I'm a 1st year veterinary student at Tufts (as well as the owner of two great ferrets), and have been lurking for a few months now on the FML. I've been reading the thread about ferret-knowledgeable vets and thought perhaps I could provide a unique perspective of current veterinary school practice in regards to ferrets, at least here at Tufts. Tufts vet school, in general, is very open to teaching about both exotics and wildlife. As other posters have mentioned, this focus on exotics and wildlife is perhaps somewhat indicative of being in the Northeast, where there can be less of a focus on livestock, with agriculture not as prevalent as in other areas of the country. I have already been taught some facts regarding ferrets in my classes, and certainly will learn more when my comparitive anatomy course starts this spring. Nonetheless, I think in order to become a truly knowledgeable ferret veterinarian, even at a great school like Tufts, will require spending extra time reading and gaining experience outside of the veterinary school curriculum. I feel I learn a great deal even from reading the FML, and particularly Dr. William's informative posts. It seems that vet schools are put in somewhat of a bind, in that with the increased interest in exotic veterinary medicine, they simply don't have enough time to teach every species in the detail it deserves. Nonetheless, it might comfort FML readers to know that I have many fellow classmates that are very interested in exotic medicine, including several that are fellow ferret owners, and that I think more and more ferret-knowledgeable veterinarians will be practicing in the future. Sincerly, Erin Hokanson [Posted in FML issue 3302]