Apparently there has been some misunderstanding of what I wrote
earlier, so I would like to take this opportunity to repeat what I
wrote, and clarify it for those who either did not read carefully,
or who simply misunderstood for whatever reason.

I am very familiar with wood-stove pellets. I live in an area where
many people heat with pellet stoves. I have used them myself and I
know what they are.

To quote from my original comment:
>There are litter products that consist of wood 'pellets', but they are
>not the same as the kind I think you mean which are used for pellet
>stoves.

What I stated there is that a kind of wood pellets have been sold for
litter that are DIFFERENT from those that are (or resemble) wood-stove
pellets.

Let's be clear: wood-stove pellets (and as one person mentioned,
"barn dry" pellets which are similar), are highly compressed and
heat treated. They are very dry.

Here's the part that some people apparently misunderstood:

>... the wood-pellet products that are specifically sold for animal
>litters are not suitable for ferrets. They contain too much pine
>resin, which is sticky and leads to the litter being tracked all over,
>and more to the point: the volatiles in the sap can be irritating to a
>ferret's nasal passages and even lead to illness.

I did make an error in writing "the" when I should have been more clear
and stated "one variety". But I did write specifically that they are
not like wood-stove pellets. Rather than hard and dry, they are
resinous and sticky, and are not as compressed; they crumble into
chunks very easily. But again let's not misunderstand: I am referring
to a pelletized product, not chips or flakes. And not pelletized paper,
which is what I use myself for litter.

I would not go to such length to explain this, if it were not for one
person who decided that I was out of my mind, that such a product could
not possibly exist, and sent me a series of emails, getting more and
more obnoxious with each one despite my explaining to her that she had
simply misunderstood, and would not stop when I told her to knock it
off and go away.

Let me say this: I was warning people about loose, resinous pine
pellets that can possibly endanger ferret health, and I specifically
stated that I was NOT referring to the highly compressed and dried
wood-stove type pellets. And even if I turned out to be wrong, and such
a product does not exist, then you will never see it in the stores, and
no harm is done. Yes?

But if SHE is wrong, and somebody were to buy the wrong type of
pellets, they could end up with a sick ferret.

So what is the point of harassing me about it?

If I come across the product again (I do not get to that store very
often), I will write down the particulars, and even take a picture if I
have a camera with me, for everybody's education and benefit. But I'm
not going to spend money and hours of my time to take a special trip
there just to satisfy some obnoxious person who doesn't know when to
leave bad enough alone.

People, even if you think you are right, please refrain from
inappropriate and badgering behavior. We are supposed to be adults
here.

[Posted in FML 7407]