Tara; Since you chose to flame me in public and have stated that you won't acknowledge my private e-mail, I hope Chris will allow me to respond. I never, never said you were a bad person. I am quite convinced that everyone on the FML cares a lot for ferrets. Some, including myself and perhaps you, have a heart the size of Texas when it comes to ferrets (and most other living critters.) And I don't doubt that you sacrifice alot for your animals, just as I do. If you took my letter as implying that you are a bad person, I apologize. THAT was not the intent. I too, am a student (notice the ".edu"), and I recently got a full time job to support my family while I am going to law school (maybe some day I can help with ferret legalization and legislation.) I do not think that I am an expert (nor am I GOD, as you asked) and anyone who thinks they are an expert probably needs to learn more about ferrets. However, I do believe, as I stated in my private e-mail to you, that breeding a single female ferret 3 or 4 times a year is irresponsible. I would guess that it is probably unhealthy also, but since I am not a vet, I will not comment on that aspect. You are absolutely right that a female ferret will die if she is not taken out of season. But just because a female comes into season does not mean that she needs to, or should be impregnated. In the e-mail you sent me, you stated that, "Nature is nature, it happens and I don't tamper with it. If a female is not ready to have another litter, she will either not go into heat or will have a false pregnancy." The first sentence is the irresponsible part; the second sentence I doubt is true. Ferrets are domesticated and are dependent upon man for their needs. This includes being man being responsible for breeding. Look what has happened with the unrestrained breeding of dogs and cats. Animal control destroys millions of animals every year because of unrestrained breeding. About the second part, I have seen ferrets in terrible shape health-wise go into season. The common ways that females can be taken out of season are by breeding, drugs, or with a sterile male. Most breeders keep a vasectomized male on hand to take female ferrets out of season. If you are going to be breeding ferrets, you should have a vasectomized male(s) or be ready to pay big $$ to the vet to use drugs to take females out of season after they have had their litter. Since our local shelter gets so many ferrets, they have 7 vasectomized males to take the females out of season. They need 7 because the males, like the females are seasonal breeders and the two don't always coincide. You are probably wondering, as would those people on the East Coast, why and how the local shelter could have such a problem that they require 7 vasectomized males. The answer is simple: Pet stores. The pet stores in the Northwest sell ferrets that are not neutered or spayed. From my understanding, many areas of country (especially on the East Coast) require that the pet stores sell kits already neutered or spayed. It is well documented that early neuter and spay causes problems. However, we have a terrible problem in the Northwest with "backyard breeders" that get into breeding thinking that they can turn a quick profit. They buy unaltered animals at the pet store, breed them, and sell them to anyone they can. Consequently, the shelter gets many ferrets that are too old to be breeders or simply unwanted. So, selling unaltered ferrets is good for the animal but bad in the long run. Other people will start "backyard breeding" and soon your area will need a shelter that can support >200 ferrets at a time, just like our shelter is forced to deal with. Our shelter had to go nationwide in an appeal for help last year because we could not afford to take care of 210 shelter ferrets. I only hope it never happens that this country has to start euthanizing healthy ferrets because of overpopulation. The solution: neutering and spaying. When the animal is too young when sold to be altered, requiring a deposit that would be refunded when the animal is altered at the appropriate age would be one solution. I also told you that selling to pet stores is irresponsible. All pet stores are trying to make a profit (that's why they are in business) and therefore will sell to any person willing to pay money, whether they are fit to be a ferret owner (or any other animal owner) or not. And, even though a buyer may have a heart of gold, they may not know enough that there is a problem until it's too late. (I could cite several examples here.) Therefore, the "personalized" attention is lacking. The pet store you are selling to may be an exception, however there is nothing as good as meeting the new owner face-to-face, screening, and educating them before the sale, not after. Every week when I spend up to 8 hours helping at the shelter. Last year, I spent more than 600 hours at the shelter cleaning cages & other tasks, even while working part time and going to law school. Look into the eyes of a shelter ferret, especially one that will probably never get a home because it is too old. That's when I get angry at those people who contribute to the problem. That's also why I've taken 10 of the ferrets home with me; most of them were "hard to place." If you had said that you breed ferrets (one litter per year per female) and sell them personally to the public after screening potential buyers, that is responsible breeding; you would not have heard a peep from me. I stand by my statements. -Carla Almaraz [Posted in FML issue 1015]