I've forwarded this information directly to Chris, but thought some on
the FML might find the data Vanessa pulled together of interest. Below
is her email.

"Chris will be sorry he asked this, as the answers are far more
complicated than he may expect, and I am a nitpicky bookkeeper who
adores numbers. Here goes:

A LOT of the ferrets we get have come from Petco. I would estimate 80%.
Abandoners are notoriously fuzzy about remembering exactly where they
purchased their pet "Yeah, a pet store!" is the most common source,
but try to get a name and their faces turn blank. However, there are
23 Petco stores in Connecticut. And there simply aren't that many
independent pet stores still in business anymore. I haven't done a
mailing to local stores recently, but my guess is there are MAYBE 40
or so in CT with perhaps only a third of those (13) selling ferrets.
So Petco represents about 65% of the ferret sources in this state
(23+13=36. 23/36= 65%). No Petsmart stores in CT sell ferrets. A good
range would be that between 65% and 80% of the ferrets the Ferret
Assoc. of CT cares for originated at Petco stores.

So, we currently have 6 in the shelter and 35 in the Foster program, so
that would translate to anywhere from 27 to 33 currently in hand that
came originally from Petco. Of the 79 we took in last year, 4 came
DIRECTLY from Petco stores, BTW.

Now, our direct VETERINARY expenses in 2009 were $11,000. So that
translates to somewhere between $7150 and $8800 spent on animals
originating at Petco. Animal CARE expenses - cleaning, adoptions, etc.
would be estimated at between $11,300 to $12,800 ADDITIONAL, not
including market-based rent for shelter space. Most shelters will NOT
have that data as they are staffed totally by volunteers and have
donated space, but clearly the actual veterinary costs are less than
half the total dollar costs of caring for Petco-sold ferrets that are
abandoned. While FACT normally receives about $1000/year from Petco,
in 2009 we did not apply for a grant.

Terri C. is correct that surveying shelters will only indicate SOME
of the costs of abandoned ferrets. Individual people rescue ferrets
and many pet stores - including Petco! - take in and resell unwanted
ferrets. So whatever numbers are arrived at are absolutely going to be
incomplete and inaccurate, I'm sorry to say. They can only be used as
"representative" at best.

One way to show information would be to get stats on the number of
ferrets Petco sells, then compare that to the numbers held in shelters.
Even this will be limited by the reality that the number of abandoned
ferrets that enter shelters is nowhere near the actual numbers of
abandoned ferrets. Many tossed outside die, others are passed from
person to person, and others die under the "care" of their owners. And
discovering sales data without direct cooperation from Petco execs will
be impossible. I did some research on Petco corporate, BTW. Petco used
to be a publicly traded corporation, but in 2006 it was bought out by
a pair of investment holding companies, so as best I can tell, they no
longer publish any financial's publicly. The only ones I found were
from 2005 and they were VERY general, not indicating how much $$ they
make from animal sales. So there isn't even a way to become a
stockholder and agitate for change as an investor.

I did come across a VERY good article from 2005 on the Avian Welfare
Rescource Center that talks about the sales of animals from
Petco/Petsmart, the ethical dilemmas rescues face accepting $$ from
them, and the issue of their being "advocates" for adoption (of cats &
dogs) but profiting from the sales of other pets. Here is the link:
http://www.avianwelfare.org/issues/articles/ppadvant.htm

As the avian article notes, small animal rescues can either cut all
ties - and chances for funding - by doing public campaigns against
ALL animal sales at Petcos or be stuck in a symbiotic relationship
that is ethically challenging. This is one instance, IMHO, where an
organization like PETA, with their "take no prisoners" approach,
would be a viable partner. All in all, this is a complicated issue.

Of further note: Please emphasize: FERRETS ARE NOT THE 3RD MOST COMMON
DOMESTIC PET. No way, no how, and I would love to murder the loonies
who first promulgated this fallacy - and whom I suspect did so only to
falsely inflate their own importance. People should NOT parrot this
misinformation as it totally undermines their credibility. RABBITS are
the 3rd most common pet, up there with birds. Ferrets are way down the
list...I analyzed and published the stats at some point, but as I
recall they're about 10th or something. I can look up old Paw Printz
issues for the info if necessary. The best place to determine the
number of ferret owners is from the either the American Animal
Hospital Assoc. annual survey or the surveys done by PIJAC or the pet
manufacturer's association. Their websites have some basic data but to
purchase the full reports you either have to be a member or cough up a
few hundred $$.

I sincerely hope the last two hours I spent researching this
information will be helpful!!!!!

Vanessa Gruden"

[Posted in FML 6612]