Ferret show makes return after event success

Hundreds of ferrets and their owners are coming together in a church hall for a town's ferret show.

The Old Billingham Ferret Show is returning to St Cuthbert's Church Hall in Billingham, Stockton, for its second year.

Organiser Janine Hipkins said about 100 people attended last year with 300 ferrets in total and she expected similar numbers this year, with awards also handed out to the best ferrets in show.

She said: "Ferrets are my life and the show has topped it off - it couldn't get any better."

Hipkins has had ferrets ever since she was a child and still keeps them as pets, although she said some farmers and landowners used them for hunting.

"They've got their own little characters, they're just like a mini version of a dog - they play and when you call them, they come to you," she said.

Hipkins said she hoped the show could reinvigorate the younger generation's interest in the animals because they had been "forgotten about". She also said that she saw more women with pet ferrets than men.

When judging the best in show, the winners are likely to be "big chunky ones", she said.

Listing some of the criteria they look for, she said: "Big heads. Big paws. Just a nice shiny coat. Clean ears. Nice teeth."

She said they also judged their personality, but admitted ferrets could be "temperamental" and preferred when owners were upfront about this.

She also advised that ferret-legging would not take place at the show, a historic Yorkshire sport where participants are timed for how long they can keep ferrets down their trousers without wearing underwear.

"You might find some people have them inside their hoodies, but that's it," she said.

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