Ferret Proofing 101

 

For those that haven’t read the previous ferret proofing post it is here .

Ferrets are notorious for getting into places they don’t belong. I already covered about couches, recliners, and wheel chairs. Other places ferrets can get into are dryers, refrigerators, and the stove. I know that many people let their ferrets be free roamers throughout their house but I would be a major basket case wondering where my boys were if I let them be free roamers.

  

They can also end up in the washing machine if you don’t check to make sure your little fuzzy isn’t taking a nap in the hamper or laundry basket.

Ferrets are smart and can disconnect the dryer vent hose and escape to the great outdoors. Once outside they will embark on a merry adventure until a hawk or other predator sees them. They won’t know how to get back home either as they are not blood hounds.

Many ferrets in shelters, rescues, and humane societies have been found alongside the road, under decks, or just wandering around. For this reason it might be a good idea to have your ferret micro chipped.

Cabinets are another place ferrets are great at getting into or behind and if there is a gap under them that is where a ferret will go. Imagine your surprise when you go to take out that pot for making spaghetti and inside it is a sleeping ferret.

  

Or you can see a paw sticking out from under the cabinet but for whatever reason the ferret can’t figure out how to get out from underneath it. Believe me it has happened to many ferret owners at least once. Sometimes all it takes is a whiff of Ferretone or a special treat to get them out but other times it takes some muscle to lift the cabinet while someone else grabs the ferret and drags them out.

I am glad most of my cabinetry is on wheels for that very reason and again my boys are only allowed in one room of the house.

Next time I will talk about ferret proofing while traveling with the fuzzy butts.

Disclosure: The photos are not mine and are linked back to the sites they have come from except for the pot and drawer one.

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Featured Ferret: Goober

 

Hi yall’z My name iz Goober. I knowz I look like I just crawled out of da ash can but it iz my normal coloring.

I am about 3 years old and I love giving kissez to all da hoomanz here at the Humane Society of Camden County, Kingsland, GA but I would dearly lovez to have me own hooman to love and take care of.

Do you happen to know of a hooman dat could give me a forever home in exchange fer all da kissez and dancez I can give em? If ya do can you send em on down here to come visit wif me and see if we would make the perfect pair?

Lovez,

Goober

Disclosure: I get no compensation for featuring ferrets from Pet Finder I pick each ferret at random and create his or her voice with the information available. All photos of featured ferrets come from the page they are on.

 

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Wordless Wednesday

What else iz in here?

 

 

Have a Chittering Good Day,

 

Jo

Featured Ferret: Raffles

Hi all my name is Raffles and I am living at the Nebraska Humane Society in Omaha, NE

I am a little sable boy and I would love to find my very own forever home with my own hooman to train. We could learn about each other.

Do you know of someone needing daily ferret kisses and a dose of joy?

Raf

Disclaimer: I get no compensation for doing featured ferrets from the pet finder site. All profiles are from my own mind using what information that is with the selected ferret.

Please pass on to those you would think would like to help find this little guy his forever home.

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Ferrets and Biting

 

Like most animals ferrets have teeth. They are similar to that of a cat and can do a lot of damage if the ferret isn’t trained correctly to prevent bites.

Owning a ferret means you are the one responsible for how a ferret will react in certain situations.

Most sites tell you different ways of dealing with a bitey ferret. The one thing that I agree with is Never flick the end of a ferret’s nose to get them to stop biting. They will only see this as playing and will continue to bite.

Rules to prevent bites:

1. Never rough house with your ferret. I am guilty of this but my boys know that it is okay to gently nibble on my fingers only. But I also know how each boy will react. When I had Lance I never rough housed with him because he couldn’t hear me tell him no and when he bit it was hard.

2. Wash your hands after eating. This is common sense for a number of reasons. It keeps nasty germs from the ferret and it washes away the scent of food. Remember ferrets are curious creatures and want to know what everything is. Ferrets also have a great sense of smell and if it smells like food they want a taste.

3. Never startle or scare your ferret. This isn’t always possible. I try hard to make sure Marcuz feels me coming by stomping on the floor but sometimes he is just to intent on what he is doing and I surprise him.

4. Use a bitter tasting agent if your ferret is prone to biting for whatever reason. I had to make a red pepper spray for James as he loved the taste of bitter apple. I also keep hand sanitizer for those that want to pet the boys while we are out in public.

To get a ferret to release its hold you can scruff the ferret and wait for the yawn to happen. This works with most ferrets. Lance never let go when he got a hold of something he wanted. It would always take two people. Me scruffing since I was usually the one with his teeth sunk in and one to gently pry his jaws apart.

Yes I have scars from Lance’s bites but I learned a lot from each episode and the causes. Him being deaf had a great impact on how hard he bit. If you get a young ferret you can train them not to bite by doing like their momma would have done.

You scruff them by the back of the neck and drag them across the floor a short distance while saying NO in a loud firm voice. If I did it you would hear me hissing like a ferret. I’ve been around them to long to change that habit…not that I would want to.

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Ferret and the Flea

 

 

 

If you have been around pets then you know that fleas can be a part of that life if you aren’t diligent to keep them off of your beloved animals. Ferrets are no exception. Only with ferrets it only takes a few fleas to be fatal as the fleas feed off the ferret’s blood.

There are several species of fleas, which I didn’t know, and depending on a ferret’s environment can be any one or a mixture of them. Ferrets that go outside can attract the fleas from wild animals. But most ferrets get fleas from cats (Ctenocephalides felis species) or dogs (Ctenocephalides canis species) that live with them.

The most common sign that a ferret has fleas is them scratching, chewing, and in some cases hair loss. But those are also signs of the mysterious jump out of a sound sleep and nibble the fur before going back to bed like nothing happened. The hair loss is also associated with Adrenal disease.

Dark colored ferrets like Manny also make it hard to see those pesky biting critters. The best bet is to use a preventative flea control. But there aren’t a lot of flea control options out there. Most flea control products fall under the Minor Species Act of 2004 (MSA). The MSA allows vets to prescribe medications that are designated as dog/cat or other species to those that they will help such as domestic exotics.

For me that means I use kitten advantage, most other flea preventatives are too toxic for ferrets, once a month but unlike the directions say of putting the whole tube on I only need to put a drop or two. With the cost of a single tube being $12 or more this does save me as a tube will last me for 3-4 months.

Before I apply the kitten advantage I give the boys a bath with T-gel. The T-gel has ingredients that stun and stick to the fleas making it easy to wash the little buggers off of the boys. I then follow up with baby shampoo to make sure I have gotten all of the T-gel off.

I then let the boys dry off. If I can ever get a really good video of the boys doing the snake dance I will post it. Once dry it is spa day. They get their teeth and coats brushed, nails clipped, and then a drop of kitten advantage.

Because I live in Western Pennslyvannia the flea season doesn’t last all year round very often. The cold makes the fleas go into a sort of hibernation I suppose or maybe it kills them.

First Real Outing

 

Hope everyone had a good Easter. 

  Marcuz wasn’t too happy with me on this photo.

Friday Manny, Marcuz, and I were able to go out and do some stuff. Roomy had rented a vehicle and allowed us to use it before it had to be returned.

Our first stop was to the local Agway where Marcuz came from. They had a couple of baby ferrets there and the boys wanted to play but they were sleeping for the longest time.

A little girl about 7 was trying to get her mom to get her one of the babies. You could tell mom was getting worn down.

I asked the little girl what other pets she had. She told me proudly that she had fish. I told her fish were easy compared to ferrets. Cause she would have to train the ferret not to bite. Play with it everyday and the worst thing was cleaning its litter pan.

The little girl wrinkled her nose at that and asked to go see the fish. Mom smiled a very relieved smile.

Marcuz go a new collar as he has hidden his other one where I can’t find it. Also go both of them a new squeaky toy.

Off to the park for some fun. Manny let Marcuz drag him around literally. Manny didn’t want to walk anywhere at least it was on the grass.

  Whatz that wez see? Itz a Robin. Can wez get it? Wez taking a break wif Lamb Chop®

 Time toz goz home.

In all we were out for two hours. By the time we go home both boys were fast asleep and really didn’t wake up when I put them in their cage.

Can’t wait for our next adventure.

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Wordless Wednesday

 

 

 

Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

This is part of Blog Paws Hop.

National Ferret Day

 

 

Happy National Ferret Day! Have you hugged, petted, kissed, watched a woozel today?

 

Have a Chittering Good Day,

 

Jo