Whew! This post got a lot of responses....about 30! Someone even emailed me a series of photos of their little guys pushing Easter eggs around and opening boxes. Thanks for all the kind remarks. Here's a erply regarding the ethics of using scents: A question of ethics was raised about using these products to increase a ferret's enrichment because of some of the conditions in which the animals are housed. I don't know about that (I'm NOT implying anyone is untruthful, I just mean I have no personal knowledge of it), but I will be researching it for the next week or so. I do know most--if not all--of these compounds do come from animals; that is, non-synthetic. Some come from animals killed by hunters, other come from ranched animals, and some come from animals housed in on ranches. A lot of the scents are indeed urine, some come from removed scent glands, and others are distilled from other body products which no one cares to know about. Whatever the source, the real question is, should it be used to stimulate a ferret in a boring environment? I've had to answer the same question for myself; I take two medications due to an internal injury I sustained when helping a cow give birth; both medicines are derived from ranched pigs and cattle. Because I lost part of my pancreas and now suffer from pancreactic insufficency, I have to take a resin to bind my bile salts and lipids, as well as enzymes to break down the lipids. That means, I live because an animal has died. Pure and simple. But that is not exactly true; the products I take are the "leftovers" when animals are slaughtered for meat products, and if there was not a market for this stuff, it would find its way into fertilizer or a disposal pit. In other words, my use or non-use would make little difference in the number of pigs or cattle killed for Happy Meals and Western Cheeseburgers. As I've said, I don't know for sure what the conditions are surrounding the collection of these scents, and forgive me for saying this, but I wouldn't believe what PETA says any faster than what someone from the KKK says; their viewpoint is extreme, biased, and frequently extremely dishonest (I am damn tired of seeing poorly-copied propagandist reproductions of journal photos of experiments done to animals in the 1930s and 40s as if it was being done today). That is not to say that I think the people who have posted on the list, nor privately to me, are anything more than sincere in their beliefs. I think they are, and I admire them for their ethical stand. Its just that I always preach that people need to find out the facts for themselves, and I follow my own preaching. I will look into the conditions myself, then, based on my personal ethics and morality, make an informed and unbiased decision regarding the matter without allowing someone else to manipulate my feelings with extreme depictions of "reality." I will tell you something else. Like the medicines I have to take, I feel the mental health of my ferrets is as important as their physical health. Indeed, both are intimately tied to each other. So, for that reason, as well as the fact that I buy so little and my use makes the bottle last for years, I see no problem in using it--as a "mental medicine"-- to better my ferret's life. However, if I discover from my research that the stuff is collected in a unreasonable or inhumane way, I could no longer morally or ethically use that specific product (if inhumane towards deer, I won't use deer, etc.). That is the best that I can do. Since we are on the subject of ethics, there is one basic fact I want to point out. Kibble is MADE from animals, and not always are those animals housed in a dignified and loving manner. In fact, and research this yourself, kibble can be made from dead, dying or diseased animals unfit for human consumption, it can be made from the rendered bodies of roadkilled animals, from taxidermist and hunter remains, even from the garbage thrown out by restaurants. I personally see no ethical difference between feeding my ferrets a kibble made from exploited animals, or enriching their lives using scents collected from exploited animals. Now, some might argue that food is a necessity and scents are not, but I take the position that mental stimulation is as important as physical nutrition; both are needs. Also, there are established regulations concerning the housing and care of animals, and if anyone knows of a specific case where animals are housed in a shameful or inhumane manner, they should contact the local, state and federal authorities. ut those asses out of business if they are bad, or work with your legislators to make the laws stronger. I would not feel using a scent made from well housed and healthy animals to be overtly exploitive, but that's am opinion. Boc C and 19 Mo' Exploitive Furbutts [Posted in FML issue 2615]