1ST TIME FERRET OWNER LOOKING FOR ADVICE AND TIPS

[Smoky73]

I have had ferrets and they would not eat anything but cat food so that is what they got. The stink is somethihng to get used to, I used to bathe mine every 2 weeks and they used to freak out afterwards drying out on the carpet.They loved it and we thought it was fun as well!
Both of mine also had forms of cancer, one had to have her spleen removed but died at about 6, and the other one dies a old age too and she had to have her tail amputated due to a tumor.
Mine used to just poo where they wanted, and I used the pine pellets for litter. They used the litter box to some extent. When they got old the levels in the cages were hard for them to navigate so they would poo on the levels. All ferrets sold at pet stores are spayed/neutered and descented, but they still stink. You can check for tatoos in the ears indicating this.

 

[sred98]

We LOVE ferrets! The best description I ever heard was that "having ferrets is like having a live cartoon at your house every day." They are so happy and full of life!

LOL!

When we got our first one, she was a really pale white with black tips. Our son got her for his birthday and when he saw her he said, "You got me a Possum???" We laughed til we cried, then he saw it was a ferret and started crying he was so happy! So, I love the name! His was a girl, and her name was Flower Felicity Feather Fairy, and that is what we called her. She followed us outside one day, and got into the neighbor's yard.

Their lab got her, and we were looking everywhere for her. She called me and said, "Something's dead" she had no idea what it was, so she called me to get it. It was our Flower.

Then, after swearing off ferrets, because we were so attached and it devastated us, I surprised the boys with Mimzy. She is a wild woman who is a vicious toe killer!

She is potty trained. As soon as the boys get up in the morning, she comes straight into my room and poops on my bed!

Then she wants to play. Ugh. She only eats her ferret food and sometimes the ferrettone. She loves it and hates it. We feed it to her to see her reaction more than anything else! LOL! She begs for it, then makes a horrible face and tries to gag. Then begs for more. Then, wipes it all over my arm. Then begs for more. It's a horrible circle. LOL! They need it though, because they can get hairballs and they aren't able to cough them up like cats do. It helps coat their stomach and lets them come out easier.

Ferrets love to play. We save Walmart sacks or any plastic sack and put her in it and watch her go nuts. They LOVE the crinkly noise. But, with anything, make sure she is supervised. She could always swallow some, so don't put it in her cage or leave her unattended. Also, shoes are a huge favorite! We have boots and she loves to jump in and pop out at you. We also have a cat, which is a huge hunter...mice, rabbits, other cats, etc. He ADORES the ferret! So, they play together, rather than another ferret. He will even try and hide in the cage so they can sleep together, but I am afraid the ferret will hurt him! LOL!

Congrats on your ferret! They are wonderful! Mine doesn't eat any snacks except peanut butter. No canned catfood, boiled eggs, nothing. We've tried everything, even the little ferret treats. Some ferrets are just picky like kids. They are all individuals. Good luck!

Shelly

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

Be aware that most ferrets that don't die of an accident die of some form of cancer. The staggering ferrets that perked up with honey was most likely insulinomic. A number of mine have been insulinomic in their old age. It can be controlled for a long while with prednisone, but ultimately will overcome their tiny little bodies. The other biggie is adrenal disease. It often manifests with hair loss starting at the base of the tail. If untreated it will take all of their fur and ultimately kill them. There is a simple surgery to take the tumors off the adrenal gland. It can be pricey depending on where you live. Plan ahead for old age. Their old age illnesses are not cheap!

Ferrets are a riot and will keep you laughing on-stop! My fuzzies are nutcases. The story of the happy ferret and the water hose reminded me of my girl Tas taking on my father's IPAP breathing machine. Thank heaven's he likes ferrets and was due to replace it anyway. She poked about a million holes in the air tube.

Post pics of Possum!!

 

[Godsgrl]

I love ferrets, we have our first one, have had her for a few years now. She gets into everything! Her favorites are plastic grocery bags, the tub, and dressers. Oh, our ferret is named Swiper. After Swiper the fox in the cartoon Dora the Explorer. They both like to steal things. LOL

Swiper steals food, bouncy balls, fish food, dog treats, all kinds of things. One day, you re-arrange furniture, and find some odd item under the couch, and wonder how that cookie ended up under your bed.

Her favorite prank is to wait until about 3 am, then wake us up when we sleep. She sticks her nose in our ears, licks our eyelids, puts her whiskers in our noses. Oh she's a riot at night! I love ferrets. They aren't like any other pet I've ever owned. Enjoy!

 

[Godsgrl]

Smoky-the ear tattoo tells you the ferret came from Marshall. They are a huge ferret breeder, and they tattoo all their ferrets. Just thought I'd mention that.

 

[Skyesrocket]

Ferrets are a lot of fun to have! I have had several over the years.
When mine were caged I would use those short boxes that canned foods come in in the grocery store. I would cut the boxes on the diagonal and put newspaper in them for litter boxes. I would change the newspaper everyday and put in a new box once a week. The pine and cat litter just seemed like a bigger mess to clean up.
When they were loose I had the same boxes in the areas they pottied in.
Watch them around your couch, chairs and beds. Mine tore a hole in the dust cover underneath the couch and pottied inside of it. I had a hard time figuring out where the smell was coming from. I kept moving the couch out from the wall, but didn't see anything underneath it. It took a while to figure out that they were pooping inside of it...yech..what a mess!
I fed mine a good quality cat and kitten food.
I have read that bathing them too often will actually increase the ferret smell.