Posted: 9/2/2010 12:00:35 AM EDT
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Anybody have any ferrets? What are your impressions? Anything Special to know. I've been told that you take care of them pretty much like cats, they use litter boxes, and eat cat food, with the only difference that cats generally don't want anything to do with you where as Ferrets will swim through the carpet like little carpet sharks, and attack your ankles if you fail to pay enough attention to them, and anything shiny is theirs. Is that about right?
I also heard that you don't have to worry about house cats trying to eat them, because if anything the house cat should be afraid.... very afraid. |
I have had three ferrets, they get pretty big. More often then not they'll get sick or get tumors and die, we had one that got them all over and we spent so much money at the vet getting it shots and all sorts of shit, it got better for about a year and then it still lost all of its hair and fucking died  With that being said they're pretty cool, they like a lot of attention and are very curious. They're also fast as fuck and will disappear in a flash and made funny faces when they're blasting a mad duke. |
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If you have kids in the house I would not get one.
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20091014/NEWS/910139923/1070&ParentProfile= |
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My wife and I have had ferrets for over 10 years. We currently have three (not the original three).
Yes, they use litter boxes but they will use any corner, so make sure you put one in each corner. Our ferrets have their own room so they have plenty of room to run around. So ferrets will nip, so they are not great for children. The ferrets will try to make off with anything they can drag away.....and some things they can't! We have several cats, and they get along fine. The cats can come and go into the ferret room anytime they want. But a ferret can really open a can of whoop ass on a cat! |
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I thought there were some issues with pissing for territorial puposes, and of course the smell that accompanies that nasty habit. Cute little fuckers for sure. They don't piss all over the place, they will go in the litter box, or any available corner, so be ready. Also, any smell is from lazy ferret owners who don't change their bedding, etc. Most people make very poor ferret owners. |
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I've had several of them over the years and while they are very fun, they do have a fairly short lifespan and seem to all get cancer of some sort and vet bills can be very expensive. I swore them off after my last one because of this. I really liked her, but I had to have her put down after she started having seizures. I think she was only about 5 years old but a couple of my previous ones lived to 7 years.
Their personalities really differ from ferret to ferret. Ive had some that loved to be held and would crawl up into your lap and go to sleep and some dont like it at all. Buy one thats a few months old to get a better idea of their personality and also because the babies in my experience are mean little bastards. I had 2 of them that would bite the shit out of you when you walked by or tried to hold them. They got returned to the store after a couple months. They steal anything they can drag which is both funny and annoying. I made a game out of it with mine and would dig her toys out of her hiding spots and hide them all over the house before letting her out. They are very curious and get into everything. They have a musky odor and you just have to deal with it and clean their bedding often. They are also little shit factories and they poop several times a day. They pee/poop in corners so you should put a litter box in every one they would have access to. Check under all your cabinets and if there is an access to get down there, staple some cardboard or something up to prevent it. |
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just what I was hoping this thread would be . I had roommate with ferrets on several occasions, if I never see another ferret again it will be too soon 
Smelly , nasty , ect... |
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Ferrets need a higher protein diet than you'll find in regular cat food. Kitten food might be ok. Plenty of regular ferret foods for sale out there now, cheap stuff is full of fillers like rice and corn which you dont really want, stuff high in fillers will make their smell worse. Definitely keep them away from any other small animals, they have high prey drives and will kill any rodents, birds, reptiles they can get to, had one nearly kill a kitten that was a few months old, and would chase my pit bull around the house. Their personalities can differ quite a bit though, one might do nothing but torment cats and dogs while another might curl up and sleep with them. |
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I would like one of those to. |
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Quoted: I would like one of those to. you can buy that one for 19 grand  LINK If I ever get the money it will be hard to chose that or a happy switch  |
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Both of my son's bought ferrets when they were younger. They saved up their lawn mowing money and bought the ferrets (I would not have paid for them).
I built a 3 level cage for the ferrets and we kept them in the boys' bedroom. Bottom level was litter box (man, do they love to play in fresh litter). Second level was food and water. Third level was sleeping (they like little hammocks). Keep the litter box cleaned out. You can bathe the ferrets just like you do a dog. My wife would put warm water in the bathroom sink, use pet shampoo, sit them in the water, wash them off and then dry them with a towel before putting them back in the cage to climb into their hammock to get warm/sleep. She bathed them every two weeks. One of them hated the bath but never bit my wife. The other one would just go limp and put up with it. My wife said keeping their ears clean inside (smelly wax buildup) was a big thing in keeping the smell down. I don't think there is anything more curious than a ferret. Cats certainly are not. Our cat hated the ferrets. When she was little the male ferret would treat her like he did the female ferret. Grab her by the back of the neck and hold her down to show her he was the boss. After the cat got bigger we never let them out without shutting her in another room as we were afraid of what might happen based on the way she'd go to their cage and sit and stare at them. They are cute. The only bite any of us ever got was when the little female first came home from the pet store. She latched on to to my ear lobe and did here best to "pierce" it for me. Just the one time and I have no idea why. They love to get under stuff and explore, the beds, the chest of drawers, the couch/chair, etc. They'd pick the kids' little toys up and carry them back under the bed or dresser and leave them there (stash for later I suppose). They really liked apple flavored instant oatmeal. I was making some for my oldest son one morning before he went to school and they started climbing up my pants leg. I set the bowl down on the counter pulled them off my leg and went back to stirring the oatmeal. They started up my leg again and that time I spooned some out and put it on a paper towel and they went to town on that oatmeal. After that we'd give them a treat of apple flavored instant oatmeal on the weekends. The female started loosing her air and the vet said she had cancer. She got better (hair came back) and then about a year later it happened again. My youngest son got her out of the cage and she got up on the bed with him, crawled up on his chest to be petted and went to sleep there. A while later he realized she had stopped breathing. He and I buried her in the back yard and he made a little cross for her. The male (my oldest son's pet) was still going strong 3 years later when my oldest son got a divorce and gave up the ferret to a friend who was involved in "ferret rescue work". Seems a lot of folks buy them, realize later they don't want them and these folks take them in a provide a home for thme or find a home for them with someone else. Many years ago folks owned ferrets to hunt with. My great grandfather had one. They let them go into a rabbit hole to either run a rabbet out or catch it and drag it out. Funny story for later on that note. |
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You will need a gate like this one to keep them out of certain rooms (kitchen) or to keep him in one room. They can't climb over this kind(safety 1st brand)
They may even get by this gate if it is not installed tightly. They can squeeze their body through any hole that they can fit their head 
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Quoted:
I have had three ferrets, they get pretty big. More often then not they'll get sick or get tumors and die, we had one that got them all over and we spent so much money at the vet getting it shots and all sorts of shit, it got better for about a year and then it still lost all of its hair and fucking died With that being said they're pretty cool, they like a lot of attention and are very curious. They're also fast as fuck and will disappear in a flash and made funny faces when they're blasting a mad duke. You had a Marshall Farms ferret - and a male, yes? Don't buy a commercial ferret. Even 10 years ago I was not having problems like this with Marshall Farms animals, but it is now commonplace. Bad genes. |
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Quoted: Quoted: I have had three ferrets, they get pretty big. More often then not they'll get sick or get tumors and die, we had one that got them all over and we spent so much money at the vet getting it shots and all sorts of shit, it got better for about a year and then it still lost all of its hair and fucking died With that being said they're pretty cool, they like a lot of attention and are very curious. They're also fast as fuck and will disappear in a flash and made funny faces when they're blasting a mad duke. You had a Marshall Farms ferret - and a male, yes? Don't buy a commercial ferret. Even 10 years ago I was not having problems like this with Marshall Farms animals, but it is now commonplace. Bad genes. My Ferret was a Marshall Farms. Bought her in '95 and she died in 2002 of cancer. |