>>the problem lies not in the fact that they exist but in the way the
>>laws in our society view them....AS PROPERTY.  That is what needs to
>>change in my opinion.
 
>Again a pure animal rights position.  There is no other reasonable way to
>look at ferrets.  They can not be granted freedom for they can not be self
>sufficient.  They have to belong to somebody else anybody could walk up and
>take your ferret.  Sorry ferrets are and will have to remain possessions.
>This is our opinion that looks at more details we believe than you
>considered.
 
Maybe I misunderstood this post/reply, but I don't believe that something
that is not self sufficient must be considered a possession.  I think
most, if not all, mothers would not consider their baby or young child
as a possession, and it can not survive on its own.  We fully care for
our children for an average of 18 years, yet I do not think any parent
considers that they own them, yet a ferret that we care for for only 5 or
10 is our possession?  I am not trying to attack anyone nor say that anyone
else's beliefs are wrong, but for my own personal enlightenment where do
you draw the line?  Is it because we did not birth them, or because they
are not human?  I happen to consider my ferret as my child and would do no
less for her than my own child and I don't feel that I own her.  I feel
that if we take on the responsibility of taking them out of the wild (not
literally now of course) and into our homes that they should be treated
with the best care and love as any human.  Please don't flame me, because I
know that not everyone feels this way and that is fine with me, and I hope
I did not misinterpret the message, but I do not feel that the argument, as
I understood it, to be valid.
 
Jenna
[Posted in FML issue 2925]