http://www.ferretcongress.org

We're pleased to announce we have reached a major milestone in the effort to get the USDA and APHIS (Animal Plant Health Inspection Service) to adopt ferret specific regulations under the Animal Welfare Act.

In March of 2004, several ferret organizations sent a petition to the USDA requesting a revision in the requirements for housing and transport for breeding farms, dealers and research institutions already under USDA control. The proposed changes would not apply to small breeders who sell privately; rather they would apply only to farms who breed ferrets for wholesale, their distributors, and the transport they use.

The USDA has accepted this petition, and has now requested public input. They ask 3 main questions (condensed here): 1. Should specific standards be implemented for the welfare of domestic ferrets? If yes, please explain what standards you believe are needed. 2. What specific problems have dealers, exhibitors, or research facilities had with the current handling, care, treatment, and transportation standards and how would ferret-specific standards eliminate them? 3. Should there be minimum age requirements for the transportation of domestic ferrets, and, if so, what factors should be considered in determining those requirements?

The deadline for responding is October 4, 2005. You may respond via mail, email or on the USDA web site (via EDOCKET). It is URGENT that the USDA get a strong response from the ferret community to move forward with the development of new regulations!

For the full text of the request for input and how to respond, go to http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html and click on Recent Documents. Scroll down to Animal Welfare; Standards for Ferrets, Docket No. 04-088-1.

The IFC will be hosting information on the our web site, including the Notice of Petition and Request for Comments; sample letters to the USDA; and the transcript of Dr. Sandra Kudrak's presentation at the 2005 International Ferret Symposium in St. Louis this spring. Dr. Kudrak's talk provides an excellent overview of the very complex multi-year process of creating new regulations, of where we are in the process and what is yet to be done.

It will be several days before the IFC web site is updated, so please be patient. But in the meantime, please think about what YOU will write in your letter to the USDA, and how you will pass this urgent need to the vets in your area and the other ferret groups that you are part of. Input is needed from both individuals and organizations.

It was the wonderful efforts of members of the ferret community last year urging the USDA to take action that got us this far. Let's keep up the good work!

Remember, October 4, 2005 is the deadline to submit your letters! More details will be posted later and on our web site in a few days.

Crossposting permitted and encouraged!

The International Ferret Congress http://www.ferretcongress.org

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