FIGHT DRUG ABUSE WITH FERRET DROPPINGS

WASHINGTON - Got some leftover drugs - the kind that someone else
might want to use, such as painkillers or stimulants?

Wrap them up in used kitty litter or other pet droppings, the United
States Government advises.

A pilot programme at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (Samhsa) is looking at ways people can safely dispose
of unused prescription drugs that are liable to be abused.

The Food and Drug Administration recommends flushing some of the most
dangerous ones down the toilet, including the strong, addictive
painkillers oxycodone and fentanyl and stimulants such as
methylphenidate.

But environmentalists worry about the effects on fish and
amphibians.

On its website www.samhsa.gov/rxsafety/, Samhsa recommends ways to
disguise leftover pills.

"Mixing prescription drugs with an undesirable substance, such as used
coffee grounds or kitty litter, and putting them in impermeable,
nondescript containers, such as empty cans or sealable bags, will
further ensure the drugs are not diverted," it says.

Of course some people do not drink coffee. But maybe they have a pet
ferret.

"Ferret waste, like nearly any other form of pet waste, can be
effectively used to help prevent the abuse of unused prescription
drugs," Samhsa spokesman Mark Weber said.

This news delighted the American Ferret Association.

"The US Government declares ferret poop to be an effective weapon
against drug abuse," the group said.

Samhsa said the problem was no joke: "One in five teens reports
intentionally misusing someone else's prescription drugs to get high."