Ferret introductions.

Question
Hey! It's me again(:
I was the one asking about the red penis.(I took him to the vet and turns out it was nothing, just a little irritation from rubbing it against something.)
Well I actually have two wonderful ferrets.
1 panda named Cosmo(who is totally deaf) and the other who's a grey sable named Gizmo.(who is not deaf)
and well, I kept them separate for a week and a half so I could get the new ferret vaccinated and use to the new environment before introducing them. When I introduced them, Cosmo was very excited! He showed no aggression towards Gizmo at all. Gizmo seemed a little uneasy at first, but then they started just running all over the place tackling each other. They've been together for a few days now and sleep stacked on top of each other and are always together...
but sometimes when Cosmo bites the scruff of his neck it seems like he bites too hard, Gizmo screeches and hisses but I guess since Cosmo's deaf he doesn't really get that he's hurting him. Or is Gizmo screeching and hissing just 'cause he's playing? How do you think I should fix this if Cosmo really is hurting him? I love love love my fur-babies and really want them to get along better.
Also, I'm slowly changing their food from Marshell farms ferret food to Ultimate 8 in 1 ferret food.
Thank you so so so much for your answers, I hope I'm not bothering you (:


Answer
Hi Michelle,

I'm so sorry I have delayed in getting back to you. It has been pretty busy around our house lately!

Anyway, to your question, since they have only been together a few days there is probably struggle for dominance going on. It should cease in a few days. When I hear a ferret is biting, I usually suggest the scruff and snuggle. I use this technique on a three strike basis. The first and second times you see Cosmo bite Gizmo, you scruff him, say no, and then snuggle him to your chest for a minute or two, and pet him and love on him. Then, you let him down. If he does it a third time, you repeat the scruff and snuggle and then you put him in his cage or a pet carrier or what have you and give him a ten minute time out.  They should stay separated unless under strict supervision until you see this behavior change. Unfortunately, that time may never come. That is just something to be aware of. In the meantime, just be patient and keep with it. He should learn in time. It could take days, weeks, maybe months. You just have to keep trying. In this case where the deaf ferret is the offender, you are going to want to modify this method to fit him. Instead of saying "no", you can shake your finger at him or shake your head or whatever you think would be the best for him. That method usually helps, though. It helped all our kids.

As long as the screeching isn't loud or panicked or screams of terror, there isn't any blood and your little guy isn't having the poop scared out of him literally, there isn't much we ferret parents can do. The kids really need to be left to their own ways of figuring this out. Like I said, you really need to watch for terror, blood or poop. If you see any of these signs, the boys should be separated.

I hope I helped and if there is anything else I can do for you, ever, please let me know! And thank you for being sweet enough to say that you hope you aren't bothering me, but this is what I'm here for, so don't ever worry about it! I hope Cosmo and Gizmo start getting along better and if you have any other issues, just let me know!

Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews