OUCH! And humans are supposed to be high on the IQ chart? Sounds like some of the Ontario judges have moved down to San Diego. It appears we've got a visibly biased judge with no fact to base his opinion on, and a lady who has an outstanding Visa bill to pay off. I guess the $8,000 wasn't enough, eh? Go for the gusto! Let's go for $10,000. Satisfy that lawyer's greed! You know...... if everyone that my ferrets nipped in defence or youthful naivety were to have taken that stance....We wouldn't have dogs, cats, ferrets or rabbits at home anymore. Dr. Killian, do you have anything on paper to offer here that would counteract this BS? Pamela? Dayna? Bill? Kelleen? Personally, here's my 2 cents in supportive arguement against the judge's ruling: Rob Adlers Toronto, Canada (416)932-1619 Occupation: Senior Support Analyst for Symantec Corp. I, and my fiancee, have three ferrets and a cat in our 2 bedroom apartment. When the ferrets were younger, they had the privileage of using the entire apartment 24 hours a day. Because of the inability to properly litter train them due to long work hours, we concluded that it would be better to cage them while we are not home. All three of them, as youthful ferrets, did nip and bite us during their maturation into adult ferrets, displaying nothing more than curiousity, youthful physical clumbsiness, playful and fearful actions. I've sustained worse injuries from my cat for the same reasons. In each case, they have learned from those experiences, and I do not have fear in letting them near strangers. To this, we allowed them to run around our bedroom at night during this period, with access to the bed where we sleep. We're still alive with no medical records indicating blood thirsty attacks by our ferrets. The ferrets have all tasted our blood at one point in their life due to topical scratches during play. I again point out, that I have sustained more injury playing with my cat, he's tasted my blood, and his nails were clipped short! It is true that there is no conclusive study on Rabies incubation periods within a ferret. The failure of the American Health Institutions to recognize the need to conclude the study is not the owner's fault. There is a ferret support group right now in the USA attempting to collect money to help fund the $5,000,000 project. When it comes to a case as the one against Ferrets Anonymous , The Ministry of Health in Ontario, Canada is on the ferret's side due to factual statistics. Unless there is NO doubt that something is ailing the ferret, A ferret will NOT be immediately put down, but instead will be quarantined for observation for at least 1 month. Ferrets are normally kept indoors, and when out, they are normally caged or with their owners on a leash or within easy reach. Vets in Ontario also encourage yearly vaccinations to keep the cautious assured. This practice also helps reduce the possibility of rabies in the ferret population, and Toronto has the highest rabies rate in Canada. My ferrets have had their rabies shots and have the tags worn on their leashes when we are out for a walk and come in contact with strangers. Regards, Rob Adlers [Posted in FML issue 1717]