Tell me, Oh Guru to the Masses, the answer to these preponderances:
 
1.  Is there such thing as a "ferret season?" I saw my first ferret last
June in a petstore in Reno.  When my friend returned to Reno in July, there
were none to be found in any of the petstores.  Is there a specific breeding
period for ferrets, or can they perpetually breed, give birth, breed, etc?
The reason this question came about is that my friend and I are going to
Reno for my birthday to get a "fuzzy fix," and wondered if there would be
any ferrets to play with.  If not, then I'll just have to find a cute
bartender....
 
2. >However, some studies suggest domesticated ferrets have lost
>the ability to see the blues, so all the color they see are the reds.
 
Does this mean that a ferret's vision is not shades of grey, but shades of
red?  Sort of like looking through rose colored glasses (for lack of a
better analogy)?
 
3.  I saw my first illustration of a stoat while rummaging through the
Biology library at work.  The reason I picked up the journal (New Zealand
Zoological... something) was because I thought the illustration was of a
ferret.  I've also heard people on the FML say that they have had stoats
turned in to them.  What's the difference between a stoat and a ferret?
 
Thanks,
Irinia
[Posted in FML issue 1875]