United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service National Agricultural Library Animal Welfare Information Center

Information Resources on Ferrets September 1991 - July 2002 AWIC Resource Series No. 15 - July 2002 Updates - Ferrets as Laboratory Animals, 1991 Compiled by: Richard L. Crawford, D.V.M. D’Anna Jensen, B.S., LATG Tim Allen, M.S. Animal Welfare Information Center National Agricultural Library U.S. Department of Agriculture Published by: U. S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service National Agricultural Library Animal Welfare Information Center Beltsville, Maryland 20705 E-mail: awic@nal.usda.gov Web site: www.nal.usda.gov/awic Published in cooperation with the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine Disclaimers

Contents

PREFACE

            The ferret (Mustela putorius) has become a fairly ubiquitous animal and is used or kept under various conditions. Ferrets are commonly kept as pets in the United States and are often exhibited in zoos for public viewing. Ferrets are also used in many areas of research. Ferrets share many anatomical, metabolic and physiologic features with humans which has promoted their use as an animal model. They are also used in a wide variety of research studies and demonstrations of medical procedures. Additional uses for them in research are constantly being found.

            The references, citations and articles on ferrets in various databases is quite numerous and it is not practical to list all references found in various database searches. This bibliography contains “selected” literature citations on the ferret, covering a wide range of topics, from 6 different databases. When available, the NAL call number is provided for materials located at the National Agricultural Library. Information on how to request materials that are included in the collection of the National Agricultural Library (NAL) may be found on the Document Delivery Services Branch website at http://www.nal.usda.gov/ddsb. Please read carefully as there are certain restrictions on media and document types. Selected web sites on ferrets are also included at the end of this publication.

             This publication is a supplement to the following documents previously published by USDA, NAL, AWIC: (1) Ferrets as Laboratory Animals: A Bibliography. September 1991. (2) Environmental Enrichment Information Resources for Laboratory Animals 1965-1995: Birds, Cats, Dogs, Farm Animals, Ferrets, Rabbits & Rodents (AWIC Series no. 2)..

The Animal Welfare Information Center, awic@nal.usda.gov
http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/pubs/ferrets/ferrets.htm
February 12, 2003