To those of you with ferrets also

[minnieservis]

Hi everyone~ I was wondering how difficult it is to care for a ferret. I was just curious and was wondering if it’s more or less expensive then owning a bunny and if the care is easier or more difficult. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[bigsis7]

Well they are more expensive and the care of them is a tad bit harder than rabbits. They need minumum of 4 hours play time and need a fairly large cage (Ferret Nation is the best brand). Usually at least once in their life they will need some kind of surgery costing up to $1000 not including blood work and extra care they will need. They need to go to the vet at least once a year for vaccines and an exam. Other than that they are amazing pets! They have the best qualities of a dog and cat. Loyal, loveable, as playful as a kitten most of their life, and bond strongly to their owners. They do better in pairs, but they can live without. Here are some care and supplies sites:

http://forum.ferret.com/
http://holisticferret.proboards80.com/
http://www.ferret.com/
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/ferrets/a/ferrets101.htm

I would suggest reading Ferrets For Dummies. It’s basically the ferret owners bible :-). Here’s a list of ferret breeders and ferret shelters:

http://holisticferret.proboards80.com/index.cgi?board=breed&action=display&thread=146
http://petfinder.com/ (I don’t know where exactly in NJ you live in so you’ll have to put your location in)

Well if I think of more websites I’ll let you know. Also feel free to pm me anytime with questions you have!

[minnieservis]

Ohhh wow thank you for all the info!!!! I’m gonna look at those sites now

[bigsis7]

Anytime 😀

[(dig)x(me)x(now)]

I wish ferrets were legal here

[bigsis7]

I know!! I’ve joined a few groups and signed some petions trying to make ferrets legal in Cali. It’s so stupid cause they’re illegal cause they’re “wild animals”. What?! They’ve been domesticated 2,000 years!!

[bigsis7]

Here’s a video of my ferret Oliver. Sorry it’s so short…camera shut off and I couldn’t find any batteries http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUFx4MwNP80

[(dig)x(me)x(now)]

Yeah the ferret law is old! I think it’s because Cali used to be a huge agricultural center and ferrets are destructive! Plus, animals are illegal by default here if they’re not on the “legal” list. Blah. Sugar gliders are illegal too.

[kimberleyanddarren]

why do they need operations? do they have any particular common health problems?
do u have any pics of yours bigsis?

[kimberleyanddarren]

why do they need operations? do they have any particular common health problems?
do u have any pics of yours bigsis?

[bigsis7]

I’v eposted some pics of them….I’ll see if I can find the thread….The surgeries are for adrenal disease which my Chewie has. They lose all or most of their fur. It’s sadly EXTREMELY common in them!!

[TARM]

Let’s see…

I don’t know about all of the things that can go wrong healthwise with rabbits yet but Ferrets are prone to adrenal disease and insulinoma.  Adrenal can sometimes be controlled with melatonin implants but insulinoma is expensive to treat.  There are many other health issues such as ECE (green slimey poop), ADV (similar to FIV in cats), and dental problems. 

Ferrets are stinkier than bunnies, even unaltered bunnies.  They generally come already altered because females can literally die of anemia if they go into heat and don’t get pregnant.  Males are very aggressive if they aren’t neutered to the point that you can hardly handle them.  Plus they SMELL awful. 

Ferret poo is way messier than bunny poo and they never 100% litter box train.

Ferrets are easier to do the monthly maintenance on.  Nail trimming and ear cleaning are a cinch because with nails you can put ferretone on the belly (which is like CRACK) and they don’t even realize you’re doing their nails while they’re snarfing up the ‘tone.  For ears you can scruff them, which is equivilant to trancing but leaves one of your hands free and kind of paralyzes the ferret.  It doesn’t harm them, all ferret owners scruff their ferrets.

Nip training is hard.  If you have a kit that bites it takes a lot of work to nip train it.  Once a ferret is nip trained it will generally never bite again.

Ferrets sleep 16-20 hours a day.  They are much more needy than bunnies are.  When ferrets are out for playtime they will keep you on your toes.  They like to swipe stuff and hide it.  They don’t chew on things though. 

Ferrets are obligate carnivores so feeding them premium food is a must.  Much like rabbit food…most of the commercial ferret food available is crap.

The life span of a ferret is 7-9 years, if he’s healthy.  They require rabies shots and canine distemper shots every year.  I personally don’t get mine vaccinated any more because I have senior ferrets and at this point it could do them more harm than good.  They don’t go outside and they aren’t registered so this is a personal call for me.  I don’t advocate not vaccinating ferrets and mine have had regular vacs up until 2 years ago.  my ferrets are not 5, 7 and 8 years old.

Are you getting one?

[bigsis7]

A good way to prevent insulinoma is to get your ferret on a raw meat diet. You can check out the holistic ferret link I gave you. It is also healthier for ferrets than commercial foods. Good commercial foods are Evo and 8in1 Ultimate. A raw diet also cuts down on the smell and the amount of waste.

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