BITES No Matter WHAT!

Question
QUESTION: Okay, mine is a tragic tale of hatred and woe.  I bought a ferret about 2 weeks ago.  She bit me real hard at the store. I bled a lot.  The pet store guy told me it was because "she was excited because of the other ferrets and she will calm down".  So I remained optimistic.  I brought her home to discover she didn't calm down... ever.  She bites and bites and has never bitten me without drawing blood.  I must now wear welding gloves to protect myself.  She doesn't play with me.  She flat out avoids me when I let her out.  I have never hit her, or flicked her nose when she bit me (as the pet store guy advised me to).  Instead I have tried many things.  1.  Saying NO and hissing in her face.  2. Time outs  3. Scruffing.  None have worked.  1.  she just bit me right away again.  2.  she bit my as I was trying to take her OUT of her time-out box. 3. She just friggin squirmed around until my grip slips and she clamps onto a finger.  I have done nothing to make this ferret the way it is.  I give treats regularly to reward the moments of non-biting.  But the biting still happens.  The avoiding still happens.  Me getting suicidally angry at the furry little sociopath  STILL HAPPENS!!!  I really need somebody's help.  I never new a small cute animal could cause such anger, frustration, stress, and sadness.  Please help me! I fear for this ferret's safety if this continues any longer.   I realize that this ferret may have had it rough at the pet store but I am running out of patience. I have seen NO improvement and in my hick-town there is no ferret shelter, and i can't return it to the pet store and NOBODY will want this ferret, so I really don't know what's gonna happen If you cant help me.. but it doesn't fare well for the ferret.
(note: this may sound extreme but I assure you I am writing this in the middle of an ferret-related emotional breakdown so please keep that in mind)

Info:
Food - premium ferret food
Poo - uhm... brown and... soft... kinda like brownie mix
Eating - yeah she is eating

ANSWER: Hi Jen:

I feel for you, really I do.  I actually have a ferret exactly like that. When I adopted her I was told that she bites EVERYONE, but she did not and does not bite me. She bites my husband, my company, my cat, you name it - she bites it.  Now that she is getting older, however, she is getting a bit easier to live with, but she drew blood on a fellow ferret owner's hand and I thought we were going to have to get stitches for her!

You truly have done everything just as I would have told you - scruffing, hissing at her, scruffing and dragging on the floor, time outs....my best suggestion at this point is actually (God forgive me for saying this) to suggest that you return her to the pet store, advise them that she is STILL biting, and ask for a replacement ferret.  I truly believe that some ferrets do not want to be owned and loved....at least not by the person who ended up with them. Maybe she would be great with a man or a child. We just don't know what goes on in their little heads...most likely some abuse at some point in time before she met you.  I don't know what they do to them at the breeders that makes them fear humans so much (she is definitely FEAR BITING), but I have watched my little one, who is an old lady now, and she has never wanted anyone otoher than me to touch her.....perhaps if you can exchange her for another ferret - maybe, just maybe, she will find her "ONE" someone that she can love and trust - because it doesn't sound like it is going to be you.

I'm so sorry to tell you that.  I can understand your frustration.  The only other thing you can do is continue to handle her with heavy gloves on while talking sweetly to her (watch she doesn't get your lips or nose!!) and stick some Ferretone in there someplace as a treat so she knows you are friend, not foe.  I do know the people that had my ferret before I did couldn't handle her; I came along and picked her up, having no idea she was a biter and she just kissed me all over!!  I hope and pray that your little one will find the one who brings out the kissing in her.  I swear, I think they can smell fear and our tenseness when handling a biter.

I just feel the frustration in your letter and I'm so sorry this is happening.  Please realize that it is NOT YOU, it is the ferret who is having some fear issues. Don't be afraid to take the ferret back for exchange and tell them you just cannot deal with her.  If they won't take her back, the only thing I can recommend is to continue what you are doing (wearing gloves) and also maybe getting a second - FRIENDLY - ferret would show her how to act and she could learn from them. My heart breaks for you.  I wish I had better advice :-(

If you would like to write back again with your city, state and zip code, I'll try to see what shelter would be closest to you as another option. There are folks who specialize in rehabilitating biters specifically. There's one I know of in Ohio, Columbus I think....and I bet she would drive to get your little girl and try to help her. She would bring you back a totally different ferret in a short time, but I don't know what the secret is other than consistency - just be consistent and PERsistent.

Please let me know if I can help further, or how this turns out???

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers


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

QUESTION: Well, the thing is I kind of suspected she was a fear biter, and I think its because of how they treat them at the pet store, to my knowledge all the other ferrets appeared to behave the same way.  What the pet store owners do when the ferrets DO bite is flick them really hard in the face (it was so hard I could hear is finger contacting her nose with a dull THUD).  So when I brought mine home I figured if I didn't do that she would start to trust me... I really think I would feel bad If I gave her back to that...  Actually my best friend's friend (yup its one of those stories) got a ferret from this particular pet store because he heard they are just like cats (to what I understand they are to be like kittens)  well his apparently kept biting him too and he was also getting frustrated to the point that he was planning on just not feeding it until it died.  I don't actually know what became of that ferret, but I just figured he didn't look up the right way to correct the ferrets behavior, so I didn't let this deter me from getting one.  

I really feel stupid too because I have been bugging my parents for 2 months straight to let me have a ferret, and I haven't admitted to them that there is a problem because I'd probably get a whole "told you so" speech and I would never be able get one again.

Also all the other ferrets that were at the store were "reserved" for other people.  So i probably got the worst of the bunch.

Also I'm pretty sure that pet store should lose its licence because when I suspected maybe she was biting cuz she was teething and it hurt real bad, the guy told me to give her a pop bottle lid for her to chew on and I'm pretty sure that if she ate some that would cause some blockage or something.

I don't even know if I want a different ferret anymore...

Also I live up in Canada so I don't even know if you would be able to find a shelter for me... arrrrgh.. I'll probably just have to drive 2 hours up to regina or something.  We do have an spca up here in yorkton (Saskatchewan), but I'm pretty sure they kill animals after a while and i'm also pretty sure that they don't have any special ferret abuse people...

By the way thanks for the speedy answer, I'm not gonna lie I thought I would be waiting for days.
ANSWER: Hi Jen:

Just wondering how it's turning out with your little girl - I've had her and you on my mind.  I hope it's getting better, or you've gotten some satisfaction from the pet store and reported them.

Please know that you and your little one are in my thoughts and prayers.  I would love an update if you get a chance.......

Sincerely,

Jacquie

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

QUESTION: Hey Jacquie! Well I still can't get her to calm down and stop biting, but I had a talk with the pet store lady and she said that the ferrets are now getting 1 on 1 help with some ferret guy, and they are much better with not biting, so they don't get a flick in the face because they pretty much stopped biting altogether!

Unfortunately that doesn't help me too much, the pet store refused to take her back so I'm stuck with finding someone who wants a ferret, but I'm glad the other ferrets are getting help!

I'm putting up fliers tomorrow, so I'll let you know if she finds a new family!

Thanks for your concern!

Jen
ANSWER: ADDITIONAL INFO ADDED:  I found some information for a rescue/shelter in Canada and wanted to give it to you - even if they are not close to you, I'm sure they are networked throughout the country, just as we are here in the U.S. and will be able to refer you to someone in your area :-)

2nd REVISION
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WOW, found a BUNCH more shelters/rescues!  Check out all these...wooo hooo!  Let me know if any of these work for you, k?


CANADA FERRET RESCUE INFO:
http://www.ferrets.org/
http://www.pgaa.com/canada.html
Canada

Mustela Canada - Canadian Contacts
Director: Lorraine Tremblay
Canada
(613) 744-6047
E-Mail: ferret@storm.ca
Website: http://www.storm.ca/~ferret

Alberta Ferret Society
Director: Barbara Hoult
Alberta (Provincial), Canada
(877) FER-RET0
E-Mail: admin@albertaferretsociety.com
Website: http://www.albertaferretsociety.com

Ferret Rescue & Education Society (FRES)
Director: Marcy Kimura
Calgary, AB, Canada
(403) 567-3737
E-Mail: fres@ferrets.ca
Website: http://www.ferrets.ca

Manitoba Ferret Association
Director: Deb Kelly
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
(204) 661-1389
Alternate Phone: (204) 222-9556


Ferret Aid Society
Director: Randy Belair
MAILING ADDRESS ONLY!
4141 Dixie Rd
P.O.Box 41124
Mississauga, Ont, Canada L4W 5C9
(416) 251-4333
Alternate Phone: (416) 251-4333
E-Mail: randy@ferretaid.org
Alternate E-Mail: ferretaid@ferretaid.org
Website: http://www.ferretaid.org

Regstered National Charity. We are on PetFinder.Com

Ferret Rescue Society of Ottawa & Area
Director: Marion Houle
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
(613) 296-4357
E-Mail: info@ferretrescue.ca
Website: http://www.ferretrescue.ca

Ferret Information Rescue Shelter & Trust Society
Director: Karl Brodhecker
mail only 113-3495 Cambie St
Vancouver, V5Z 4R3, Canada BC
(604) 263-7481
Fax: (604) 263-0314
E-Mail: first@ferrets.org
Website: http://www.ferrets.org

http://www.ferrets.org/Ferret_Links.htm

SOMEBODY in CANADA OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO HELP YOU! :-)
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Hi Jen:

Thanks for your reply.  I'm so sorry the pet store won't work with you.  That's just not right.  I wonder if your dad went in there if they would tell him the same thing, or if  they are just taking advantage of you being a young lady - I bet your dad could get you a refund :-)  Just an idea anyway.

BTW - be SURE to put on the flier that she is a biter. Believe it or not, there are many people who work with biters and would take her.  In fact, there is a huge online ferret community - even some folks in Canada on some of the groups - and I'll be happy to post your info on those groups if you email me your location and a phone number or email address. Don't write it in this format where everyone sees it, but email me directly at thunder.paw.ranch@earthlink.net   Okay?

The reason I want you to be sure to tell the new owners she is a biter is that they may not be as kind as you and they could injure her or kill her if they are expecting a sweet little non-biter...plus, people who work with biters KNOW they are difficult to place, so they will go out of their way to come pick them up if necessary.  So, email me your info, okay?

Hopefully between me posting online and your fliers, we can get an experienced ferret owner who is willing to work with her - in fact, I think it would be a good idea to put on the flier "EXPERIENCED FERRET OWNER NEEDED".  Then you can say that it was your first ferret and is a biter who needs someone with ferret experience to be re-homed w

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

QUESTION: Hi! Wow! That's a lot of info! Thanks so much! I've put up fliers (and they do say she is a biter) and the pet store owners agreed to inform people who are interested in my ferret how to contact me.  

No luck yet, but I'm sure if it comes to it I can take her to the Manitoba shelter, as it's probably the closest.  It really sucks that there aren't any shelters here in Saskatchewan... but I guess that probably has something to do with the fact that we have such a small population.

I'll keep you updated!

Jen

Answer
Hi Jen:

I just haven't been able to get your little one off my mind.  Sooo.......I've done a bit more research tonight and actually found some rescues and shelters IN Saskatchewan AND some what appears to be good advice on training them not to bite, which you might want to try - there are a few you actually haven't tried yet.  I know you are frustrated, but maybe, just maybe.......

Here is the list I compiled:

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/sask_ferrets/

http://noahsarkpetsandsupplies.com/index.html = pet store who MAY take on consignment

http://www.rescuenetwork.org/locator/search.php = rescue that takes bunnies AND ferrets

A University in your area who has a veterinary department!  :  Western Canadian Veternarian        College in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

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Some links about ferrets who bite - WHY & how to break them / lots of suggestions here:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=11&cat=1280&articleid=500

http://www.petplace.com/small-mammals/how-to-keep-your-ferret-from-biting/page1.

http://home.wanadoo.nl/defret/bijtprobleem.htm

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Ferrets-2277/Biting-Ferret-1.htm   

http://emmettferret.org/blog/?p=51

I don't know if any of those will help you, but just wanted to let you know that my thoughts and prayers are with you and this little one who is being so difficult. I would strongly guess that once she is won over, she would be very very loving and protective of her 'mommy'.  Maybe, if you have any energy left, you could read some of the ideas on how to keep them from biting.   I personally disagree with the bitter apple and recommend instead, something that they LIKE - I mean we are trying to make friends here, not enemies, but do as you wish :-)

Still in my heart and prayers....

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers