Biting and nippy ferrets

Question
QUESTION: Just yesterday I bought 2 jills that are 6 months old from a breeder, one pole cat and a black eyed albino. This is my first time owning ferrets and owning two is difficult. Yesterday the albino snuck up behind me while i blocking a hole underneath my bed and she bit my hand, latched on and hanging from my hand i called for my brother. When my brother came to take her off, she tightened her grip even more. Luckily it wasn't as bad as i thought, but still my brother is now absolutely more horrified of them and he's 23. My question is i bought these ferrets from a breeder who keeps his ferrets in cages outside in his backyard. So they don't get much attention and usually fights for the food between, lets say 20 other ferrets. Why did the albino bite me for? Did i do something wrong? How could i try to make it stop this bad habit? And is their poo or pee meant to be yellowy dotty specles? That was one of the toilet accident and the others were obviously either pee or poo. But the yelloy dotty specled poo/pee was different. They tend to nip a lot, when i try to pat them or even reach to them to hold, whilst wearing gloves because the breeder told me to, just in case of biting. I really want me and the ferrets to become friends and my brother really wants to get rid of the albino one because of the incident.

Right now i let the ferrets roam freely to let them take in their new surroundings, but when they sleep i let them sleep in the bathroom with heaps of old clothng and a specialised box for them to sleep in and they do.

ANSWER: Hi Sera,

My first question is: are those jills spayed? An unspayed jill will die if she goes into heat. They just can't handle the chemicals that gets pumped through their bodies. Judging by the description you gave of their surroundings, your little girls might not be spayed. You should really take them to a vet for a check up to confirm their health and confirm that they are spayed. You should do that ASAP. Also, it is great that you are letting them take free run of the room, but you should really have them in a cage when you're sleeping or not around so they don't get into anything that could hurt them. As you have two ferrets, you'll need a good sized cage. Something with a few levels and lots of room to run around in it. If it possible for you, ferret nation cages are the best cage you can come by for a ferret. Unfortunately, they can be on the expensive side, but something similar to the ferret nation cage would be good, too.

Anyway, I really wouldn't suggest going to this breeder for anything else. It doesn't sound like this person is running a good operation at all, I'm sorry to say. I'm very glad you got your girls out of there because ferrets shouldn't be kept outside in the summer months. I wouldn't really keep ferrets outside myself, but some people do it. As long as you know what you're doing, I suppose it is okay. Ferrets can't be in temperatures above 80 degrees. They will get heat stroke if kept in temperatures above that and heat stroke is nothing to take lightly. A ferret with heat stroke will pass away quickly, unfortunately. I don't mean to scare you, but that is the truth.

You shouldn't be wearing gloves to handle you girls. I know it sounds appealing for protection, but those girls really need to be socialized. They need to be loved and taught that you aren't going to hurt them. Living in such stressful conditions for the majority of their lives is the reason they are the way they are. There's a trick I like to call the "scruff and snuggle" that you can try when your girls bite. You gently grab them by the scruff of their neck and say "no" in a firm voice. Then, you hold them close to you, making sure to keep control of their head, and talk to them and pet them. Just do that for a minute or two, then let them down to play. If they bite again, scruff and snuggle again. If they bite a third time, scruff and snuggle, then put them away for a ten minute time out. This method is effective. It may take a while, but these girls just need to learn that you don't want to hurt them. Anyone else that handles them on a regular basis should be told about their tendency to bite and what to do if they bite.

As far as your description of their poops, what do you mean by speckled? Yellow poop can be a sign of infection, so you should bring a stool sample to the vet when you have them brought in for a check up. I really believe you should bring them to the vet as soon as possible to have them checked out. It may be the difference between sickness and health for your little girls.

Here is a list of vets, so maybe you can find one in your area:

VETS CANADA:   
* http://www.ferretrescue.ca/start.php
* http://tinylink.com/?TlVyYKa6e0
* http://www.ferrets.org/Veterinarian_Listings.htm   (British Columbia)
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-vets.html
* http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/sask_ferrets/

VETS USA:
* http://www.quincyweb.net/quincy/vet.html
* http://ferrethealth.org/vets/
* http://www.ferret-universe.com/vets/vetlist.asp
* http://www.ferretsanctuary.com/vets.shtml
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-vets.html
* http://ferrethealth.org/vets/

VETS  UK & IRELAND:  
* http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ferreter/vetlist.htm

VET INFO/ LIST OF FERRET GROUPS/ CONTACTS IN UK, ITALY, NEW ZEALAND, AUSTRALIA, NETHERLANDS, GERMANY & DENMARK:       
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/for-others/db-overseas.html (scroll down page to find the one you are looking for)


I hope this information helped. If you need anything else, please let me know!

Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews


P.S.

If you don't mind me asking, what food are you feeding them? Judging from the state the breeder has them in, the food he feeds might not be too high quality. I don't mean  to be rude, or anything, I was just wondering!

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

QUESTION: I feed them kitten food (Whiskers) and the breeder said once a week bread and milk. And sometimes raw meat like chicken. All i know is that the breeder fed them once in a while raw meat, milk, bread and maybe ferret food, he didn't really tell my what brands he fed them.

They have been pooing and peeing normally now.

I'm really afraid of handling them without gloves, I don't like getting nipped or bitten by them because when they bite they hold on.

My brother just bathed them yesterday and they went mental, are they meant do that for their first bath?

Answer
Hi again Sera,

Right off the bat, I want to say that you shouldn't give your ferrets bread and milk, ever! They can't get anything out of either of those things and giving milk to a ferret will cause it to have severe diarrhea and that could lead to irritable bowel syndrome in the future.

Here is a very good link that I like to give to new ferret owners. It is a chart that lists all the foods people usually feed to ferrets and the best foods are at the top. As you go down the list, the foods get lower and lower in ranking and I'll tell you why in a minute. You will probably want to stay with a nine or a ten. I wouldn't suggest going below a nine.

http://www.mdferretpaws.org/care/food_treats.html

When looking at food, you want to make sure that corn, soy and wheat (or any similar products) aren't listed in the first three ingredients. Ferrets can't digest these products so having them as part of the normal diet is not a good idea. It is also better to feed a food that has no by-products in it because by-products don't have as much nutrition as meat products do. It is also good practice to mix a few high quality foods together and give that to ferrets because if one ever goes off the market, you won't have to worry about having to get them switched to a new food.

Treats are a good bonding idea for you and the girls, but if their diet is well balanced enough, treats aren't actually needed. When thinking about treats, you want to stick with things that have very high protein. Packaged lunch meat sounds like a good idea, but shouldn't be given to ferrets because it has additives and lots of sodium in it; not good for little fuzzy tummies. Eggs are a good treat. You could hard boil an egg and feed him the yolk; the yolk is very good for them. If you don' t want to hard boil them, you could give him scrambled eggs, over easy eggs, poached eggs. You could give them raw if you like, as well. Just make sure that you don't season the eggs.

Meats are a very good treat. You can feed them raw or cooked. Ferrets tend to enjoy chicken livers and hearts. If you have access to a dehydrator, you can make your own unseasoned jerky for your girls to enjoy. Insects can be a good source of protein for ferrets. Small animals (such as mice, chicks, and rats) can also be fed as a treat or a normal diet. Some people advocate a more natural diet for ferrets and others still love the kibble; it is up to you. Do some research into it and see what you find. It may be a good idea to supplement your kibble diet with some feeder mice or chicks once in a while, at least, to give them a treat, extra nutrients, and to give them a little variety. Meat baby food can be given as a treat as well. If you get the girls used to meat baby food now, if they ever become ill, you can give that to them to help keep their strength up. Finally, if they like their kibble, they might see it as a treat if you feed it to them by hand!

In a lot of ferret care manuals, they will tell you that soft fruits and raisins are good for your fuzzy to eat. This isn't necessarily true. Fruits have sugars in them and sugars aren't good for ferrets at all. Feeding sugar to your ferret can lead to insulinoma, which is similar to diabetes. Also, ferrets really can't digest fruits, or vegetables for that matter. Both of these things should be avoided. As for raisins, people give them to their ferrets as a treat, but they really shouldn't. Raisins have a lot of sugar in them as well. Also, it has recently been proven that as little as five raisins can take the life of an otherwise healthy ferret. Stick to meats and proteins. You can also give Ferretone as a treat and it can also be used when you are clipping the girls' nails. It is an amazing distraction. Try putting a little on their bellies and sticking their noses in it. Most ferrets take right to it.

If you are going to switch their food, (which I would highly suggest as Whiskas doesn't even have meat listed in the first two ingredients), the switch should be GRADUAL!! When ferrets get fed a certain food young in life, it is extremely difficult to switch their food. Start off with about 85% old food, 15% new food and feed that for at least a week. Next time, try upping the new food percentage a little and going down on the old food percentage, and so on. This should be a few week process at least. Probably over the course of a month or two. It will really be better for your girls in the end, though, because feeding a low quality food can really, really hurt your girls.

I know you are afraid of getting bit which is totally understandable. When ferrets bite, they bite hard, and then they bite harder. I really do understand not wanting to handle them without gloves. The only problem with the gloves is, they aren't getting contact with you, really. They need to get used to you and your scent and they need to be reassured that you aren't going to hurt them. Something you could try for a little while is putting an old t-shirt on and wearing it for a few hours so it smells like you. Then, put the shirt in the ferrets cage so they have to live with your scent. That will get them more acclimated to you and their new home. Also, keeping them distracted with toys is always a good way to bond. You can use paper bags to make noise. You could also take a cardboard box with holes cut into it and let them explore that. If you wanted to, you could fill the box up with shredded newspaper. They like the crinkly noises! Basically love and gentleness and care are what is going to bring these girls around. It is going to take a lot of patience and a lot of diligence on your part, but trust me, it is totally worth it. Also, you could try laying down on the floor and letting your ferrets explore you while they explore their new surroundings. That way, they get to smell you and get to know you a little more. That is a good idea just because, if you think about it, all ferrets really see of their humans are their feet! Ha ha.

Here are some links to help you as a new ferret owner:

HEAT STROKE:

KEEP FERRET ENVIRONMENT UNDER 80-degrees F, 26degrees C
* http://miamiferret.org/fhc/faq.htm#diarrhea   
*(scroll down page to heatstroke)
http://www.mdferretpaws.org/care/index.html

CAGE RECOMMENDATIONS: http://www.martinscages.com/products/cages/ferret/
* FERRET VILLA .........cost: $84     
*  NEW ENGLANDER.......cost: $173
*  TOWNHOUSE F-450.....cost:  $190


FERRETPROOFING (do this BEFORE bringing a ferret home if possible):
* http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/part2.html#ferretproofing
* http://groups.msn.com/Ferret/yourwebpage10.msnw
* http://groups.msn.com/Ferret/ferretproofing2.msnw


GENERAL INFO - ALL TOPICS: (PERFECT FOR FOLKS CONSIDERING OR NEW OWNERS)
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferret#See_also
*http://www.craftycreatures.com/forferretsonly/ferret_school/ferretschool_aboutfe
(great for folks considering a ferret as a pet

* http://www.ferretcentral.org   & scroll down to topic necessary
*http://www.craftycreatures.com/forferretsonly/ferret_school/ferretschool_aboutfe

*http://www.craftycreatures.com/forferretsonly/ask_angela/index.html

GROUPS ONLINE (USA):
* http://groups.msn.com/FERRET---AlternateMessageBoard/messages.msnw
* http://groups.msn.com/mynorwegianferretfamily/myferretgroup.msnw
* http://www.ferretuniverse.com/
* http://groups.msn.com/ferret/_homepage.msnw?pgmarket=en-us

GROUPS ONLINE (UK):
* http://uk.msnusers.com/CFWRS/links.msnw

I can't stress enough how important it is that you get the girls to a vet to make sure they are spayed. If they aren't, they could start going into heat and an unbred female ferret in heat is a ferret that is in very real, very serious danger. The chemicals their body releases when they go into heat can get in the blood and cause the ferret to become anemic, which can cause the ferret to pass away, unfortunately. Like I said, it is so important that you take your girls to the vet to make sure that they are spayed!

Please, Sera, if you have ANY other questions, anything at all you want to know, no matter how small, please don't hesitate to ask. I will help you with anything you need.

Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews


P.S.

Incidentally, I have been looking for a whole female ferret to breed a litter of kits for quite some time now. Is it possible you could give me the contact information of the breeder you got your girls from? Maybe he could help me out. Thank you! And please, be in touch about their progress, if you don't mind!