>From "J. L. Brown" <[log in to unmask]> I couldn't agree more - children are very capable of being taught how to treat and how not to treat animals at a very young age. More importantly, they can be taught that every creature is deserving of respect whether they walk on two feet or not and so every creature should be treated with respect that they deserve. For children, at first, this only means how to hold a kitten without squeezing them or how to pet a dog or that they shouldn't pull the cat's tail, and so on, but later it means much more. My sisters and I were never not around animals - dogs, cats, etc. around home and a wide variety of animals at my grandmother's farm. There were so many incredibly "fragile" little animals that we were taught at very early age how to handle like goslings, ducklings, tiny kittens, and baby chicks. We were closely supervised and we were so very careful because the last thing we wanted to ever do was to hurt anything. I have a long memory and can remember being very, very young. I can remember the supervision of my parents and other relatives with us being around the various animals. I can remember trying to be so very careful not to hurt the animals and to handle them carefully. I can remember being so nervous about my handling of the animals that it was scarey. I probably handled them with as much care as when I held my baby sister for the first time when I was four years old. I refuse to accept the "Children will be children" or "Boys will be boys" sorts of excuses. They're just that, excuses. I think children and animals are a wonderful mix. Great companions and playmates. Often, a pet can be the child's first friend. I do, however, think careful supervision is the only way to go especially where young children and animals are concerned since there is a "whole-lot" of training needed for both. I also think that ferrets have unfairly been singled out as a "danger" to children. I would be no more worried about them and my children than I would dogs or cats and my children.These animals all have teeth and can bite, but the real issue is to train all parties (2 and 4 legged) involved which will reduce the risks to all parties involved. Ferrets a danger? No, no more so than a cat or a dog and the size/strength/claw differences in these animals would tend to point to the fact that ferrets are probably the least dangerous of the lot! I would, however, be *extremely* careful of other people's children and ferrets since ferrets have been branded unfairly with the letter "R" in the Great Rabies Crusade. I would also make some "rules" of play for small children in ferret households, like "keeping your butt on the floor when playing with the ferrets." This hopefully would prevent the accidental spills or steps from injuring the four-legged kids. -kim, mike, Squirt "the melon-addict", and Pippi "a recovering sock-aholic" Kimberly Burkard | _ Everything I needed to know in life Xerox, Rochester, NY | _____C .._. I learned from my ferret: [log in to unmask] | ____/ \___/ Dance for joy often. Play often. [log in to unmask] <____/\_---\_\ Be determined in your ventures. [Posted in FML issue 1127]