Hi all -
 
I thought the following post would interest everyone.  We were on another
topic, when Andrew mentioned ferret racing over in Great Britain as
frequently going hand in hand with lurcher shows.  Hew gave his persmission
for this to be forwarded to the FML.
 
Janice Underwood                             Silk CGC [greyhound]
Schenectady, NY                            Kayla [sable ferret kit]
e-mail: [log in to unmask]      'Anaka Hina [albino ferret kit]
 
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 3 Jan 1996 10:17:24 -0000
From: BHR Communications <[log in to unmask]>
 
>FERRET RACING?????   What a cool idea.  Would you be so kind as to tell us
>a little more?
 
Well, what they do is this.  Drain pipes (you know, the things that take
rain water from the roof to the ground, just in case you call them
something else across the pond) are laid on the ground.  Two or three
lengths are joined together with chicken wire/weld mesh or similar so that
there is daylight between sections, but the ferret can't wander off.
 
At the "off", the ferrets' keepers insert the ferrets into the pipes, then
run up and down making encouraging noises while the ferrets variously
reverse out the way they came, go to sleep or head off down the pipe with
great alacrity.  The fun starts at half-way.  Once the ferrets reach the
other end of the pipe, usually 12 or 15 feet or so, they are retrieved and
put back to return to the start.
 
HOWEVER, the rules are that you are not allowed to touch your ferret AT ALL
until he or she has completely emerged from the pipe. I am convinced that
ferrets know this, because most of them will sit three-quarters out of the
pipe gazing lovingly up at their keepers who are jumping from foot to foot,
making strange "come here little ferret" noises and generally doing some
serious coaxing.
 
Anyway, the whole thing repeats itself until the ferrets arrive back where
they started, but this time coming out of the pipe first constitutes a
"win" so you can imagine that the ferret keepers are even keener to see
their little darlings. The finish is often a real crowd pleaser, with a
ferret coming ALMOST all the way out of the pipe, looking round and then
doing a swift reverse back to the halfway end of the pipe, much to the
chagrin of the keeper and the entertainment of the on-lookers.
 
Prize money gets pretty serious at Lurcher Shows with a 20 pence entry fee
often netting up to one pound for a win! No wonder the thoroughbred ferret
studs are so heavily guarded these days...
 
Andrew Hickley @ BHR Communications in the heart of Norfolk,
a particularly pleasant corner of England's green and pleasant land.
Voice +44 (0)1379 608151. Fax +44 (0)1379 676740.
[Posted in FML issue 1434]