about 5 years ago, when i was still a greeter, we ran this commercial:

shortly after the commercial first ran, we got this email from corporate:

Have you been receiving customer calls in response to the Verizon Wireless Mobile Messenger commercial including a ferret? If so, please use the legally approved response below for customer questions.

Legally Approved Response:

“Thank you for your comments regarding the Verizon Wireless commercial that features the ferret. You should know that the animal used in the commercial is not real — it is a puppet so every intent was made to respect the rights of the real animals. The commercial is humorous — the ferret comes off a lot smarter than the human who has nothing better to do with his time than to tease a ferret.

There was never any intent to demonize ferrets. In fact, just the opposite is true. Even though the owner of the ferret did something very stupid, he is obviously a ferret lover or he would not have one. If you notice, the ferret isn’t in a cage, he is sitting on top of the table with seemingly free range throughout the house. This guy really loves his pet.

Please share this with your ferret loving friends and be assured that we had no intention of offending them or any pet lover with the commercial.”

Customer Service Procedures for Media Questions:

If you receive a call from the media in reference to the commercial, please refer those calls to the appropriate Regional Public Relations Manager. This contact information is to be given to media personnel ONLY.

*New England: xxxxxxxxxx

*New York Metro: xxxxxxxxxx

*Upstate New York: xxxxxxxxxx

*Washington/Baltimore/Virginia: xxxxxxxxxx

*Philadelphia Tri-state: xxxxxxxxxx

i never saw that commercial until now when i stumbled across it on youtube, heh.