I think that ultimately what is needed is decent federal animal welfare regulations that apply to pelters. Required humane standards and enough vet care would make the lower income pelt animals, including ferrets, unprofitable. This is something I think almost everyone here wants to see happen. If more of the anti-fur places were less showy and more in it for long haul then welfare regulation improvement that would be where to focus. It would spare some species from pelters and would at least improve conditions for those which could not be spared. If they are worried about foreign prices it is easy enough to point out that fur is one area where there would be low levels of flack over tariffs. Prices would rise, so perhaps some would then re-add some ferrets, but maybe not depending on the profit margin. There are some regulations that apply specifically to dog and cat pelts. Working for similar protection for ferrets to be thought of as companions instead of future coats is another way to go. Workign over the long haul to improve state laws and regulations also makes sense, so does connecting any officials or politicians who facilitate abusive situations with the animal abuse that is documented. One thing about being high up is that there is further to fall. A long journey starts with a few steps... Sukie (not a vet) Current FHL address: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth Recommended ferret health links: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/ http://ferrethealth.org/archive/ http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/ http://www.ferretcongress.org/ http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html [Posted in FML 5528]