Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
FERRETS
FERRETS. The December 16, 1910 issue of the Dubuque Herald carried the following advertisement: Ferrets for Sale of Rent. Inquire Hartig's Drug Store.
The reason for the advertisement went unexplained. A reading of newspapers of the era suggests, however, that they may have been used in the control of RATS. Expert rats catchers in cities like New York used ferrets, terriers and traps to clear away the rodents. Dogs and ferrets hunted by scent. The ferrets were slower, so dogs usually found the nests first. When the dog reached a rat hole, it stood rigid with its tail sticking out. The trained ferret was then let into the hole where it attacked each rat. The ferret would not leave until each rat was dead or dying. (1)
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Source:
1. "Expert Rat Catchers," Dubuque Herald, August 26, 1898, p. 6