Danielle wrote:
>I am confused on all of this.  I have not been reading every post about
>it, but the last few have left me in the dark.  Am I to believe that
>someone would not want proof of testing in order to enter their ferret in
>a show?  If I were to enter a show (I don't because of the health risks),
>I certainly would want to know that all the other ferrets in attendance
>were completely healthy and disease free.  This is where I am confused by
>some of the posts.  Who wouldn't want this and why?
 
Have to agree with the one qualifier that no test or vaccine is 100%.
 
Still, I would want to think that the others there cared enough about
ferrets in general to have taken such precautions as testing for ADV.
Yes, false negatives can happen: that's why folks should repeat at times.
Sometimes the negatives aren't really negatives, but the people want to
think that they are.  I don't think that I'd want our guys to risk being
exposed because someone didn't want to believe a test.  So what if a
competitor has to hold back from one competition one year because of a
false negative that later gets turned around in time for a show?  That's
no biggie compared to risk of contagion.  If the breeder thinks that the
ferret had a false test result that will turn around later then he or she
could say, "Hey, so-and-so has a slight bug and won't be competing this
year."  then retest to know better what is going on.  No reason to admit
to a test result unless it's been verified.
 
Show folks, do you allow costs (or partial amounts paid) to be refunded or
to be carried onto the next year as a credit?  If what people are worried
about is money lost then that sort of change might really help save
ferrets.
 
I would not take a chance of infecting someone else's ferret; heck, didn't
even visit ferret homes or pet stores for a year after we broke with ECE
here to protect others.  It bugs me that if I had ferrets that I took to
shows that a few others would not baulk at the idea of possibly giving
our guys a fatal illness like ADV.
 
I am glad, though, that people are bringing up the associated problems
because that lets those be tackled.  One very important one to address is
the abuse that has been heaped on some people due to them either having ADV
in their businesses, or being suspected of having ADV in their businesses.
That sort of abuse was, is, and will be totally uncalled for.  A few did
that in the early ECE days, too, to those with ECE.  You don't se that now
that so many know what it is like, do you?  I can understand being angry
with someone who has known ADV, ECE, or some other serious contagious
illness among their ferrets who never-the-less knowingly endangers other
ferrets.  Such a person obviously doesn't love ferrets.  What I can not
see anyone is spreading rumors, or assuming that rumors about anyone must
be right; rumors are notoriously wrong.  I have been on the FML since the
first issue, and if 5% or lower of the rumors through the years have been
right that would be no surprise.  I also can't see beating up someone who
is down due to illness in the family, including the four-footed family.
That is low.
 
I really hope that ADV testing becomes standard for shown ferrets, and that
people care enough to want to do it on their own just to help others.  When
people do care enough on that score they won't be upset about such testing
because they will be doing it on their own, anyway.  So, CARE already...
[Posted in FML issue 3426]