Dear Anonymous, I think that the ferret community is no different than any other community when it comes to having their favourite animal portrayed in a negative fashion. This extends to people as well, with movies making fun of the overweight, the physically deformed, the mentally challenged and so forth. Ferret people are not unique in wanting to defend the animal they love. I do wish to challenge something that you have stated though... You said, >I have had ferrets for over 20 years, and hellooooo, many ferrets DO >bite. For whatEVER reason, many ferrets DO bite. Far more on an >individual basis than a dog or a cat. Soooo..... > >Why do we as ferret admirers get cranky about people talking about this >FACT. Maybe if more people knew this truth there wouldn't be so many >abandoned ferrets---" I have lived with ferrets for close to 20 years and in that time have had the pleasure of living with over 70 of them. I do agree that ferrets bite, but I don't agree with the rest of your argument, especially when you compare them to cats or dogs. The truth is that ALL mammals bite, but the frequency has yet to be determined by an accurate study that has, to date, not been done. The challenges of doing a study like this are enormous... We cannot simply base "biting cases" as those that people went for medical treatment over as we already know that many people who have been bitten, do not report them or falsely report them. Then we have to be able to separate out the severity of the bites. Having lived with a number of animals including cats, dogs, birds, snakes, a guinea pig, hedgehog, tarantula, a bat, and ferrets, I can tell you that I have been bitten by all of these animals on a regular basis. Sure, their reasons were different each time... pain, fear, not used to being held by a human, feeling sick, being handled wrong, fun and play... but you have to be able to know what biting is done in play and what bite constitutes something more serious. This may be perceived as an extreme way of thinking, but my experiences in running a shelter have also shown me that, oddly enough, people have mistaken nail scratches as bites! I also know that people who have more sensitive skin feel they have received a serious bite when in comparison to someone who is well seasoned to bites, considers them to be nothing. So you see, perception plays a big part in all of this. And when you say that ferrets bite as matter of fact, also know that the frequency of said bites is tainted by society's fear of certain animals to begin with. Let's look at the the Bat. The Rat. The Rottweiller. Or the Pit Bull. There are generalizations that people make of any species, or any breed of dog. Sometimes, these generalizations turn into "fact", when they are not necessarily fact, but a belief shared by a group of people. I'm sure that given any breed of dog, or specie of animal, an argument could be made either way as to its temperament. And people believe it whether it is fact or not. As for ferrets biting... I don't agree with your statement that if more people knew that ferrets bite, that there wouldn't be so many abandoned ferrets. It actually has nothing to do with knowing they bite, as I have already stated that ALL mammals bite. It has more to do with challenging why a person wants to have a kit over an adult and not understanding that kits are more of a handful in terms of training than an adult. (Kittens and puppies bite too when they are young!) It also has more to do with people not understanding the needs of ferrets and wanting to force mold them into being a certain kind of pet that they are not. Do ferrets bite more than cats or dogs? No. Do people's perceptions of ferrets cause more fear in being around them? Absolutely. So, the next time you read about ferret people getting upset over someone portraying their beloved fuzzy as a vicious or ferocious animal, it has more to do with them knowing that these animals can be sweet and loving, cuddly and playful, forever nonjudgmental and accepting when they are in homes that know how to treat them properly and raise them right. betty and her blur o'fur for the love of animals [Posted in FML issue 4369]