Lisa,
 
My husband and I have some experience with ferrets and motorcycles which
might be helpful.  It is a bit tricky to ride with them and I was never
entirely comfortable about taking them with us for a number of reasons.
 
We used to live in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and took our ferrets (Rocky and
Mabel) to the Animal Medical Center for veterinary care.  Once, when Rocky
suddenly became very ill, we jumped on the bike and I held Rocky inside my
jacket on the way to Emergency Care at AMC in Manhattan while my husband
rode the bike in.  It only took 10 minutes as opposed to 45 minutes by
subway.  We got him there in record time which was very important at the
time.  Because he was so sick and I held him close to me there was no
problem.
 
We also occasionally took them with us when we rode out to Long Island
(about 45 minutes to an hour ride) on weekends.  Because there were two
ferrets I put them in one of those soft pet carriers where you can roll up
the side flaps for ventilation.  Then I slung the strap across my shoulder
and held them on my hip.  Not exactly an ideal solution, but it was a short
ride.  They were very rambunctious during these rides.  They would claw the
sides in an effort to get out.  They seemed to like the wind, but not the
bumpiness of the ride (which is inevitable in the NYC area - the roads are
horrible to ride on).
 
In brief, here are the main issues I noted in riding with ferrets:
 
1) In warm or even hot weather it is difficult to keep them from getting
overheated.  I'm sure you know that ferrets can become seriously ill in a
matter of minutes if they become overheated.  This is probably my main
concern.  When you're moving it's not a problem but a traffic jam or even a
long wait at a traffic light can cause them to overheat quickly.  Keeping
them in a saddle bag is probably not a great idea, either, since they can
squirm through the tiniest openings and the locked pannards (sp?) would not
provide sufficient ventilation.  In either case during warm weather, I
believe ferrets would overheat quickly.
 
2) Because ferrets are really explorers at heart, they really do need
monitoring during the ride.  If you're riding two up the passenger can hold
or keep an eye on them (which is how we've always done it).  If you're
riding solo its harder to keep an eye on them.
 
You say you've got a large bike.  You could create a carrier and mount it to
the back or maybe even the tank, but you would have to have some way to
shade them and protect them from sudden rain showers, etc.  And, it's yet
another thing to concentrate on while you're riding - especially if your're
riding alone.  I'm not saying it's impossible to do - I just think that solo
riders should work through these issues so that both they and their ferrets
have a safe ride.
 
As I said, I was never really comfortable with them on the bike and we
probably took them out for a ride only a half dozen times.  (But then we
never really tried to develop a system for routinely carrying them on
trips.) I found them to be quite a handful while riding.  Perhaps other
riders have hard more success or enjoyed it more.  I would recommend a short
trial ride if you're serious about taking them to see how they like it and
how much fun or distraction they are for you.  Also it will help to work out
the logistics.  I hope these thoughts are helpful to you.
 
Have fun and ride safe!
 
Fran Harris
[Posted in FML issue 1461]