>From:    lisette lumsden <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Petco
 
I have heard of the hippie who put a gerbil in the microwave, too.  Of
course in some tellings, it is an old woman who placed her poodle in a
microwave, and in yet other tellings, it is a drug addled babysitter who
placed a human baby in the microwave.  It is just one of the many urban
legends that have a multitude of variations, with none of them being true.
 
More and more it seems as if there is a segment of the ferret community
willing to believe, and spread the most incredible stories about certain
chains of petstores -- with Petco being the most frequently named.  Many of
the stories like the one about placing injured pets in the freezer to avoid
vet bills involve deliberate criminal acts which have somehow amazingly
gone unreported to authorities and yet are spreading like wildfire by word
of mouth.  These reports are always qualified with "That is what I am
hearing," or "That's what the people there told me," or "A store
employee(s) told me that .  .  ." In short, the reports always come from
unnamed sources or second and even third-hand.
 
Repreating these unverified stories over and over again on-line do nothing
other than make the ferret community look like a bunch of fringe element
lunatic conspiracy theory kooks.  The ferret community is quick to complain
about the anti-ferret misinformation put out by CA F&G, Jack Hanna, Sierra
Club, HSUS, the Native Species Network, and others.  We cannot then turn
around do the same thing, or even sit quietly by and allow others to
continue spreading these stories.  It will undermine the good work of
ferret supporters everywhere.  As a community, we are judged together --
like it or not.
 
The allegations of animal abuse, or other violations of the law (retail
stores selling underage animals is illegal in most areas) need to be
reported to local authorities so an official investigation can be started
and action taken against those violating the laws.  Spreading unverified
stories is a great way to create more urban legends, but it usually leads
to a reputation for not telling the truth.
 
Scott and the Ferret Mob
[Posted in FML issue 2583]