Below is a copy of Dr. Steele (Perents Place) response to the comments made
by several people on our list.  (Go FML!)  I am not sure if sending this man
replies will do any good, but I think it's worth a try.  I sent him the Bite
stats from  Ferret central, which were apparently ignored.
 
If there is any other info out there, lets send it to him.  If there are
Pediatricians, Veteranarians (sp?) , or other experts on the FML, I think
your input would be valuable!
 
[Moderator's note: I'm letting this through since everyone was cc'd on it.
Normally I'd consider it private email and not accept it.  BIG]
 
Subj:   Ferrets-Reply
Date:   96-10-22 15:23:43 EDT
From:   [log in to unmask] (Rob Steele)
To:     [log in to unmask]
CC:
 
A number of people have written in concern about my response about small
children and pets, particularly concerning the issue dealing with ferrets.
I certainly appreciate the feedback many of you have given.  In addition, I
am sure that many (if not most of you) know more about ferrets than I.
However, when it comes to the safety of children, the scientific medical
literature coupled with the experiences of parents and physicians must
dictate what is best.  For many of you, the experience of owning a ferret
has been nothing but a positive experience.  However, most of you are more
than likely experienced and responsible pet owners.  Unfortunately, this is
not always the case with other ferret owners.  Therefore, concerns,
recommendations, and research is often done with the latter case in mind.
 
Specifically, some of you have questioned the validity of certain statements
I have made and have asked for references.  And certain things were said
that I would now like to address:
 
1)  Ferrets don't attack children
On April 22, 1994, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists and
the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians issued a joint
statement on ferrets.  One of their identified concerns was that: "many
ferret attacks involve infants and small children who are sleeping or lying
down.  Ferrets have climbed into cribs and inflicted hundreds of disfiguring
bites on defenseless infants.  There is anecdotal information that the
propensity to be aggressive and bite varies with the family line of the
ferret.  Public Health officials believe that more objective data are needed
on the risk factors that lead to injuries from ferrets so that specific
preventative strategies can be recommended.  Conclusion: Until such data are
available, the safest approach is to restrict ferrets from households that
have infants or small children."
 
Paisley JW, Lauer BA.  "Severe Facial Injuries to Infants due to Unprovoked
Attacks by Pet Ferrets," Journal of the American Medical Association
1988;259:2005-2006
 
Jenkins SR.  "Epidemiologists and public health veterinarians issue
statement on ferrets." JAVMA 1994;205:534-535
 
2)  The Rabies vaccine is effective in ferrets
Sure, there is a licenced approved rabies vaccine, but how well it works is
still somewhat controversial.  The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee
on Infectious Disease stated, "Rabies has developed in properly vaccinated
animals, including unusual animals, especially ferrets."
 
In fact, when the USDA gave approval for the use of this vaccine in 1990,
they required the product label for the vaccine to read, "Public Health
authorities may require rabies vaccinated ferrets that bite humans to be
sacrificed and tested for rabies infection." This statement was included
because a history of vaccination does not eliminate the possibility of
rabies in the animal, and the period of the shedding of the rabies virus
prior to the onset of recognizable signs of rabies in ferrets is unknown.
 
The purpose of my letter is not to bash ferrets.  They, like all other pets,
can be lovable, fun creatures.  However, I think we can all agree that the
safety of children is more important than the reputation of the ferret.
Therefore, until more is known about the behavior of ferrets particularly
around children, as well as, how the rabies virus can be very effectively
prevented from being transmitted from ferret to human, caution with these
animals is prudent when infants and children are present.
[Posted in FML issue 1731]