I've been watching and interacting with the ferret world for some years now, and there are a few things I've noticed fairly consistently.... No matter where they're from, or how old they are, or who likes who, or how many ferrets they have... There seem to be some main categories of ferret owners online: those who genuinely care about ferrets, those who genuinely care about politics, and a mix of the two. However, on the whole, I've noticed that people seem to be in one extreme or another. Sometimes, it can be hard to figure out which group people belong in. Some people are so quick to lend a helping hand, it's wonderful! Willing to make the rounds, do the dirty work and seemingly pull their own weight. Then something will happen, they start spreading rumours, flaming people, accusing people of doing things that they haven't done... Many people have been affected by the spreading of rumours by this type of person - someone who cares more about what they think is real rather than digging to find the truth and trying to do what is best not for themselves, but for others, and the ferrets. Then they start to believe their own rumours, and refuse to help those people and/or ferrets because of some imagined wrong or they don't know the whole situation where they think they do. I have spoken with people who are the nicest, most generous people you can know, unless you get on their bad side. After that, forget it. One person in particular threatened to turn in one California ferret owner to the F&G because they'd said something the person didn't like. I'm forced to wonder... this helps ferrets - how?
There will always be people that you can't tell. They do their very best to help ferrets, and believe that everything they're doing is solely to help ferrets. However, those people may sometimes do something detrimental to ferrets, sheerly through their eagerness to help. They can get angry at people they don't understand, and get angry when they see something that they believe is detrimental to ferrets because of information they had in the past that was misunderstood or originally incorrect. They will fight to the end for ferrets, but in fighting, they can often beat down people on the 'same side'.
Other people can be real loudmouths. The type you love to hate. However, despite their rough edges and sharp words, as soon as someone needs help, they jump right in. They don't always tell everyone what they've done, they don't care what other people thinking of them or what they're doing. Many of these people have many, many years of experience. They've learned the limits of their knowledge, and will help to that extent, and most will actively seek more information if they're asked something they don't know. These people look like the kind you don't want to associate with, until you dig a little deeper and get to know the person under the mask.
Of course, naturally, the majority of people are reasonably polite, will help where they can, rally support for those who need it, and genuinely care when someone loses a ferret or gets into trouble. They'll send supportive emails, maybe even call, give suggestions, and just generally lend a hand. They'll stay up late to keep you company if you need it, they'll search out information, and ask for help if they need it.
The last two groups are the types that ferret people really need. They'll help with educationg the public, they'll help with emergencies, or if a ferret passes away. The first two *may* help, but they may well stab you in the back as soon as look at you. Getting to know which people are which, and knowing that some of these people really can't help themselves, will help others deal with a situation when something *does* happen. Because no matter how careful you are, how few times you post, how carefully you word what you're saying, eventually, someone will jump.
It isn't what others do to you, but your response to them that counts. Try to ensure that everything you do really does benefit ferrets. If you aren't sure, then it's easy enough to ask others. Sometimes, by asking, you'll get bad responses. It's the nature of the beast, unfortunately. Those bad responses can be from a misunderstanding, or they can be because what you are asking brings an emotional response to the people you are asking - which means it may be a good idea to listen to what they're saying. Overall, there really is no *reason* for flaming or abuse, but it does happen. Learning how to handle it can be a slow process, but it is possible, if you try.
