Adding New Ferrets

Question
Hi, I have a three year old male ferret who has lived with no other ferrets until now. He was very well adjusted to being a single ferret but we have a baby coming in December and we thought it would be good to get him a few playmates. We recently bought 2 baby females from the pet stores. All three ferrets have been raised on Marshall food. My male ferret seemed to be in awe of the two little ones when we introduced them in neutral territory. He didn't seem to know what to do with their energy. He plays aggressively with them, getting on top and dragging them and the babies hiss at him but play back too...is this normal? For the first few days, my male ferret seemed depressed and stressed out and when I put them all in a cage together, the two little ones slept together but my older guy wanted to be alone. I am wondering, is my ferret going to eventually bond with the girls (if so, how long does that take??) or should I take them back to the pet store and continue letting my ferret be single. I just want to do what is best for him because we love him so much and we want him to be happy not stressed. Any advice on this?

Answer
Hi Kate,

I apologize for not answering your question right away. It has been pretty hectic around here!

First of all, it is not uncommon for older ferrets to make "toys" out of kits. There is probably an issue with dominance being worked out. Often, when new ferrets are introduced, you will see bottle brush tails, hissing and rough play. All of these are normal. As long as you don't see  excessive squealing, bleeding or pooping, then you should be in the clear. A little bit of hissing and bottle brush tails is normal for a while, but you want to make sure that no one is being scared or hurt. It shouldn't last forever, but ferrets do tend to play rough, and, like I said before, older ferrets tend to make squeaky toys out of kits. If it makes you uncomfortable you can supervise their playtime and make sure no one is being hurt. You have to remember that ferrets have very thick skin and when they play together, they can't feel it when they get bitten. Knowing that helped me when we started adding to the family around here.

I would suggest keeping the girls around. I know that it seems to take forever for your fuzzies to become partners in crime but it should happen soon. Our two oldest that we started out with had a few issues when they met. The oldest (whom we spoiled before the second one came around) did not want anything to do with her little brother. Now they are the best of friends! Just wait it out and they should get along great in no time!

If, for some reason, something goes wrong and they don't get along, (like if there is physical or psychological harm), then I would suggest trying to put them in separate cages, and letting them out to play together. This could help with the stress of your oldest because it can be a bit of a shock to have a new cage mate if the ferret is used to being alone. If their bond starts to grow, try caging them together again. If he seems stressed again, then you can try separation again.

I hope this helped! Good luck and if you have any more questions, please do not hesitate to ask!

Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews