Whenever I take my Zoe out for walks or romps in the park, I almost inevitably get approached by people asking questions about ferrets and asking if they could pick her up or hold her. Now, I don't mind answering questions, and most people who pick her up hand her back within a few seconds. Yet, I am sometimes approached by people I simply do not like the looks of, and make me feel uneasy. Also, I have had problems with people not handing her back quickly enough to suit my taste. So, how should I handle these situations. I know that I can simply say "no" when certain people ask to hold her, and I have done so in the past. But, I feel that ferrets already have enough negative baggage to deal with, and I don't want to add to it by coming off as a rude ferret person. If anyone has a polite and diplomatic way to deal with these situations I would love to hear it. Zoe is the sweetest creature on this earth, and a great ferret ambassador to humankind. I don't want to subvert her charms by coming off as a jerk. Thanks. Markos and Zoe (She yells," Joy dance? I'm a vicious warrior!" as she trips over a speaker cable, backs up into the end table, falls off the couch and unexpectedly pauses to scratch that oh so annoying itch on her back end.) E-Mail: [log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 1579]