>Uh, are you a Dr., or a Vet? should be... much more knowledgeable than >most! Okay, I am blushing! No, I'm not. My education level is actually about the same as some other very verbose FML members. I have a bachelors (most of my classes were in biology, geology and anthropology), and I have some graduate credits, mostly in anatomy and primatology/physical anthropology and taught through the anatomy department. I also worked for the geology department for a while, helped on a free-lance basis with a comparative study of primate skulls doing measurements for a project at one of the Ivy League universities, worked for the anatomy department at SUNY SB for something like 4 and half years and participated in some fossil digs, a study of Pithecia locomotion (both in the jungles of Suriname and in a lab setting), and I worked pretty extensively with some apes and some new world monkeys in lab settings, and a little less with some prosimians. My plans had been to study macroevolutionary questions working from primates mostly, and to teach anatomy (which is quite common for primatologists to do). I was already partly through the work for my dissertation and on tearing it apart as much as possible with profs and some researchers to get it as strong and complete as possible (on a tail use hypothesis that came to me after reading some canopy density work from a comparative termite study and which about ten or so years later later was independently reached by a Princeton graduate student who was able to do the work). A neuromuscular disease cut short my ability to pursue my education 25 years ago. It happens. Neither working in jungles nor working with primates is particularly great for health in some regards, I'm afraid. There can be surprises sometimes that can't be explained, so if it happened due to one of those or some other cause no one knows. So, I am rusty on some things, keep up to some extent largely thanks to buying books, using the internet, and getting a few science magazines and journals (though cost prevents me from getting some I'd love to be able to read), and since I have worked so often with Dr. Bruce Williams and with some others and have read a number of vet papers and some vet texts I have simply learned a lot about ferret health through routes anyone can pursue. That's one of the joys of life: learning through sharing. As far as rabies goes the reason I know some about it is thanks to some public health vets, some vets, and especially Dr. Charles Rupprecht of the CDC who helped me get up to speed when everyone was pursuing important questions for ferrets on that score, donating, and scaring up funding. Goodness only knows what the postal carriers thought of me getting so many manila envelopes from the CDC! LOL! BTW, you have more education that I do, Michelle! You have a masters! You are also a sweeter person than I am to say so many kind things and the work you do is the type which has to be filed with kindness as well as intelligence, information, a cool head under pressure, and modesty. Anyway, I might as well be frank about it once again. I've said it before (but still have someone who insists that i am a vet -- despite my repeatedly saying otherwise -- and who insists that am hiding it but that person is just plain wrong. (Sorry. It's true -- I'm not one.) I see no good reason for people to not be upfront with their limitations as well as their strengths. It leads to greater accuracy and I think it is simply respectful toward fellow FLMers. So, always have those grains of salt handy, everyone, to take with what you read from anyone, and always learn! -- Sukie http://media.eod.com/hhgttg_high.mov (_Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy_ DA was a dog rescuer and he also loved stories of a certain bob-tailed ferret) http://www.wandg.com/ (Wallace and Grommit which needs a ferret who steals things while meaning well -- unlike a certain penguin) http://www.fingerstothebone.com/ (Shu Ju was one of the original FMLers) http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4513343 (A must listen for animal lovers [Posted in FML issue 4804]