Ferrets

FERRET LEGALIZATION EFFORT CLEARS KEY HURDLE AT STATE FISH AND GAME COMMISSION

By Karen Pearlman
 
June 23, 2025 (San Diego County) – Ferrets may be moving a step closer to being allowed to thrive in homes in California.
 
The animal that is legal in nearly every contiguous state across the nation, but still considered an undomesticated, wild animal in California and Hawaii may have that status changed.
 
Earlier this month, ferret legalization advocate Pat Wright, a La Mesa resident and leader of the nonprofit group LegalizeFerrets.org, reported that the California Fish and Game Commission unanimously approved Wright’s petition for a regulation change for ferrets and remove them from the restricted species list.
 

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STATE’S FISH AND GAME COMMISSION TO CONSIDER LEGALIZING FERRET OWNERSHIP, FOLLOWING EFFORTS OF LA MESA RESIDENT

By Karen Pearlman

Photos courtesy of Legalize Ferrets

Photo:  Pat Wright with a ferret friend

March 18, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Eight years after persuading the city of La Mesa to become a sanctuary city for ferrets, Pat Wright is on a mission next to legalize ferret ownership statewide.

Wright and his nonprofit group, Legalize Ferrets, have attained a key milestone in the quest to remove domestic ferrets from the state’s list of restricted species.


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SHOULD LA MESA GRANT SANCTUARY CITY STATUS—FOR FERRETS?

 

 

By Miriam Raftery

July 18, 2017 (La Mesa) -- Not long ago, La Mesa overturned a Prohibition-Era ban on wine making. Now LegalizeFerrets.org, a La Mesa-based group that claims to have 3,000 members, is  asking La Mesa’s City Council to end another long-time ban by declaring  sanctuary city status for pet ferrets.

Who knew that La Mesa was a hotbed of underground ferret activity?  

Now, furtive ferret owners may have found a champion in Councilwoman Kristine Alessio, who raises Bengal cats, has served as Legislative Director for The International Cat Association and as a volunteer for the City's Pet Therapy Program.


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LA MESA MAN LEADS FIGHT FOR FERRET LEGALIZATION

By Miriam Raftery

August 18, 2015 (La Mesa)—Our staff has been hard at work ferreting information out on proposed initiatives seeking to weasel their way onto the 2016 ballot.  Here’s a scoop: La Mesa resident Pat Wright has proposed a ballot measure that would ask California voters to legalize owning ferrets as pets.


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