Wendy L. Winsted (September 1, 1947 – 1991) was an American folksinger and author. Marc Morrone credited Winsted with popularizing ferrets as pets in the United States in the mid-1970s.[1]
Wendy Winsted | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 1, 1947 Oklahoma |
| Died | 1991 |
| Occupation(s) | Folksinger, songwriter, author |
Early life and education
editWinsted was from Stillwater, Oklahoma, the daughter of Frank Arthor Winsted and Juanita June Preston Winsted.[2] Her mother was a schoolteacher and her father was the city manager of Ponca City, Oklahoma.[3] He also worked in the petroleum industry.[4] She attended Stillwater High School in Oklahoma. She was a pre-medical student at Hunter College in New York City, and working as a veterinary assistant,[5] when she began keeping skunks and later ferrets as pets, and breeding ferrets for sale.[6] She attended medical school at the University of Cincinnati.[7]
Musical career
editAfter high school, Winsted was a folksinger and songwriter. She was friends with Jean Ray (of Jim and Jean) and Phil Ochs in New York City.[8][9] In 1971, she opened for Paul Siebel at a coffeehouse in Buffalo, and played with Paul Geremia at Lehigh University.[10][11] She played guitar and trumpet. She co-wrote a song, "Livin' in the Country", which was recorded by Tom Rush.[12]
Veterinary career
editWinsted perfected the procedure for de-scenting young ferrets (by removing the anal scent sac and neutering males to eliminate their odor).[13] She introduced ferrets to numerous celebrities such as Dick Smothers and David Carradine and appeared on television numerous times with her own ferrets, including an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman.[1][14]
Winsted taught her method of de-scenting ferrets to several breeders and farms across the United States,[15] thereby making de-scented ferrets the standard for being sold at pet stores. She also endorsed skunks as pets, though she admitted it "takes a very special kind of person".[5]
Publications
edit- Ferrets: A Complete Introduction (1983) ISBN 0-86622-829-2[16]
- Ferrets In Your Home (1990) ISBN 0-86622-988-4[17]
Personal life
editWinsted died in the 1990s from ovarian cancer.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c Morrone, Marc; Ellis-Bell, Nancy (2010-04-20). A Man for All Species: The Remarkable Adventures of an Animal Lover and Expert Pet Keeper. Crown. pp. 74–75. ISBN 978-0-307-58966-8.
- ^ "Wendy Winsted Injured in Crash". The Ponca City News. 1960-08-30. p. 5. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Wife of Former City Manager Dies". The Ponca City News. 1960-09-28. p. 10. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Winsted (death notice)". The Daily Oklahoman. 1994-11-23. p. 126. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Flaste, Richard (October 1, 1973). "Despite Draw backs, the Skunk Has Its Friends". The New York Times. p. 41. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ^ Janis, Pamela R. (1980-06-15). "Breeder of ferrets puts them at top of pet list". Asbury Park Press. p. 170. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Cooper, Gale (1983). Animal people. Internet Archive. Boston : Houghton Mifflin. pp. 117–118. ISBN 978-0-395-32198-0.
- ^ Schumacher, Michael (2018-04-03). There But for Fortune: The Life of Phil Ochs. U of Minnesota Press. pp. 332–333. ISBN 978-1-4529-5716-6.
- ^ Eliot, Marc (1979). Death of a rebel. The Archive of Contemporary Music. Garden City, N.Y. : Anchor Press. pp. 261, 273. ISBN 978-0-385-13610-5.
- ^ "UUAB Coffeehouse (advertisement)". Buffalo Spectrum. May 7, 1971. p. 23.
- ^ "Lehigh". The Muhlenberg Weekly. October 14, 1971. p. 3.
- ^ "Thursday". The Morning Call. 1971-10-09. p. 34. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Marcus, Dave (2009-03-07). "Ferret feud resolved". Newsday. pp. A6. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Schilling, Kim (2011-04-04). Ferrets For Dummies. John Wiley & Sons. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-118-05154-2.
- ^ Cutillo, Michael (1982-07-11). "Cute as a ferret? Wayne County farm breeds exotic pet". Democrat and Chronicle. pp. 3, 4. Retrieved 2024-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Winsted, Wendy (1983). Ferrets. Internet Archive. Neptune City, NJ : T.F.H. Publications. ISBN 978-0-86622-829-9.
- ^ Winsted, Wendy (1990). Ferrets in Your Home. T.F.H. Publications. ISBN 978-0-86622-988-3.