Now that our babies are legal in MA I have been watching the pet stores to
see if they are selling them.  I talked with a woman in a pet store
yesterday and she had some MF pamphlets out.  I asked her if she was
planning to be selling MF's ferret soon.  Her reply puzzled me.  She said
that she had gone to a conference to get certified in "small animals" and
learned that MF is having problems with "some green stuff".  She had no idea
what ECE was but had heard it called "green stuff".  This concerned me - I
mean she got certified in small animals and never heard of ECE!!!  Anyway,
she went on to say that she heard from several pet store owners from NH and
NY that the green stuff was not bothering the kits but killing the other
ferrets in homes.
 
I did my best to educate her on ECE - talked with her about older ferrets
having a harder time fighting ECE and the importance of vet care and
hydration.  I asked if I could bring her the FAQ - she refused saying she
was going to another conference.  She said she didn't think she wanted to
have ferrets in her store if there was going to be a problem with disease.
(Wow, I guess other animals like rabbits, guinea pigs, mice, hamsters,
lizards and kittens never get sick!)
 
So, I had two concerns following talking with this woman: Is there a current
problem with MF ferrets and ECE?  (I had heard they were very careful about
this.)  And secondly, what kind of a training program was given in MA if she
didn't know what ECE was and had LOTS of misinformation (ie: she thought if
she kept them for one week she could avoid any ECE problems with other
ferrets?!?).  Yikes!  Sometimes I wonder!!!
 
Does anyone have the REAL story on all of this?  Any suggestions on how I
might better educate this store owner and help new pet owners to get the
right information as well?
 
FML party/badges.  I think this sounds great!  Badges would definitely be
great for shows, etc.  Maybe the badges could even be a fund raiser and we
could vote on where to donate the proceeds (shelters, clubs, etc).  I would
be happy to be involved in this!  Let me know how I can help.  And the party
- December, Disney.  Sounds great but I need more info (like cost and dates)
before I can really give my thoughts.  What a great opportunity it would be
to honor BIG and our FML vets!
 
Kim (concerned MA ferret owner) and Toby (I'm a party fert but I don't have
to wear the badge do I?)
[Posted in FML issue 1530]