Permission to cross post the following information to other lists is granted (and even encouraged), as long as the post is taken in it entirety, with out any changes or additions. I apologize for this taking so long. Back in July, there were questions that came up about whether or not the research team at UGA was going to continue researching ADV in ferrets, or if they were only going to be looking at ADV in skunks. At the time, I posted that I thought there had very likely been a miscommunication somewhere, but that I would check it out and let everyone know what I learned. Dr. Ritchie, the head of the team at UGA can be hard to reach - especially if you are calling long distance, and have limited times when you can try to call. Also, soon after this confusion occurred, I was out of town for several weeks, and without Internet access. Since I have been back, my life has been somewhat "complicated". I still have not been able to actually speak to Dr. Ritchie. We have been playing telephone tag. But, in desperation, I finally settled for speaking to another member of the team, Dr. Kenneth Latimer. I have no idea where the information that UGA was discontinuing research on ADV in ferrets came from, but it is definitely not true. They are still working on ferret ADV as well as skunk ADV, and are also interested in working on an ADV vaccine, according to Dr. Latimer. The only thing we can figure, and this is pure speculation, is that somehow the status of ADV testing at UGA became confused with the research itself. The research team is no longer investigating ADV testing for ADV in ferrets. Their ferret ADV tests have been validated, and the testing has been moved from the research lab to the commercial lab. But, this is the testing for ADV in ferret only. They are apparently still in the process of refining and validating their tests for skunk ADV. So, it is possible that somehow someone mistook this information to mean that the team was no longer looking at ferret ADV. People who want to get testing done by UGA should now contact Dr. Paula Ciembor at the Infectious Diseases Laboratory, <[log in to unmask]>, (706) 542-2867. I do not know what the charges for the tests are, but they are running both PCR (the test for antigen) and the CIEP tests. I believe they also offer an ELISA test. All 3 tests are generally run on blood serum samples. At the time questions about the future of the ADV research arose, I said that I had not yet sent off the donations from the afghan raffle at Toronto, and that I would hold the money until I knew that research on ferret ADV was continuing. Since Dr. Latimer has assured me that it is, I will now send off those moneys. For others who wish to make donations to the research project, now that Kate is no longer at UGA, they should be sent to the attention of Dr. Branson Ritchie. Checks should be made out to "The Arch Foundation" and on the notations line, write "ADV Research". His mailing address and other contact information can be found at: http://www.uga.edu/cgi-bin/ldap For those who don't want to go to the webpage: BRANSON W RITCHIE, RESEARCH PROFESSOR UGA College of Vet Medicine SMALL ANIMAL MEDICINE H316 VET MED - 1 ATHENS, GA 30602 Telephone number: 706-542-6316 Email: [log in to unmask] I realize that ADV is not the only ferret disease that needs additional research done, and that there are also many other things besides health research that need funding. But, ADV is a disease that can be deadly, and currently, there is no cure, treatment or vaccine for ADV. But, with donations, a vaccine could be possible, and ferret owners could be free of the worry of ADV. As I have stated before, the estimate of the cost of a vaccine that Dr. Ritchie gave me was $240,000.00, or $60,000.00 a year for 4 years. This sounds like a lot when mentioned as a lump sum, but with about 2,500 members on the FML, if each FML member donated just $25.00 a year for the next 4 years, we would cover the cost of developing a vaccine against ADV. That means for a little more then $2.00 a month per FML member, for the next 4 years, we could stop needing to worry about ADV. Some people have expressed concern that this sum is too great for ferret owners to be expected to raise it. Maybe this is true. But, I would point to efforts in the avian community, and the work they have done to raise money to fight avian diseases. In recent years, avian enthusiasts have raised much larger sums of money to further research and vaccines for birds. I do not think that they are any larger a community then we are, and I would hate to think we can not accomplish some of the same things that they have. Here are a few websites that support what I have said. http://www.stoppdd.org/makeitwork/makitwork.htm http://www.funnyfarmexotics.com/IAS/iasresh.htm http://www.birdparadise.biz/details3.html I could list more, but the above should give you some idea of what the avian community has done and is doing. People have asked about donations that have been made to the ADV research program in the past. Most of that money was used to create and validate the ADV tests that are now being offered commercially by UGA. Usually, the first step in a research endeavor like this one is to develop both qualitative and quantitative methods to measure things. Finally, when I last posted anything about UGA and the research, I was asked why I felt I had the right to speak for Dr. Ritchie, Kate, or the UGA. The short answer is, I don't. However, there are times that I contact them with questions or concerns, and they ask me to share the answer with the ferret online community. They probably figure that if I have the questions, others do to. By asking me to share the information, it cuts down on the number of times they have to answer the questions. Additionally, I have interviewed both Kate and Dr. Ritchie for articles I have written, and the understanding is that the information they give me will be shared with the (online) ferret community. That said, I would not discourage anyone from contacting Dr. Ritchie themselves, if they have any questions about the ADV research program. I provided all of his contact information, so that people can do just that. -- Danee DeVore International Ferret Congress Health Issues Coordinator http://www.ferretcongress.org ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know! For more information visit: http://www.ferretadv.com You can help fight ADV! Visit: http://help4adv.terrabox.com/ [Posted in FML issue 5362]