Permission to crosspost this post to other lists is granted and even encouraged. Currently, there is a bill being considered by the Congress that could potentially benefit ferrets. It is the Minor Use and Minor Species Animal Health Act, and is designed to promote development of drug treatments for rare animals and rare diseases. And, while we know that ferrets are not rare animals, they are defined in the bill by exclusion as a minor species. This bill, if passed, will benefit many animals by providing incentives for drug companies to work on treatments and vaccines for animal diseases that would not be profitable enough to the drug companies to merit a company's investment in traditional development. The legislation would establish new options for lawfully marketing these new animal drugs and would make available incentives, such as grants, for certain drugs for minor species and uses. The US Senate has already passed the bill by a unanimous vote, and it has gone to the House of Representatives for consideration. It is important that people let their Congresspeople know that this bill needs to be passed. As many know, I have a personal interest in seeing ADV research done, with the hope that a vaccine that would protect ferrets from the disease will be developed. One of the big things standing in the way of this happening is cost. The amount needed to develop the vaccine may not be justified by the profits that could be made from it. So, passage of this bill might provide help on that front. But, it will help other with research into other ferrets diseases and diseases of other animals as well. Therefore, it is beneficial to all ferret owners and lovers that this bill get passed. For anyone who wants to read the bill, here is a link to a page with the text: http://www.theorator.com/bills108/hr2079.html Here are 3 other links that provide some commentary and information about the bill, and how it can be used to benefit all animals, as well as a sample letter that can be used to send to your Congressperson: http://www.avma.org/scienact/mums/default.asp http://www.avma.org/scienact/mums/whitepaper.asp http://www.avma.org/scienact/mums/you.asp To find the address of your Representative, check: http://www.house.gov/writerep/ Remember, the Senate has already passed this bill, so you only need to write to your Representative. -- Danee International Ferret Congress Health Issues Coordinator http://ferretcongress.org ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know! For more information visit: http://www.ferretadv.com [Posted in FML issue 4467]