>From:    Sheila Crompton <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: NFWS Christmas Show
 
Okay time for a cross the Atlantic question....
 
>-Hobs:   Albino, Polecat, Sandy, Coloured, Veteran and Kit.
>-Jills:  Albino, Polecat, Sandy, Coloured, Veteran and Kit.
>-Personality/Disabled Jill & Hob
>-Owner under 14 years old.
 
I think we all know what an albino is.  We believe sandy is what we call a
champagne or cinnamon here in the US (light brown).  We'd have to guess
veteran is over a certain age and equivalent to "old timers" here with ages
over usually either 4 or 5 years.  Kit would probably be ferrets under a
certain age - over here normally 6 or 7 months.
 
Polecat and coloured?  We're used to "polecat" describing what we call
"sable" but then what would coloured be?  We didn't think enough of
Waardensburg gened ferrets were over in the UK to make a class (blaze,
panda, dew).  Do you have black (silver) mitts?  None of the English ferrets
I've seen were chocolate (lighter than sable but still a rich brown) or
black mitts.
 
I find the international differences in ferrets quite interesting.
(Explaining our US, English, Swedish and Russian ferret lines)
 
>From:    Karri Knutson <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Do hobs get along w/ other ferrets?
>I know I asked this already but I didn't get an answer, and if you did
>answer I must not of seen it.  So do Hobs (un nuetered male) get along with
>Sprites & Gibs (Nuetered female and male)???????????
 
Hobs (males) either altered or unaltered sometimes don't get along with
other hobs again either altered or whole.
 
Hobs in rut do not get along with any other hobs (99.9% of the time).
 
Alteredhobs get along with nearly all altered jills (females).
 
Jills get along with most but not all jills.
 
When in several hormonally charged times (in estrus, pregnant or nursing)
they can act very differently including not getting along with other ferrets.
 
Sprite and gib are not universal terms and are far far newer than using hob
for any male and jill for any female.  Sprite and gib were terms apparently
invented by FURO.  I don't know when hob and jill were used first.  Over the
years though cat terms and rabbit terms have also been used for ferret
genders.  Sire and dam are the normal terms I've heard for father and mother.
I'm very intersted to find out what terms are used outside of the US.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
http://www.zenferret.com/
mailto:[log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 1762]