well (gosh, it's
too early in the morning to type!) - AREN'T socialized well because a
breeder has so many and the kits are pretty nippy (moreso than would be
considered normal - again IMO) - well, then what's the point?  Even MF and
PV have people who do nothing but handle kits to get them used to people -
do fairly large private breeders do that?
 
As with everything else in life, each spector has its own good and bad
points, and I have no pat answer.
 
Debbie Riccio
WNYFLFA
Rochester, NY
[Posted in FML issue 1531]