There is a freebie pet adoption magazine in San Diego County called the
Animal Source..The Feb 26 to March 11 issue ran an article on the ferret
protest and repeated referred to ferrets as wild animals, etc..You know..
the same garbage the CA F&G and Health Dept feed people...The article was
written by Dr. McNielly..
I cannot for copyright reasons print the article in full here...
This is a copy of my letter I sent to them, with a copy going to Pat
Wright...You can get a gist of what was in the article from my response
to it..
----
I am less then happy with an article I found in your publication...
Your article in the Feb 26 to March 11 issue of the Animal Source claims;
(quote)
Unfortunately, there is no way to legally vaccinate a ferret against rabies.
(end quote)
The USDA approved vaccine for rabies is Imrab3...
List of other misinformation in the article:
There were no ferrets present at the Valentine protest at Central County
Animal Shelter. Due to what happened with Rocky and the weather being
bad, all ferrets owned by protesters were left at home and not taken to
the protest.
The ferret who bit the cameraman was not at the Balboa Park protest...Pat
left him home. The bite happened during an interview at Pat's home before
the protest and was an unfortunate accident with a playful animal who didn't
understand the TV camera..From what I understand, the cameraman refused
treatment, even after offers to pay the medical bills..The guy simply did
not care if the ferret died...
There are new ways now of detecting rabies without killing the animal, but
they are not widely used yet. Ferrets though have a very low chance of
getting rabies to begin with. (Check with the Center For Disease Control
for numbers) There has NEVER been a case of any human contracting rabies
from a ferret...
Ferrets are domesticated animals from Europe originally. Not related to
the native Black Footed Ferret of the Midwest, which only happens to look
a little like a Domesticated European ferret...Ferrets are the only
domesticated member of the weasel family, but calling a ferret a weasel is
like calling a house cat a cougar. (house cats and cougars are both from
the family 'felis'.)
Mongooses (not mongeese) are not mustelids, but are viverridae..or more
currently listed as herpestidae. The mongoose is not a member of the weasel
family..and they were released in Hawaii in an attempt to control wild rats,
but due to a lack of proper knowledge about them, they hunted the wild birds
rather then the rats...This was an attempt made by the government and NOT
exotic pet owners, however it is often brought up as evidence against
ferrets as pets. California government introduced the European Wild Boar to
the state in the 1920's to increase hunting opportunities. Hawaii however
is an island and a closed ecosystem..California is not.
Ferrets and gerbils are not voracious, fast breeding species...They are
however popular pets outside of California and Hawaii. The ferret rarely
has more then one litter in a year...and often only 3 to 6...Gerbils mate
for life and do not accept new mates if a mate is lost. Predators in the
US have kept both species from ever establishing in the wild..Coyotes,
bobcats, foxes, hawks, owls, pine marten, bear, long-tail weasel, skunk,
raccoon, badger, etc. are excellent hunters and would make quick work of
a domestic ferret...Due to this competition, there is little or no chance
of the ferret contributing to the demise of native species. In some
areas, coyotes regularly kill house cats and dogs..A ferret would have no
chance at all, since they are small and don't know that the 'doggie' isn't
a 'friend'..
Venomous snakes and spiders are not illegal. You do have to have a permit
for the snakes in most places, but many species of spiders that are more
docile are sold as pets in many pet stores nationwide.
Again, ferrets are not wild animals and CAN be house trained. Even the
USDA lists the ferret as a domesticated species. But try house training a
hamster, parrot or iguana sometime...Of the three, oddly enough the iguana
is the easiest..
(End)
Note: Ferrets have been domesticated for 1000's of years...however the
chinchilla, a perfectly legal and acceptable pet, has only been
domesticated for about 30 years and originally for the fur trade, not
the pet trade...
Web master - National Alternative Livestock Association
AAZK member
Wide range of experience in exotics, including reptiles. Specializing in
rodent (rat/mouse/hamster/gerbil/etc.) care. Horse training and animal
behavior experience.
Exotic and domestic pet care info research gathering for California
Domestic Ferret Association, Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council,
National Alternative Livestock Association and provider of online
information resources for pet owners.
(http://www.firstlight.net/nala/petcare.html).
---
[Posted in FML issue 2237]
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