Is my ferret lonely, even in a group?

Question
QUESTION: I had 3 male ferrets, and a few months ago I added another bonded pair.  The pair had been together for awhile, and my original 3 had been together for at least 1 year.  I'm a little concerned about the smaller of the pair - Kyle.  Kyle plays with his other half, and 2 out of the 3 originals... but there is one ferret - Dean, that doesn't seem to get along with Kyle.  Dean will chase Kyle and try to jump on him, but Kyle just lets out a screech and runs away.  I've seen them do this both inside and outside the cage.  Kyle's tail will sometimes puff-up during play (even with his other half, so I assume it's excitement) - but he only screeches with Dean.  Kyle was also described by previous owners as "extremely active", and after Dean chases him, he hides under furniture, or in the cage... and sometimes he won't come back out.  Dean is probably 1 of 2 alpha males in the group, so I'm guessing that Dean tried to assert dominance, and Kyle just ran away.

I'm just kinda worried about Kyle's happiness, sometimes he will jump and play - but when Dean is around, he gets very quiet and still.  I saw the 4 of them all sleeping together inside the cage one night, and Kyle was on another level all by himself.  This doesn't happen on a regular basis, but it just worried me.  Kyle gets along fine with the others, but sometimes he'll just curl up somewhere on his own.  Any bonding ideas or suggestions?

ANSWER: Did you immediately put them all in the same cage?

If so I would separate the new pair into their own cage for now. And give them only 15-20 minutes playtime together. Sometimes it takes awhile for a new ferret to realize someone other than himself or his other half is the alpha ferret.

I would keep them separate until there isn't regular screeches from Kyle when Dean is around. A puffed tail can mean excitement or fear. Does he poop or pee when playing with Dean?

I just introduced a new ferret to my bonded pair. One was used to being top ferret and that caused a huge riff when the new guy also felt he was top ferret and they fought every day at every intro session for about a month. But my older ferret finally relented and let the new guy be the alpha in the group. Now they all get along great.

Don't separate during playtime unless there is blood poop or pee they will work out the pecking order. If you feel Kyle is becoming extremely stressed (not eating hiding all the time and lethargic) slack off on the intro's and just give him and his bonded mate their own playtime.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I really appreciate your feedback.  Actually, when we got the bonded pair (Kyle & Menard) - they were introduced right away to the other 3.  We thought this would be OK because when we introduced Dean to the original 2 we had, Dean bonded right away.  This time around, after the arrival of Menard & Kyle, Dean didn't respond well to them and developed an ulcer.  Dean was removed for several weeks and didn't get much contact with Menard & Kyle.

After Dean recovered, we very slowly re-integrated him with the rest of the group.  He & Menard had dominance issues for awhile, but they worked things out.  Menard also bonded fairly quickly with the others.  Kyle seems to be perfectly fine with everyone but Dean.  Kyle and Dean have also occasionally played together in the giant tube/tunnel we have, but if Dean chases after Kyle - he freaks out.

I don't necessarily have a problem separating Kyle & Menard from the others, but I'm worried about Menard b/c he's become quite bonded with the others - I'd feel like I was keeping him from his friends.  What I have considered doing is letting Menard play with the other 3 ferrets, and when it's time for Kyle to come out and play, to put Dean back in the cage.  Call me a softie, but I feel bad seeing one ferret sit in the cage alone while the others play.

Let me know what you think.  From what I can tell, the screeching isn't a daily thing, but then again, it could be going on while I'm at work or something.

Answer
If you are still planning to integrate them all into the same cage I suggest separate Kyle and Menard from the big group but still let Menard out for playtime with the others so the bond doesn't break.

I suggest doing one on one introductions with Kyle and Dean for very short playtimes at first and try to end it on a good note so they don't hold grudges and begin to look forward to their playtime together. But also let Kyle play with the others so their bond doesn't break.

I don't like the idea of a ferret sitting in a cage alone either.

If you don't want to try to make them one big group your plan sounds absolutely fine. I know many people who have a select few that don't get along so they have separate playtimes.