Kurt wrote: >Cheryl posted that she had a friend in California who wanted to know >where he could obtain a ferret. The short answer is NOWHERE LEGALLY! >I can't speak for any ferret shelters in California, but I would >suggest to your friend that he join one of the organizations lobbying >for ferret legalization BEFORE getting a ferret. This would also give >him an idea of what problems he might expect for owning an illegal pet. >Ferrets are wonderful, and it's wonderful that someone wants to join >the world of ferret owners, but living in a place where they are >illegal makes it a little trickier. It will be interesting to see >California perspectives on this. I can't speak for anyone else in California, either. But I'll add my 2 cents. I think when anyone is considering buying a new pet, including a ferret, that they have an obligation (and should want) to learn as much as they can about that animal. In the case of ferrets, since many vets don't know much about them, regardless of where one lives, it is the responsible thing to do to find a vet who is knowledgeable about (and in the case of CA is willing to treat) ferrets *before* buying one. And I agree, one should learn the negatives as well as the positives of owning ferrets before adopting one. And sure, it would be great to join some groups here to talk to other people about owning ferrets in CA. As far as purchase, my friend who has ferrets got one in-state and 3 out of state. It has never been a problem to own them- he had one vet turn him down when he asked if they treated ferrets, but his current vet has some other regular ferret clients, and there have never been any other problems. They sell a pretty good variety of ferret food, toys, accessories, etc. in ALL pet stores here (kind of funny... some of the items are always cleaned out when we get there... hmmm). We have taken them out in public several times- which of course is totally up to the discretion of the owner, and I'm not necessarily recommending this- please don't flame me about that. (In fact, I asked the director of a shelter/rescue operation here what she thought about telling people he has ferrets or taking them out in public and she said that, in her opinion, the CDFG does not go actively looking for ferret owners as long as you don't make a huge deal out of it- again, just one person's opinion). There has never been a problem with taking them out and, in fact, we've gotten many chances to educate other people about ferrets because they approach us to look at and pet them. There are many misconceptions about ferrets out there (as you all know), and whenever one of them comes up, we explain the truth and dispel the myths. One lady asked if his sable was an otter and if he lived in the water :D. Anyway, I'm not recommending anything one way or the other for people in CA. Everyone has to weigh all the positive and negative issues of owning ferrets (which includes the legal issue, but also many other issues to consider). Obviously, I think ferrets are great and make wonderful pets. The legal issue would not stop me from owning ferrets. What stops me is that I live in a small, stuffy apartment and I don't spend enough time at home to have pets. Personally, I think unless I had a lot more time and lived in a cooler place where they could run around all the time, it would be completely irresponsible of me to own ferrets. I get mad when people own pets and don't spend enough time with them. So I spend a lot of time at my friend's house and enjoy taking care of and playing with his 4, who have the run of half the house all day, air conditioning (it's been over 100 degrees here this week), and the time of two people to play with them. Someday, I hope to be the proud owner of my own "babies", but for now, I'll just be happy being an aunt. -J in CA [Posted in FML issue 3182]