Edward....I am glad you are asking before you take this step.  Ferrets have
a "bad rap" already we don't need to add to that if we can help it.
 
I think yours is basically a good idea, teaching children the truth about
ferrets before their minds are contaminated by the "highly exaggerated and
often untrue" stories about problems with ferrets.
 
A critical issue though is that a persons perception of an incident, and the
truth, are sometimes very different.  Ferrets get excited when they play,
their way of playing is to gently (in most cases) nip fingers or whatever is
close enough to "play with".  You and I know this is their way of playing,
but someone who has never seen this behavior before may be frightened by it
and if the ferret touches their hand or fingers or whatever, they may think
the ferret BIT them.  If a person THINKS they have been bitten, that is all
it takes to bring in authorities and rabies becomes a grave concern in the
minds of, in this case, the children, parents, school officials, and the
authorities.  The ferret, at least where I live, will be taken from you,
KILLED, and tested for rabies.  If you have a certificate proving the ferret
has been vaccinated against rabies, you may be able to get the people
involved to let it go, or you may be able to have the ferret quarantined for
a time, rather than KILLED.
 
Consider this scenario: you take the ferret into the classroom, excitement
builds as everyone is asking questions and playing with and petting the
ferret, then someone decides to make a big deal and draw attention to
himself by yelling "OOOH, that thing bit me!" ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, you
would not believe the ensuing chain reaction from those few words,
regardless of whether the person was just trying to be a big shot, get
attention, or the ferret tried to play with him/her.  Think about it.
 
Please check the laws in your city and state regarding this BEFORE you take
the ferret to the classroom.  It is great to educate, but there is NO
justification for endangering the life of a ferret or any other animal.
 
Don't think you are safe because you "know the ferret wouldn't bite", it
doesn't really matter if the ferret actually bit or not, all that is needed
is someone to "say" the ferret bit them, and you will have no further say-so
in what happens to the animal, unless you have a rabies certificate, and
sometimes that isn't even enough.  There was a case some time back that I
read about where a ferret would have been killed if it had not "disappeared"
before the authorities could snatch it up.  There was no mark, no blood, or
anything else on the person claiming to have been bitten, but that did not
matter.
 
I took ferrets alot of places to give them some excitement and educate
people about them.  People will stop to pet the ferret and ask questions.
But after I read about the incident I mentioned above, they go NOWHERE that
we are likely to run into PEOPLE.  Sad isn't it!
--Trish
Ferrets First Rescue and Shelter
[Posted in FML issue 1459]