Help me with ferret rescue

[Epona142]

What a beautiful silver you have there! Congratulations on your new family member, you're making me very jealous.

I had quite a few ferrets a few years ago, but certain events forced me to have to find them a (great) new home, and I miss them SO much. Husband and I have promised ourselves as soon as our house is built, we will get more.

I noted your concern about the sleeping thing. The vaccines certainly could have caused this, as noted above by someone else, but I've also had a couple ferrets who just slept like that! They would sleep SO deep I could pick them up and they'd be "dead" asleep and not budge. This came in handy come nail clipping time, I tell you! It was completely normal, just how they were.

I also wouldn't leave his harness on in the cage; ferrets are notorious for getting into as much trouble as possible! I had little snap collars with bells that mine wore during "out" time, which was around 4-5 hours a day, but nothing in the cage itself.

I don't see a litterbox in the cage? Maybe I just can't see it or it was out for cleaning. They poop constantly it seems, and love corners. When he's out playing, the best thing is to put more litterboxes in the corners of his play area. To train mine, I would wake them up, then set them in the litterbox. They always go after waking up, and then they got a treat. The smarter ones would even run over and pretend to go just to get a goody. They also were not allowed out intil they had done their business. Don't use clumping litter, as ferts will often dig in or even eat their litter. I find pelleted litter to be the best.

To keep down smell, scoop the litter box every day. Scrub it out once a week. Wash the ferret bedding once a week as well, you'll find that helps elimenate most of the smells. Do NOT bathe him often. That just makes him smell more! I almost NEVER bathed my ferrets, except for the times they got into peanut butter or something equally messy. Some people swear by using chinchilla dust to let them play in on occasion. I used play sand, buried toys in it, and let them go to town. It worked way better than water and soap!

I highly recommend "Ferrets for Dummies." Best book on the subject, I wouldn't part with mine for the world.

If you need anything else, I'll try to keep an eye on this topic, and I can see there are several other great ferret lovers on here too!

Congrats again on your little rescue and I can't wait to see more! Silvers are absolutely my favorite.

[Jay_Bunny]

Congrats on the new fuzzbutt. They are quite the handful at times. Yes, the tattoo is a Marshall tattoo as someone has already confirmed.

The sleeping thing is just another ferret thing. Only one of mine does it. He will lay in the bottom of the cage (dunno why he chooses the bottom) and when I go in, everyone is up and about, wanting to come out and he just lays there. I go to pick him up and he's limp. It scared me to death the first time, but then I realized it is just how he sleeps.

If you are going to feed him kibble, please, please, please, get him a good brand. Most commercial ferret foods are crap. Evo cat food is good. I personally feed mine a raw diet. If you want any information on this, feel free to send me a message with any questions you have.

I would also recommend getting him a friend. While ferrets can and will bond with their humans, nothing beats another rough and tough ferret to roll around the floor with. I wouldn't seperate my four for anything. They are bonded.

[Epona142]

I plan on feeding a mix of wellness kitten hard and wet and raw when I get ferrets again. I agree that most ferret kibble is CRAP. For sure don't use the Marshall's food, that stuff is awful.

Good food helps keep down the smell as well, just ask my doggies and kitties. They get raw.

[hoax]

He is on that Marshalls crap!

I am trying to change him over to a meat only diet. He is stuck on that marshalls. I tried giving him Chicken baby food with ferrevite and he wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole! I even tried putting in on his nose and under his lip to let him taste it and that just upset him

Mike

[SatanicIntention]

You know, EVO just came out with a Ferret diet. www.petfooddirect.com

Looks very high quality from the ingredients.

Definitely get a fecal checked, especially since he was outside eating who knows what.

[Epona142]

Oooh, did they? I haven't kept up with new ferret foods, shame shame on me. I'll check that out.

As for getting him to learn a new food, do the old "add a little more to his old food" each day. He'll learn soon enough how tasty it is; just keep rubbing a bit on his nose too, ferrets imprint on food by scent so that's why he's being picky.

I also second having a fecal done, goodness knows what little things he has in his guts right now; did the vet do that while you were there?

[hoax]

You know what they did not do a fecal! I should have know enough to ask!

I am new to ferrets but not new to mammals! Gah I can't believe I didn't have a fecal done!

Mike

[Epona142]

For shaaaaaaaame.

No, just kidding! I'm sure you'll get it done ASAP.

How is everything going?

[Jay_Bunny]

As far as getting him to eat raw, it is definitely a process. One way we got Twitch, our first ferret, to eat raw was to put chicken baby food on your finger and stick your finger in their mouth. Be careful not to let them bite you. Once mine realized how yummy the baby food tasted, she went right to it. You could also try the other baby food meats if yours just doesn't like chicken. A raw diet is the best kind of food you could ever give your ferret.

You could also try dipping the kibble pieces in the baby food and see it that will work. We got Twitch to eat raw chicken that way. I keep kibble on hand for emergencies (run out of raw and can't get to the store or haven't gotten paid yet) and whenever I give them the kibble, Twitch and Kale look at me like I'm crazy. Its like "Alright, Mom. Haha, very funny. Now gimme the chicken leg!" They love chicken legs and wings. The only problem is Kale screams when he doesn't get his fair share (which he thinks is all of it!).

[Epona142]

How funny! I wasn't doing raw back when I had my ferrets, but do it now and will hopefully get my future fuzzies to eat raw along with our other pets.