Hi everyone! Just a few comments/questions. My boss (2 ferret household) and his wife were visiting Brookfield Zoo (near Chicago, IL) the other day and told me some things about what he saw. I was pretty pissed so I thought I would start with you guys (lucky you!). They went into the Children's Petting Zoo to check it out. There is a part there where a zoo employee will get an animal out of a cage then talk about it, walk it around (holding it) a half circle of kids and their parents and let them pet it and ask questions. I have been there. I have never been there when they actually had the ferrets out but I have been there for several other animals and it has usually been really informative, fact-based information. My boss told me that the girl starts (she is holding a ferret) out by saying, "Kids, first of all you must understand that this animal is a wild animal, and VERY mean. They are not nice and not nice to children. They bite all the time and are totally unpredictable. You should NEVER consider having one as a pet since they belong in the wild and are not tame." She said she would let them pet it (who the hell would want to at this point) but ONLY pet it on the back. She apparently had a death grip on it's neck and back legs so that ONLY it's back was exposed to the kids. My boss said that this looked liked one of the most gentle ferrets he had ever seen - at least as nice as his own (VERY GENTLE!!) and he could not believe that they would say this sort of stuff to kids - AT A CHILDREN'S PETTING ZOO!!! I told him I would write to you guys for advice. Should I write to the zoo and ask for an explanation? In the past I have had a membership to this zoo. I can't imaging wanting to fund this sort of mis-information in the future, tho. Anyone on this list from the GCFA (Greater Chicago-land Ferret Association - I think) ((ROGER???)) want to comment? I think that is where the zoo gets it's "show" ferrets. I'm in pet stores ALL the time hearing dense 17 year olds tell me how evil ferrets are (and I used to work in one and get chomped to bits by cock-a-toos, and parrots - I still have the scars!), but I just can't tolerate it in a zoo. Sorry for all the venting!! Tracy [Posted in FML issue 2066]