>Thanks for your patience, and remember what I said in a post several days
>ago about the fuzzies making all us shelter people a little 'absent-minded
>and forgetful' and the like.
 
Trish, Is this what has happened to me???? I figured I was just losing my
mind!!:)
 
>From:    Casey Edwards <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: The smell
>I hate to complain about little Toby so much, but could anybody give me
>some advice on how to cut down on the odor....
 
Casey, it seems to me that you are bathing Toby too much.  When you bath a
ferret it strips away the natural oils and that makes him have to produce
more oils faster and can make him smell worse.  As to descenting, the term
is really inaccurate since neutering takes away most of the odor and the
anal glands that are removed in "descenting" a ferret have to be released in
order for there to be a smell.  I have both descented and not and can tell
no difference between them unless one "poofs".
 
>We do not recommend descenting.  Strongly.  Except in cases of medical
>problems or bad behavioral problems (constant "poofing").
 
Hooray for a sensible position!!!!
 
>If this is the case we should be seeing a drastic reduction in the cancers
>showing up.  Marshall Farms imported a large number of English ferrets a
>few years ago to refresh their genetic pools.
 
Bill, when I talked to Marshalls a month or so ago, I asked if they had
introduced new blood lines.  The answer I got was an emphatic NO!  The
reason I asked was I have been seeing more MF ferrets that do not "look"
like MF ferrets (if you know what I mean).  Personally, I do believe they
have added stock.  There is no other explanation to drastic changes in color
and size of MF ferts, genetics just don't work that way.
 
>MF ferrets are great pets.  Better than most hobby breeders as far as
>temperament.  I strongly disapprove of the age of altering and descenting
>but they are forced to these practices by the desires of customers.
 
Again, this is my opinion.  If people would get educated about descenting
and not buy ferrets that have had this done (I know, hard to do!!) maybe we
could all change what is given as the "normal".  I don't know how many times
a person has refused to get a ferret from me because I don't descent (of
course, I don't want one of my babies going to someone with such a closed
mind anyway!).When I try to explain why it is unnecessary to these people,
most won't listen to what I'm saying.  Sometimes I feel like I'm banging my
head against a brick wall!
 
Well, anyway, that's my 2 cents worth on the subject.
 
Tracy and the Wild Bunch
[Posted in FML issue 1665]