Ok, maybe I'm not getting something here, but why would a *spayed/neutered* ferret be considered "defective" because it happens to be deaf? It's not like you're going to be perpetuating a genetic condition by breeding them. 3 of my 4 ferrets - Oberon, Max, & Puck - are deaf panda/blazes. Oberon & Puck are MF ferrets. Max's origins are unknown. I adopted him from Jean at Ferrets Unlimited, & he came to her as a very neglected, unneutered little boy. I saw his picture when she got him in, I fell in love w/ him immediately, we got him neutered & UTD w/ his shots, etc, & I brought him home. (As Jean said to me at the time, "Raise your right hand, put your left hand on the ferret, & repeat after me - 'I swear to give Max a Forever Home, & spoil him rotten forever & ever, so help me God.'") I don't consider my 3 boys to be "defective". You'd never know they were deaf by watching them play. We refer to them as Moe, Larry, & Curly when they get wound up - all little bundles of energy in perpetual motion. You can almost hear them going "nyuk nyuk nyuk, woob-woob-woob-woob-woob when they play. Maybe I'm being oversensitive to this issue. We don't "send back" or "get a refund" on children who are born deaf, or w/ CP, or spina bifida, or, or, or.... Why should a household pet be any different? I understand the issue from a breeding standpoint - it's not good to perpetuate a genetic defect. But it's also not the *ferret's* fault when s/he pops out deaf. All the ferret knows is that it's alive & having a great time. Like I said, I'm probably being oversensitive to this, or am interpreting it wrong. If you're talking about a ferret who has a *life threatening problem", that's one thing. But deafness isn't life-threatening, or even a problem, really. If it is, I'm half-defective myself. Maybe my husband should get a refund on me. ;-) Lin, Ariel, Oberon, Max, & Puck To email me back, take out everything from "K" to "2" [Posted in FML issue 5135]