Determining Ferret Gender: BOY or GIRL?

Question
how can i figure out a ferrets gender?

Answer
Hi Eevee:

Welcome to the world of ferrets!  There are several ways to tell boys from girls - I'll give you the easiest ones...

Turn your ferret over on his/her back and locate the anus just under the tail. If you have a little boy, he will have a little round 'bump' that looks like a bellybutton about 2"-3" up on his stomach. Also, when he uses the litterbox, his poops will be about two to three inches behind the wet area where he pees.

Little girls vulvas are immediately forward of their anus, so when they go potty, their pee basically splatters down right on their poops, making a very soupy mess....that's the easiest way to tell. Little girls will not have a "bellybutton", since it's not really a bellybutton, but a penis.

If you are lucky enough to have several ferrets together, the females will tend to be smaller (one pound to three pounds max) and the little boys will tend to be larger, especially in bone structure (usually around 3 lbs to 4 lbs or more). Little girls snouts seem to be a bit more pointy than boys, who seem to have more 'stocky' appearance to their face and neck area. These differences can be more subtle if you aren't used to being around ferrets, the 'bellybutton' check is the most reliable :-)

Hope that answers your questions. You can get information galore on ferrets in a book called FERRETS FOR DUMMIES by Kim Schilling OR you can read all about ferrets at:

http://www.ferretcentral.org

Click on FAQ's and just start reading - also read the "Medical FAQ's" so you know the warning signs of illness in ferrets because by the time a ferret *looks* sick, he is usually very very ill...they tend to 'hide' their illnesses.

Hope that helps answer your questions.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers