Will A Dog Still Be Man's Best Friend?

By Joshua Tyrangiel

Watching Fido lounge by the radiator or snowball arrogantly circle her designer litter box, it's hard to believe that dogs and cats were originally domesticated for practical purposes (dogs hunted; cats chased vermin away). While no one can deny the charms of a good animal companion, wouldn't it be nice if there were a furry friend that didn't take its place in the American household for granted? A pet that, frankly, reflected better on its modern mover-shaker owners? There is hope. "I think ferrets could be the pets of the future," says Mary Shefferman, editor of Modern Ferret magazine and proud owner of nine of the little suckers.

She may be on to something. Ferret ownership has doubled in the past five years; 6 million are now in U.S. homes, placing them third in popularity among mammals, trailing cats (55 million) and dogs (50 million). Adult ferrets weigh between 1 1/2 lbs. and 3 lbs., perfect for compact living spaces, and the species' record of good behavior--according to the Animal Health Institute, ferrets are 200 times less likely to bite than dogs--makes them ideal first pets. Then there's the ferret's hip intellectual profile. "They're not pack animals," says Shefferman, "and they don't learn by rote, like dogs. They think creatively. They actually need intellectual stimulation." Boeing once used ferrets in aircraft assembly to run wiring through tight spaces--a skill that could come in handy when you're constructing that smart home of tomorrow.

--By Joshua Tyrangiel