# Girl sues to take pet ferret to classes **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 14, 2005, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215 "2005-10-14T13:52:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![brownie55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f14d63/32.png) [@brownie55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brownie55)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/101 "2005-10-15T02:03:59Z")
Bolding mine: > [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > Nonsense. There are good reasons for not having pets; my point is that we can separate those reasons from the pets themselves. The problems with having pets include: > > 1. Noise > 2. Odor > **3) Danger to other residents.** > > However, some people are able to have pets without incurring any of these problems. Allowing them to have pets is not giving them extra leeway; it’s recognizing that their having pets doesn’t create any problems. > > Daniel So sorry. There is no anti-rabies vaccine that is accepted for ferrets. Anybody exposed to them is at risk. No, not allowed to have pets without incurring that risk. Put your kid in the dorm and report back, but only if you have a kid. ---
**Author:** ![brownie55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f14d63/32.png) [@brownie55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brownie55)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/102 "2005-10-15T02:12:25Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > Moron, try to keep up. > > I made clear about fifty posts ago that i don’t think she should be allowed to bring it to class, but should confine it to her room. And, moron, back, that is not what she is asking for. So keep up with the argument, or step back and let the adults talk. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/103 "2005-10-15T02:18:24Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > Oh, dear lord. :rolleyes: > > 1. How the hell does someone develop PTSD by the age of 19? I say BS. > . I can think of quite a few scenarios. Severe physical and/or sexual abuse throughout her childhood, for one. Maybe she was raped, or was in some kind of disaster (fire, horrendous car accident, etc). ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/104 "2005-10-15T02:20:00Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > How the hell does someone develop PTSD by the age of 19? Not that it justifies her position in any way, but anyone who experiences a traumatic event can develop PTSD, and PTSD in children is very common. > [@brownie55](#): > > There is no anti-rabies vaccine that is accepted for ferrets. Again, not that it justifies her unreasonable desire to have the school alter its policy to suit her, but rabies vaccines have been available for ferrets for about ten years. ---
**Author:** ![brownie55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f14d63/32.png) [@brownie55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brownie55)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/105 "2005-10-15T03:08:34Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > Not that it justifies her position in any way, but anyone who experiences a traumatic event can develop PTSD, and PTSD in children is very common.Again, not that it justifies her unreasonable desire to have the school alter its policy to suit her, but rabies vaccines have been available for ferrets for about ten years. Not true, that’s why so many jusisdictions prohibit them as pets. ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/106 "2005-10-15T03:16:00Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > [http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/3395999](http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/3395999) > > A girl that suffers anxiety, depression and panic attacks and says she needs to take her pet ferret not just to her dorm, but also to classes to manage her disorders. > > She claims that the ferret senses her anxiety and ‘comforts’ her when she is anxious. She says without the animal, she is “jinxed” and has to stay in her dorm room. > > Ferrets are OK pets I suppose, but I think she is anthropomorphising the pet. Also, I believe they are nocturnal and she is doing the animal a disservice by attempting to carry it around all day. > I don’t think this girl is ready to go away to school. > > And just to be cranky, I’m going to counter-claim that her ferret makes me anxious, depressed and subject to panic attacks. Jesus Christ. I had all this shit happening to me at one point and I didn’t start carrying around a blankie to comfort me. I think she needs meds, not her ferret. I’m not saying she shouldn’t have a ferret. She just shouldn’t have it all the time. If she had one of the rare Pocket-Dwelling Spotted Mice, which lives all its life quietly in a pocket, no problem. But ferrets are perpetually energetic and require lots of open space to run, tunnel, climb and chew things. Definitely not suitable in a classroom environment. And she can’t tell me she’s got herself a Pocket-Dwelling Striped Ferret. Those things went extinct weeks ago. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/107 "2005-10-15T03:27:25Z")
> [@brownie55](#): > > Not true. Tell that the [CDC](http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/rabies/professional/publications/compendium/table_02.htm). Imrab3, manufactured by Merial, is approved for vaccinating ferrets against rabies. It has been approved since 1990, and is recommended by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians for use with ferrets. (This doesn’t change the fact that they stink like minks and schools shouldn’t be forced to allow them to be kept in dorms and carried to class.) ---
**Author:** ![Elenfair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cc9497/32.png) [@Elenfair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elenfair)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/108 "2005-10-15T06:22:17Z")
Just posting quickly to point out that, more and more, the use of Psychiatric “Medical Alert” Service Dogs is being accepted in the training “industry” at large. These animals can be trained to perform really important service to people with disorders such as severe anxiety disorders, PTSD, bipolar disorder and so on. Is it purely a crutch? In some cases, likely. In others, not at all. It all depends on whether or not the condition is a DISABILITY. In most people, anxiety disorder is a pain in the ass, but not disabling. In others, it _is_ a disability. And, as such, the disabled individual is, by law, allowed to make use of a TASK-TRAINED service animal to mitigate that disability. Simple as that. What it boils down to is this: In front of a judge, can this girl prove that - a) she is disabled b) her disability affects her life in major ways, on a daily basis c) the animal mitigates that disability and performs tasks that she is otherwise unable to perform. Now - I hear a lot of people here saying “well, it’s just a crutch, get therapy and medication and get over it like everyone else does.” In some cases, this may well be possible. In others, not so much. The blind person uses a dog to see. He/she couldn’t “see” otherwise… but many if not most can and do function just fine without a guide dog. The deaf person uses a dog to hear. He/she couldn’t otherwise… but many if not most can and do function without the aid of a service animal. The person with disabling psychiatric disorders uses a dog to function, guide when sensory overload hits, seek help during a psychotic break, bring medication every morning to remind the owner to take it… He/she couldn’t function and be INDEPENDENT otherwise… but many, if not most can and do function without the aid of a service animal. I think it truly boils down to this, for someone who is disabled: will the use of a service animal (again, a TASK TRAINED service animal) bring the user INDEPENDENCE? Will it allow that person to lead a “normal” life? I know of one case where a young lady went from being heavily medicated (bipolar type I with extreme mixed episodes and delusional manic phases) to being less medicated, able to work, and able to live on her own BECAUSE her medical team decided that a service dog might be right for her. She is able to function, with the help of her dog, on less meds, follow through with therapy, able to accomplish things on her own, and is far healthier than ever before… A service animal is, basically, a piece of medical equipment. If it works and makes a huge change in a patient’s life, then why not use it? ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/109 "2005-10-15T06:23:28Z")
I would not think that it is likely that the young woman is going to be allowed to bring her ferret to class. I can understand why. But I am amazed at how callous some of you seem to be. Severe anxiety attacks are not something that can be controlled with cigarettes or “sucking it up.” For some people they cause intense _physical_ pain that mimics a heart attack. Other people have difficulty breathing. Sometimes I would have an attack before school started. (I was a teacher.) I would go down to the teachers’ lounge when I felt it starting. I would begin to shake and breakout in a cold sweat and start to cry and not be able to stop. Usually someone would come for me to drive me home. Or it would come before I opened my eyes in the morning – just waves of nervous nausea. Because of medication, my problems with anxiety are much more subtle now. But I wish that some of you would not be so dismissive of mental illness or the anguish it can cause. It is not only emotionally painful, but can also be _physically_ painful as well. > [@](#): > > \*\*HPL \*\*: Not that I think it would happen, but wouldn’t the college be opening themselves up for another lawsuit if the ferret causes some kind of injury(Maybe it bites someone, maybe it gets loose and somebody trips running from it/accidently stepping on it)? Kind of like what might happen with a guide dog? > [@](#): > > **davenportavenger** : The slippery slope argument IS relevant in this case, because things like that WOULD happen. Especially when you can have a cute, fuzzy coping aide. As I said, **kind of like what might happen with a guide dog?** > [@](#): > > **This Year’s Model** : Someone with depression, anxiety, and panic attacks is probably ill advised to seek a career in public relations and marketing. > [@](#): > > **Snakescatlady** : One thing I don’t understand - she has panic attacks, yet she is majoring in public relations? Maybe she should transfer to UCLA for a film major. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/110 "2005-10-15T06:57:08Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > Nonsense. There are good reasons for not having pets; my point is that we can separate those reasons from the pets themselves. The problems with having pets include: > > 1. Noise > 2. Odor > 3. Danger to other residents. > > However, some people are able to have pets without incurring any of these problems. Allowing them to have pets is not giving them extra leeway; it’s recognizing that their having pets doesn’t create any problems. > > Daniel Replace “pets” with “guns” in the above. Re-evaluate. ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/111 "2005-10-15T07:04:21Z")
> [@Garfield226](#): > > Replace “pets” with “guns” in the above. > > Re-evaluate. Or, hell: Fireworks, candles, drugs, space heaters, incense, halogen lamps, metal-tip darts, fog machines, waterbeds, hot plactes, BB guns, paintball guns, water guns, knives, billy clubs, sling shots, or toasters. All things my college doesn’t allow in the dorm rooms, but that “some people are able to have . . . without incurring any of these problems. Allowing them to have \_\_\_\_\_\_ is not giving them extra leeway; it’s recognizing that their having \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ doesn’t create any problems.” ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/112 "2005-10-15T07:57:44Z")
I agree with Tucker Carlson on this issue (somebody might want to check the sky for pigs): “She’s not suing for money, she’s just filing a complaint…Let the poor girl have the ferret.” (this is as close a quote as i can remember). Obviously it’s up to the college, but really, if she wants it that bad, and carries it in a cage and can keep it away from the ferretophobes, just let her have her ferret. ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/113 "2005-10-15T07:59:21Z")
Also, as a person who’s suffered an infectious disease, I’ve determined the cause and correct treatment for Ebola. I’m faxing it to the CDC right now. I thought you’d all like to know. Granted, mine wasn’t as severe, but the treatment for rhinovirus is really more or less the same. ---
**Author:** ![Squee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@Squee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squee)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/114 "2005-10-15T08:03:15Z")
> [@](#): > > 1. How the hell does someone develop PTSD by the age of 19? I say BS. What a fucking ignorant thing to say… I have a roommate that suffers from PTSD, she was raped when she was 16. Yeah, must be “BS”, all the freakouts she goes through. :rolleyes: > [@](#): > > The point is to hide the anxiety, not have a Magical Furry Thing that whisks you off to your Happy Place. Yes, just **hide** that anxiety, after all it’s not a **real** symptom, eh? I know you said in your post that you also suffer from anxiety… but from reading your stuff, you sound very young and/or very ignorant on the subject. As for the rest of the OP, I agree that she shouldn’t get any special consideration for the ferret… until the animal can get proper clearance as a help animal. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/115 "2005-10-15T08:25:49Z")
> [@Zoe](#): > > I am amazed at how callous some of you seem to be. I hope that I’m not one of the people that seem callous to you. I think that every reasonable accomodation should be made for people with anxiety disorders. I just don’t think that allowing someone to keep a pet in a pet-free area is a reasonable accomodation. I like to think that I’m pretty understanding in situations when other people’s disorders make things uncomfortable for me. (Like the _several_ times that my good friend accidentally took imodium instead of her xanax, leading to horrible meltdowns in public and ruined evenings. Eesh. Still, I’ve had panic attacks and know how terrifying and debilitating they are. You can’t get mad at someone for going through something like that.) > [@](#): > > Severe anxiety attacks are not something that can be controlled with cigarettes… Severe panic attacks can’t be controlled with ferrets, either – but cigarette smoking as a coping mechanism for panic disorder is a common self-medication. _Much_ more common than ferret-nuzzling, as it happens. Nicotine has a documented pharmacological anti-anxiety effect in some instances. I don’t expect that anyone is going to sue to be allowed to smoke in non-smoking areas on the basis that it mitigates their disorder any time soon, though. > [@](#): > > Kind of like what might happen with a guide dog? The university would not be opening themselves up to a lawsuit by allowing a guide dog, because a guide dog is a service animal, not a pet, and the university is legally _required_ to allow them on premises, unless they can (individually) be shown to present a hazard to other people. There’s no way anyone could sue the university in the event of an attack or accident involving an actual service animal. If they made the decision to allow a _pet_ on the premises, that’s their call, and they’re fair game for a suit. Different situations. In order to be considered a service animal, the ferret must be shown to be _trained_ to render some form of necessary aid. It’s not actively helping her with any specific task, it’s just there to be a cuddly ferret. Smoking – helps some people manage panic attacks. Against the rules in many places. Cuddling pets – helps some people manage panic attacks. Against the rules in many places. In both instances, the rules are in place for sound reasons, and there isn’t compelling reason to set them aside for some people, even if it would make them considerably more comfortable. > [@uglybeech](#): > > Obviously it’s up to the college, but really, if she wants it that bad, and carries it in a cage and can keep it away from the ferretophobes, just let her have her ferret. What the…? If she wants it bad enough to file a lawsuit, acquiesce? Well, I guess that standard will at least expedite those persistent medical marijuana lawsuits. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Arabella](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Arabella](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arabella)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/116 "2005-10-15T08:28:20Z")
Ferretts in college? I know someone who DID carry theirs around in a trenchcoat pocket. Here’s Another angle: Our apartment complex doesn’t allow “Pets” but it does allow _“Comfort Companion Animals”_ Which apparently covers everything from ferretts to large dogs. **This is actually a government sanctioned excuse.** and apparently includes the smelly ancient dog in the manager’s office. but the lease says “No Pets Allowed”. Go figure ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/117 "2005-10-15T08:47:14Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > What the…? If she wants it bad enough to file a lawsuit, acquiesce? It’s a complaint. Not a lawsuit. I don’t see anything wrong with her filing a complaint if she feels “comfort animals” should be considered under the ADA. But otherwise, yeah, just from the college’s side…there’s nothing forcing them to be rigidly legalistic. They’re not a judge in a court of law. I’d try to find a way to let her have the ferret, since she’s shown it means so much to her. If you’re worried about policy then just scratch out the “no pets” clause in the rules and scribble in “except under exceptional circumstances, and only with administration’s careful review and authorization” or some such caveat. Like I say, it’s up to them. I’m not making a point of law. I just think it’s a judgement call, and my judgement would lean towards flexibility and relaxing the rules in this case. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/118 "2005-10-15T15:02:49Z")
> [@Garfield226](#): > > Replace “pets” with “guns” in the above. > > Re-evaluate. I went to a school that wouldn’t allow you to have a gun in your dorm room. However, security was happy to hold your rifle, shotgun, or bow (don’t know about the ammo/arrows) in their gun safe for you to get out if you wanted to go hunting or target shooting. I knew a guy from Nebraska who was a bow hunter and would hunt deer on the weekends during bow-hunting season. He never got one (and frankly, I’m not sure what he would have done with the meat.) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/119 "2005-10-15T15:29:42Z")
> [@Garfield226](#): > > Replace “pets” with “guns” in the above. > > Re-evaluate. The problems with having guns include: 1. Noise 2. Odor 3. Danger to other residents. Doesn’t work. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2005, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215/120 "2005-10-15T15:32:12Z")
And as for rabies, the vaccine aside, could you link me to the number of rabies cases contracted in domestic ferrets in, oh, say, the last century? I’ll hazard a guess that the number is vanishingly small, smaller than the number of rabies cases linked to indoor-only cats. Rabies is communicated almost exclusively through a bite (very rarely through other saliva contact with a wound) from a rabid animal. Ferrets live almost exclusively indoors. Rabid animals are very, very rarely indoors alongside ferrets. It’s possible that ferrets may present a danger to humans, but not from rabies. Daniel [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-sues-to-take-pet-ferret-to-classes/326215.md?page=7)