ATTENTION Maine Ferret clubs, shelters & vets.  If you can do something
Your state does not recognize the CDC compendium ( on record) or USDA
approved vaccines to begin with!  HELP update the laws and regs and
PLEASE -- do it now !  Followingare the Maine regs applicable to ferrets.
As you read through this you can see you sadly need some legislative
updating SOON!  Alicia , education coordinator at Ferret Wise
 
Part 1
......
Chapter 730
Ferrets
3966 Control of ferrets; seller's obligation
 
1. Control.  Except as provided in this section, it is unlawful for any
domesticated ferret to be off premises of the owner or other person
having care, custody, and control of the ferret.  If the owner or other
person in possession cannot locate the ferret, the owner or person in
possession shall immediately notify the municipal office serving the area
in which the ferret was lost.
 
A ferret may be off the premises of the owner provided that at all times
(the ferret be) securely caged, collared or harnessed and leashed and
under direct physi(cal control of )the person in possession.  It shall be
the responsibility of the owner that the f(erret not )constitute a public
nuisance, risk to public safety or otherwise cause damage( to )private
property.
 
2. Transfer of ownership.  Any licensed kennel, pet shop, shelter, or
vet(erinarian who ) transfers ownership of a ferret shall provide
notification in writing as to the following:)
A. Ferrets have been known to attack humans, particularly children, and
   without warning.
B. There is no proven vaccine for rabies in ferrets nor is there an
(accepted) procedure for judging a rabid ferret without sacrificing the
ferret.  A ferret (that bites) a person may be immediately seized and put
to death by the State in order (to obtain) necessary test samples.
 
S. 3967 Seizing of ferrets
Any animal control officer or person acting in that capacity shall seize,
im(pound, or) restrain any domesticated ferret found in violation of
section 3966, subsection( 1), and deliver it to any shelter, as provided
for in section 3968, or shall take it to its (owner) if known.  If
ownership cannot be established, such animals may be handled as () for
the purposes of acceptance by an approved shelter as provided in this
(chapter).
 
S. 3968 Disposition of ferrets
1. Shelter.  A shelter to which a stray ferret is taken, as a condition
of as() board, shall accept the ferret for a period of 8 days, unless
the shelter is in q() has a bona fide lack of adequate space or unless
the ferret has or is suspected (to have) a contagious disease.  The
acceptance entitles the shelter to receive from the () of $2.50 a day
for the period for which food and shelter are furnished to the (ferret).
Shelters accepting ferrets from municipalities not contracting with them
may (request) assistance from the board.  Shelters which are not approved
by the board to (can request) assistance from the board.  Shelters which
are not approved by the board to (receive) funds shall not be required to
accept sick, stray, injured, or abandoned ferrets.
 
2. Claims; fees.  The procedure for filing claims and calculating fees
(shall be as) follows.
 
A. On the next business day following the date of acceptance of
the (ferret the) shelter shall notify the clerk of the respective
municipality of the (acceptance of the) ferret, its description and the
circumstances of its finding.
 
B. A shelter which accepts a ferret under this section, within 45 days
(of acceptance) of the ferret, shall submit a claim on a board-approved
form to the clerk (of the) respective municipality for fees incurred in
providing food and shelter (and) verification of proper notification and
holding period by the clerk, the (sh) forward the claim to the board.
 
C. If the owner claims the ferret within the 8-day period, the owner
(shall) receive the ferret upon payment of all board-approved fees, plus
any (penalty) the municipality may impose.
 
3.  Ownership of ferret.  Upon expiration of the 8-day period, the
ownership of the ferret shall vest in the shelter.  The shelter may then:
 
A. Sell or give away the ferret with the warning notice required by
section 3966; or
 
B. Otherwise dispose of the ferret humanely in accordance with Title 32,
section 4872.
 
None of the proceeds obtained from the sale, donation, adoption, or other
disposition of the ferret shall be deducted from the fee claimed.
Notwithstanding subsection 2, paragraph C, the previous owner may
reacquire the ferret at any time prior to its sale, donation, or disposal
upon payment of the municipal impoundment fees and actual fees incurred
for food, shelter, veterinary care, and any other fees required by this
chapter for each day that the ferret has been sheltered.  In this case
the fee may be allowed by the board.
 
 
S. 3969 Bites by ferrets
The local health officer may order the confinement of any ferret which
has bitten a human being.  Such confinement may be either with the owner
or by seizing the ferret as determined by the confining officer.  The
local health officer shall have responsibility for implementing this
paragraph.  Animal control officers, may also, at their discretion,
implement this paragraph.  Until such time as the Department of Human
Services indicates that evidence of rabies can be identified in a ferret
within the time period required for human counter measures, a ferret may
be put to death immediately for laboratory tests.  The Department of
Human Services shall promulgate rules regarding the confinement, seizure,
and sacrifice of ferrets.
 
S. 3970 Violations and damage caused by ferrets
1  Violation.  Any person who violates any section of this chapter
    commits a civil violation for which a forfeiture not to exceed $100
    may be adjudged.
2. Damage by ferrets.  Damage caused by ferrets shall be subject to this
   chapter.
[Posted in FML issue 3881]