happy ferrets or bored?

Question
i have two ferrets one is 2 the other is 3 mnths. i alow play time three times a day for one hour at a time.my older one walks around and goes and finds a place to sleep while my baby runs,jumps,play fights,and seems to have fun.my question is  is my older ferret unhappy or just getting old he has never been the real playful type.he would rather be held and loved on .also he does not have any health problems they both go to a reg. vet and eat the best food,have all the toys,the largest cage.they are my babys and i dont want them to be unhappy.thanks for any info giving

Answer
Dear Carmen,

I used to have a ferret, Dozer, that would come straight out of the cage and go "flat" on the carpet as if he was bored.  He wouldn't play much with my other ferrets (Bull, Swoop, and Rocky), but preferred instead to lay at my feet or just walk around the room until he fell asleep under the couch.

I feared that Dozer was bored all the time, or worse, that he may be sick.  So I took him to the vet - he was very healthy, albeit a tad overweight but otherwise just fine.

So you know what I did?  I threw him a party.  I invited over two of my girlfriends and their ferrets and we spent a few hours making toys for Dozer in the hopes that we could get him to play.  Turns out, Dozer just needed some TLC and a little extra attention.  Of the seven years he lived with me, he never really played with his brothers that much - he preferred to play with me!  

Your 2 year old isn't getting old; he's just craving some human attention!  It isn't enough to let them out for an hour and say "Ok guys, go!".  Here are some SUPER FUN things that you can do with your ferret that will hopefully lift his spirits.  I want you to try each one, and find his favorites.  Get back to me and let me know how it goes.

Rice Box : Get a large plastic storage container (Tupperware-like, the ones you might store sweaters in) and fill it with 5 inches of raw rice.  Plop your ferret in there and then swirl the rice around him - he'll find out that its a GREAT place to dig!  Rice is cleaner and safer than sand or dirt, so stick with that.

Rice Box Craziness : Get ahold of some clear dryer tubes (they can be bought at a hardware store or online at a ferret toy store).  Cut a hole in the rice-box and attach the dryer tube.  You can attach multiple tubes to the box and encourage your ferret to race in and out of the box!

Towel Chase : Almost every ferret loves this game.  Drag a big towel or small blanket on the ground back and forth - your ferret may jump on for a ride.  He may get so excited that he does the war dance and chases the towel everywhere you drag it.

Moon-Bounce : I've never seen a ferret NOT get excited by this game.  When your ferret comes out, put him on your bed and poke, tickle, and rustle his fur.  When he's a bit excited/awake, pick him up and GENTLY toss him on to a pile of pillows or scrunched-up blanket.  Grab him again for a tickle, then repeat.  This will rile him up for more interactive games like towel-chase.

Good luck, and get back to me!

Stephenie