Oooh, looky what i got!

I am not really into the small and furry things but this guy stole my heart and i just had to have him.
I named him Tasmanian Devil, "Taz" for short because he will go right after my dogs and nip their ankles without any fear, he bites... a lot, and he thinks he is a Grizzly Bear even though he weighs less than a pound... The name seemed very fitting.

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I am clearly new to this whole Ferret ownership thing so any tips from Ferret owners is welcome.

Hes very cute! My daughter wants one. We have been researching them. Satomi is an excellent source of ferret info!

I love white ferrets! Hide your keys!

WEASEL!!!!

Adorable. :gj:


He has a look of "as soon as the humans are gone, the crayon box and sock drawer are mine!" :D

Fuzzy!!!!

I love these guys! Buy yourself a copy of Ferrets for Dummies, I couldn't live without mine.

And yes, ferrets are unbelievably mouthy. It's ridiculous! And be forewarned, every single corner in any room he has access to is now a litterbox. And I mean EVERY corner. Room corner, corner of the entertainment center, corner of the couch, corner of the computer desk, if it's a corner, it's a litterbox. Buy stock in newspaper and Nature's Miracle. Also be aware, if it's small enough to fit in his mouth, there is a real danger of it being swallowed. Many ferrets die from impactions from swallowing stuff you wouldn't believe. Pretend he's a toddler with four hands and the ability to levitate and that will help you keep his area hazard free as much as possible.

I warn you, these guys are mischievous, but they are also addicting.

Gale

I love ferrets.

Cute lil bums.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by angllady2

Pretend he's a toddler with four hands and the ability to levitate and that will help you keep his area hazard free as much as possible.

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:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

I laughed waaay too long at that.

he is soooo cute. :D I've never owned a ferret before...too much work, imo. I'll stick to my herps. :P But he is awesome, and I find my brain trying to convince me I need one.

What a cutie!

I second the Ferrets for Dummies. It's like the ferret bible.

Just a few pointers:
1) The better diet you feed, the less he will smell. Ferrets are obligate carnivores (meaning they can only digest meat). I feed my guys a raw diet and they have little to no smell. They also have smaller, less frequent poops, as they digest and utilize more of what they eat. There are pre-packaged raw diets (such as Nature's Variety), or if you want to go the kibble route, look at high quality, grain-free cat foods such as EVO and Instinct.
~On that same note, do not offer fruits or veggies as treats. As I said before, they can ONLY digest meat. Fruits are high in sugar and can cause serious issues, and veggies can cause blockages.

2) Offer minimal baths. The more you bathe a ferret, the more they will smell. Bathing strips their skin of essential oils that keep their skin healthy, and when you give them a bath, their body goes into overdrive to replace the oils, making them smell 10x worse. Not to mention, it dries out their skin and makes them itchy.

ETA: If you want to go the raw route, I know of a forum that's specifically for the purpose of getting ferrets on a raw diet. They will set you up with a mentor and your mentor will help you switch your ferret over onto raw and will help you make a menu that is healthy and balanced. (An unbalanced raw diet is worse than even the lowest quality kibble!)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by angllady2

Fuzzy!!!!

I love these guys! Buy yourself a copy of Ferrets for Dummies, I couldn't live without mine.

And yes, ferrets are unbelievably mouthy. It's ridiculous! And be forewarned, every single corner in any room he has access to is now a litterbox. And I mean EVERY corner. Room corner, corner of the entertainment center, corner of the couch, corner of the computer desk, if it's a corner, it's a litterbox. Buy stock in newspaper and Nature's Miracle. Also be aware, if it's small enough to fit in his mouth, there is a real danger of it being swallowed. Many ferrets die from impactions from swallowing stuff you wouldn't believe. Pretend he's a toddler with four hands and the ability to levitate and that will help you keep his area hazard free as much as possible.

I warn you, these guys are mischievous, but they are also addicting.

Gale

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I already have that book. :P

Really!?! Taz has two litter boxes, one in his cage and one that i leave in the middle of the floor when he is out and about exploring, he uses both consistently and he hasn't relieved himself anywhere else, i've had him a little over a week now. Weird, maybe i just got lucky?

Haha! I have a free roaming Iguana (She will eat anything and everything that she can fit in her mouth) so all of the rooms upstairs are 100% spotless from ground level and up, along with the living room downstairs.

Thank you for the advice!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Konotashi

What a cutie!

I second the Ferrets for Dummies. It's like the ferret bible.

Just a few pointers:
1) The better diet you feed, the less he will smell. Ferrets are obligate carnivores (meaning they can only digest meat). I feed my guys a raw diet and they have little to no smell. They also have smaller, less frequent poops, as they digest and utilize more of what they eat. There are pre-packaged raw diets (such as Nature's Variety), or if you want to go the kibble route, look at high quality, grain-free cat foods such as EVO and Instinct.
~On that same note, do not offer fruits or veggies as treats. As I said before, they can ONLY digest meat. Fruits are high in sugar and can cause serious issues, and veggies can cause blockages.

2) Offer minimal baths. The more you bathe a ferret, the more they will smell. Bathing strips their skin of essential oils that keep their skin healthy, and when you give them a bath, their body goes into overdrive to replace the oils, making them smell 10x worse. Not to mention, it dries out their skin and makes them itchy.

ETA: If you want to go the raw route, I know of a forum that's specifically for the purpose of getting ferrets on a raw diet. They will set you up with a mentor and your mentor will help you switch your ferret over onto raw and will help you make a menu that is healthy and balanced. (An unbalanced raw diet is worse than even the lowest quality kibble!)

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I automatically assumed Carnivore = Raw meat/whole prey/raw bones diet... Must be the reptile keeper in me!
I am feeding him about 40% raw meat/bones, 55% whole prey (rat pinks, chicks, etc..), and 5% high quality Ferret kibble. I did quite a bit of research on their nutritional needs so i have a pretty good idea of what is required but i'm still learning and making changes when necessary.

I have been putting "Marshall GoodBye Odor for Ferrets" in his water daily and using "Marshall Daily Spritz Ferret spray" on him every 3-4 days, combining these two products seems to be doing the trick, the first day i purchased him he smelled AWFUL and now the smell is barely noticeable... I can definitely say my rat colony smells more than he does by a long shot.
I didn't know about bathing causing issues with their skin, i will definitely keep that in mind.

Thank you!