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From:
"Church, Robert Ray (UMC-Student)" <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 13 Feb 2003 22:27:06 -0600
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Ferret Domestication Quiz:
 
I have about two-dozen questions regarding ferret domestication.  Rather
than write a series of posts repeating previous remarks, it's time to
take out your pencil and paper and take the following quiz.  Quiz today,
answers to follow in a couple of days (so everyone has a chance to take
the test).
 
Multiple choice (check all that apply):
 
1. Ferrets were domesticated
A) to hunt rabbits,
B) to protect centralized grain stores from rodents,
C) to hunt a type of ground squirrel,
D) to hunt hamsters,
E) for household pest control,
F) in a subversive attempt to corner the home manure market.
 
2. Domestication is
A) a type of evolution that relies on shifts in gene frequencies caused
   by human selection pressure,
B) a process that takes hundreds of years to complete,
C) accomplished through several stages (neo-domesticate,
   semi-domesticate, domesticate),
D) a deliberate, conscious process of selective breeding,
E) a process where polecats convince humans to grind whole chickens into
   a savory snack.
 
3. Domestication has caused the following changes in ferrets (compared
to their wild progenitors):
A) shorter, wider skulls,
B) stronger body odor,
C) larger body size,
D) increased curiosity,
E) generalized neophobia,
F) crowded teeth,
G) sustained albinism,
H) hoarding,
I) the ability to find the most tender part of the human body to lick,
   lick, and chomp.
 
4. Ferrets were domesticated
A) by Egyptians about 2000 BC,
B) by Phoenicians about 600 BC,
C) by trans-Mediterranean peoples about 400 BC,
D) by Greeks about 300 BC,
E) by Romans about AD 70,
F) by Europeans about 1000 AD,
G) by Ohio ferret farms about AD 1880,
H) by arrogant Americans about AD 1977.
 
5. The progenitor of the domesticated ferret was
A) the European polecat, Mustela putorius,
B) the steppe polecat, Mustela eversmanni,
C) the black-footed ferret, Mustela nigripes,
D) the exact progenitor is unknown,
E) Disney cartoon weasels.
 
6. Ferrets never became popular as a domesticated animal because
A) they have a strong body odor,
B) the economic costs of maintaining ferrets nearly equal the benefits of
   pest control and food production,
C) of the perception that ferrets were commonly owned by poachers,
D) they couldn't out-compete cats as mousers,
E) of a conspiracy of deception promoted by jealous dogs and cats.
 
7. Ferrets were commonly found in the United States
A) during the 1600s,
B) during the 1700s,
C) during the 1800s,
D) during the 1900s,
E) whenever socks could be found in sufficient quantity.
 
8. Ferrets were used during the 1800s in the United States
A) to help supplement rations during the Civil War,
B) to hunt various furbearers,
C) for rat control,
D) in animal experimentation,
E) for their pelts,
F) for rabbit control in orchards,
G) aboard ships for rodent control,
H) to drag cables and telephone wires through small pipes,
I) to spur the textile industry via the manufacturing of replacement
   socks.
 
9. Ferrets
A) can form feral colonies,
B) are dangerous to babies and young children,
C) are vectors for dangerous diseases, including rabies, tuberculosis,
   and influenza,
D) readily escape into the wild,
E) think the entire California Fishin' Gestapo has the collective IQ of a
   salamander.
 
10. In the last 200+ years, the number of feral colonies of ferrets
found in the United States, Canada and Mexico number
A) more than 100,
B) more than 50,
C) more than a dozen,
D) a small handful,
E) zero,
F) more than you can count, given ferret math.
 
11. Compared to the polecat progenitor, domestication has changed the
    digestive system of ferrets
A) a significant amount,
B) a moderate amount,
C) a minor amount,
D) an insignificant amount,
E) by instilling the ability to produce vastly more fecal bulk than food
   consumed.
 
12. The scientific name for the domesticated ferret is
A) Mustela putorius,
B) Mustela putorius furo,
C) Mustela furo,
D) Mustela putorius forma furo,
E) back-of-the-knee nipping demon spawn from hell.
 
13. An animal isn't domesticated unless
A) it's reproduction is controlled by humans,
B) it is maintained to fill a human need,
C) at least one trait, such as body size, color, or reproduction, has
   been exaggerated through human intent,
D) it is unable to form feral populations,
E) it is represented by at least one cute Disney character.
 
14. Generalized public disapproval of ferrets can be traced to
A) the association of ferreting with poaching,
B) the Victorian custom of ferret and rat fighting,
C) the triggering of carnivorous instincts inside poultry sheds,
D) the tendency of ill-handled ferrets to bite in self-defense,
E) the introduction of chemical rat poisons,
F) a lack of education,
G) the high concentration of joy per body weight, making ferret ownership
   too intense for some wimpy people.
 
15. The suspicion that ferrets suffer genetic disorders caused by
    inbreeding is probably attributable to
A) founder's effect during initial domestication,
B) breeding practices of large ferret farms,
C) hobby breeders looking for unusual coloration or increased body size,
D) the initial small size of the United States breeding population,
E) a misunderstanding of the diseases of old age,
F) a ferret conspiracy to grow large enough to easily consume cats.
 
16. Ferrets were domesticated in
A) ancient Palestine,
B) Imperial Rome,
C) Greece,
D) Egypt,
E) the trans-Mediterranean region, running from northern Morocco, the
   Iberian Peninsula, southern Europe, various Mediterranean islands,
   Italy, Greece and Mesopotamia,
F) Sacramento, California.
 
17. Animals are domesticated in areas were you find
A) the progenitor species,
B) some economic benefit,
C) historical evidence,
D) archaeological evidence,
E) raisins, kibble and corners.
 
18. Juvenilization is an artifact of domestication where
A) juvenile physical traits are preserved into adulthood,
B) juvenile behavioral traits persist into adulthood,
C) juvenile sexual traits are preserved into adulthood,
D) juvenile teeth remain in the jaws,
E) ferrets become juvenile delinquents and loiter around corners.
 
19. The difficulty of tracing ferret domestication can be at least
    partially attributed to
A) a lack of archaeological remains
B) a deficiency of historical documents,
C) a plethora of conjectural statements forming a domestication
   mythology,
D) a shortage of investigators and scientific interest,
E) efforts to hide the background of ferrets by the Weasel Protection
   Agency.
 
20. Domestication
A) creates new traits,
B) exaggerates or minimizes existing traits,
C) only shifts the frequency of existing traits,
D) is caused by a few genotypic changes having profound and widespread
   phenotypic expression,
E) is a myth; it's all evolution, Baby!
 
Bob C
[Posted in FML issue 4058]

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