my ferret get violent

Question
hi i recently bought 2 ferrets a male and a female the female always try to bit me, im whit them most off the time sasky is the female, but my problem is not sasky is sammy he is very nice and friendly but yerstday when i try to grab him to put in hutch he did come very violent and attack me did bit me 2 times in my finger i was bleeding like hell.
my question is haw can make them to understand that im they friend and just love them as im trying hard to they trust me and love me as i love them?

Answer
Hi Paulo:

It takes a while for your ferrets to get used to you. Especially when you first get them, you must move slowly and be sure they can see your hand coming at them - don't come up from behind them or talk loudly around them, a it frightens them and they strike out in fear.  They will learn in time that you are their friend and would never hurt them. That must have hurt really bad to be bit so hard that you bled that bad!  It would be hard not to get mad, but you have to remember that they think they are in danger and he was "defending" himself in his view.

Here is a lot of information for new ferret owners that will be helpful for you: www.thechipster.com/fert-man.html .  The more you learn about your ferrets, the better ferret owner you will be and the quicker they will learn you are their friend.

Try to stay calm and be sure they see you coming towards them. Put some Ferretone on your fingers and let them lick it off, so they associate your hands with "good". You can also feed them small pieces of chicken so they have the smell of your fingers on the chicken. Remember, ferrets are obligate carnivores, so they MUST eat all meat products, no sugars or junk food. Sugars and junk food can make ferrets hyper and that can make them jumpy and likely to bite also.

There is a book called FERRETS FOR DUMMIES by Kim Schilling and it has a lot of good information about owning ferrets too. Read, read read and spend time with your ferrets. That's the best thing you can do to befriend your ferrets. It takes time and some ferrets are friendlier than others - you don't know how they may have been treated before you had them and this may contribute to their fear also, so do consider that and be kind to them, as they are probably only defending themselves. In time, hopefully they will love you as much as you love them.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers