I took more than a little offense to Cindy's post:
 
> #1 He is from Israel.  This culture is totally different from the
>"Western" culture.  Over in the Middle East "most" women are still
>treated as property and they have no greater value than to be
>breeding/sex machines like animals.  In fact, I read somewhere where
>the men put more importance on their animals than they do their women.
>This attitude seems to be coming out in his posts.
 
Now what is THAT supposed to be?!?  "I read somewhere..." where?  In a
neo-Nazi publication?  In America it is written that men put more
importance in their football and in their cars than in their women!  Is
it true?  Perhaps, for some men...but certainly not for all, or women
wouldn't get married to them!  Good grief, the blantant bigotry in this
post is shocking.  I am assuming that Matan is a Jew because
a) he calls it Israel, not Palestine,
b) "Matan" is a Hebrew word (and name), and
c) he speaks fluent Hebrew, not Arabic.
 
So, therefore, I certainly have the knowledge of his culture to answer
your claims about his "attitude."  Yes, he is mistaken about the health
requirements of his jill, but did you notice that he is concerned about
her "needs" being fulfilled?  A woman's needs being fulfilled sexually is
central to Jewish law and practice, with which you are surely not familiar.
So yes, you are right, he *is* displaying the attitude of his culture (and
mine, so closely connected through Torah across the ocean): that women and
our needs are important.  To most women in his society, having children is
of paramount importance to us.  Not only to the men, but to US, the women.
I have 6 children under the age of 11 years -- does that make me a
"breeding/sex machine"?  Does that make me "like an animal"?  Do you think
that my husband only values me for my reproductive ability???  Do you think
that my husband is the ONLY one who was involved in *our* decision to have
many children?  If you do, you are wrong.
 
Now, to Matan (and I'll feel free to write this with the Hebrew words he
will recognize in English letters): It could be that you are thinking of
the halacha not to alter an animal in that way.  Ask a Rav, my experience
has been that it is permissable in cases where the animal's life is
endangered, as in the case of the threat of "aplastic anaemia" (that's a
disease) that exists in female ferrets.  It is as others have stated:
reproduction is an urge to them the same as scratching when they have an
itch or eating when they're hungry.  When the season begins, they have an
urge to reproduce...but if the itch isn't present, or the hunger isn't
present, or the heat (as in estrus) doesn't begin, the animal doesn't miss
it, and doesn't *have* the urge.  It's not the same as humans, where we are
completely aware of the chiuv [responsiblity] to bring a neshoma [soul]
into the world, as our part of fulfilling Hashem's [G-d's] plan for the
world.  Animals weren't given the same chiuvim.  Ask a Rav.  Also consult
a ferret veteranarian.
 
OK, that's what I wanted to say.  Matan, my tefilos are with you in this
time of conflict in Israel, I know you've got far more stressful things
going on in your back yard than arguing about your ferret.  [Every day is a
life-or-death situation in Matan's country -- how many teenagers can deal
with *that* every day?] --Take care.
 
Chana & Co.
Tiferet, Kadur Sheleg, and Kesef
 
[Moderator's note: OK, I thnk it was important for Chana to get the
rebuttal in, but please let's talk less about Matan and more about
ferrets?  BIG]
[Posted in FML issue 3456]