Re ferrets and the law in CA The California Department of Fish and Game are understaffed and overworked. I'm guessing that many of them wish the ferret issue would go away. In my part of SoCal it is usually difficult to get a warden, at most of the regional offices they have insufficient staff to deal with calls about deer, bobcats, bears, coyotes, illegal hunting, fishing etc. Also with other animals the public gets upset about (either the animal is injured - dying deer on the freeway - and they have to try to deal with it, or someone's kitty has been eaten and the person is incensed that there is a coyote opportunistically picking off outside cats). Most of their income is generated by catching fishermen with illegal catches. They get no fine money for finding an illegal ferret- so it actually costs the department (I imagine) in the paperwork, time etc in dealing with them. So, usually the local departments of animal control, or humane societies, or shelters are stuck with the ferret issue. Usually unless the animal is paraded on a leash on a local beach (and they are - a few years ago my roommate saw a policeman on a bike smiling at one guy at a local beach parading with his ferret and said what a cute ferret it was) no-one knows who has ferrets. When they wander off they usually get killed by a local dog, eaten by a coyote, raccoon, or great horned owl. The few that are picked up (out of an estimated 10-100 thousand in the state, no-one knows for sure) are taken to animal control or a humane society. In my part of the world, the local DAC say they will hold the animals and check with the owner about shipping out of state. Supposedly the alternative is euthanasia. I have never heard on the grapevine (and there is one) that euthanasia actually happens. One DAC further north was threatened with a law suit (the owner was an attorney and said he was from out of state and had a permit) and gave it back. My impression from some inside info that the animals go somewhere, but are not killed. Does not mean they always go back to the original owner, just not killed. The local H.Soc does not even accept them - I don't think they like being in the euthanasia business to begin with - and they also have to deal with calls about feral or unwanted cats and dogs, and cruelty to animal issues, so I imagine taking a dear and loved pet away from a person when they are wanting it back would not sit too well with them. Not to mention having to ship them out of state and getting the owner to pay for it. I have no idea if there is an underground system so that the animals eventually make their way back to the original owners from out of state, but there are rumors to that effect. Most of the ferrets that do end up at Dept Animal Control here are there because citizens do not understand their rights. If someone (CDFG, HS, DAC) come to the door they have to have a search warrant. If a landlord finds a tenant has a ferret, and they call the police, once again they have to have seen the animal, and the police have to have a search warrant. You ask them to come back with one, and you move the ferret out. If you own your own home - don't let them escape, and don't let anyone who doesn't like you know you have one. BTW There are more ferret vets in CA than any other state (see Ferret Anonymous website http://www.ferretsanonymous.com/ - cute pics of a black footed ferret there right now. Every Petsmart and Petco have a ferret section - Marshall toys, Totally ferret foods etc. People often buy ferrets from Arizona or Oregon or Nevada and just drive them back avoiding the Agriculture checkpoints (not every highway in/out of CA has an Ag checkpoint) In a way, it's better they aren't on sale here, since like everywhere else, ferrets are often given up - usually to a vet - who holds onto them until they find them a home. Sometimes they are relinquished because of family problems, sometimes financial issues. There is a lost and found hotline on the FA site if you have a ferret that escapes. There are usually ferrets looking for homes, mostly somewhat older animals, already adrenal, sometimes landlord says get rid of it, sometimes just biters. Legalization of ownership but not sale at pet stores would be my preference. Most places in CA are far enough away from a place to buy that it restrains impulse buying. In Arizona, one pet store usually has half a dozen juvenile animals on sale for $300 apiece. After a succession of deaths I drove out, bought one, and hid my illegal immigrant in a box over which I draped a coat. He was asleep most of the trip. The inspection lady waved me through without looking inside - she said they only ask about fruit and veggies if people are coming from further inside Arizona. No mention of ferrets, (this was four years ago) and I didn't bring them up. The CDFG website is kind of outdated, but it does have some of their survey info and the stuff about environmental damage world wide (world wide = New Zealand only - what a joke) . I personally agree that Hawaii (although there are a few there I understand) should not allow them to be brought in by their owners. They have too much of every kind of mammal there - with probably humans top of the list for causing most of the damage. Could not resist that! The CDFG site is at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/species/nuis_exo/ferret/ferret.html Don't know if Arnold's kids still have ferrets - it's rumored they used to. The grapevine says he is sympathetic (he obviously is not afraid of them in Kindergarten cop), but obviously with all the current problems in Ca - economy etc - this is low on his list of priorities. CDFG has more important things to worry about than chasing down pet ferrets - they need more staff, wardens and funds to deal with the other problems the state has. FerretLover in CA [MM] [Posted in FML 6168]