The Great Ferret Alliance

[this_random_gurl_]

Does anyone here feed their ferrets a raw diet? I've been looking into it, but many people say it is quite hard to do. I really do not know, because my male Bandit was a rescue, and I'm afraid he won't eat it. Rebel, my female (don't worry they are spayed and neutered!) Eats cooked chicken, but they both have a main diet of grain free, mainly meat cat kibble. Thanks for the Help!

[Jimmy]

Does anyone here feed their ferrets a raw diet? I've been looking into it, but many people say it is quite hard to do. I really do not know, because my male Bandit was a rescue, and I'm afraid he won't eat it. Rebel, my female (don't worry they are spayed and neutered!) Eats cooked chicken, but they both have a main diet of grain free, mainly meat cat kibble. Thanks for the Help!

My three ferrets eat raw most of the time, though I keep some high quality, grain free biscuits just in case, they end up having them about once every three months haha
Depending on the ferret it can be hard to transition them, but it's worth it in the end. Mine get a huge variety of food and I've found it seems to help keep them from getting too fussy!
Biscuits and dry food are often linked to health problems because of the grains and cereals many brands contain. Ferrets can't actually digest them properly and they get no nutritional value from them, basically like humans eating cardboard, for comparison. If you feed them raw you'll notice their poops are also much bigger, because they can't digest as much of it, so it just passes right through them.

If you struggle to get them to eat meat, try rubbing some duck fat onto it, or mixing it with egg yolk. Generally they won't starve themselves, so it may just take some patience and persistence!

[swiftheart54]

I have the 2 most adorable baby boy ferrets there are. I have a sable named Roamer and a light tan one named Charlie. I just got them both recently. I got Roamer in the middle of February and he is 5 months old and Charlie is a 2 month old ball of fluff and I got him on the 19th of April. They are so good with each other and play a lot. Roamer is big compared to Charlie but he is gentle.

[bear ♡]

Hi just found this thread and wanted to jump in because I just adopted my first ferret!
His name is Ollie, we found him at a shelter after looking for one for a while and he's about 10 months old
I've had him about three days & I love learning more about his personality everyday
He has a strange obsession with shoes and stinky socks, and he loves to chase me around if
I run around a room
I also never realized how long ferrets sleep, Ollie is always tired and if I hold him and pet his head he
will just fall asleep in my arms ♡

[darkbay]

Hi!
I am going to buy a ferret kit soon (I am on the waiting list, they will be 8 weeks on the 20th) I have never owned a ferret before and I have a few questions:

What are the recommended cage dimensions?

Is Instinct cat food good for ferrets? Ferret food does not exist in israel and that is what the breeder is using.

Is 400-500 dollars decent for a ferret/shots/food/toys/shots/cage?

At what age should I spay my female?

Albino is cheaper. Is there a reason for this?

Are there any ferret toys? All I can find are hammocks.

What is the best ferret shampoo?

Should I use clumping cat litter, crystal cat litter or sand for the litter box?

Thanks!

[Transkitty]

Hi!
I am going to buy a ferret kit soon (I am on the waiting list, they will be 8 weeks on the 20th) I have never owned a ferret before and I have a few questions:

What are the recommended cage dimensions?

Is Instinct cat food good for ferrets? Ferret food does not exist in israel and that is what the breeder is using.

Is 400-500 dollars decent for a ferret/shots/food/toys/shots/cage?

At what age should I spay my female?

Albino is cheaper. Is there a reason for this?

Are there any ferret toys? All I can find are hammocks.

What is the best ferret shampoo?

Should I use clumping cat litter, crystal cat litter or sand for the litter box?

Thanks!

Welcome to the thread!
The first thing I think I should mention is that ferrets are social animals. They can do alright alone, but really thrive with at least one other ferret friend.

Ok, as for cage dimensions! Ferrets really do better in cages that have tiers, as most don't like to sleep in the same areas they toilet in. For one (or two) ferrets, a two level cage works out well. No matter the size of the cage, you'll still need to let your ferret out for at least 4 hours every day. They're really not like other traditionally caged animals.

Instinct used to be a very highly recommended food for ferrets, but then they changed the formula and added peas(at least here in the US they did.) Peas have been linked to bladder stones in ferrets, which can kill your ferret. I'm not sure what brands are available where you are, but high quality cat foods usually are better than anything marketed towards ferrets. You'll want something with a lot of meat content, so you'll want at least the first five ingredients to be named meats or meat meals. You want the food to have no or very little pea content. The food I feed has peas listed as the 17th ingredient, behind 16 meat based ingredients. I don't know if Orijen is available where you are though. A balanced raw diet may be easier for you, and can be cheaper depending on how you source your meats and organs. There are many people here that raw feed, and I plan on raw feeding in the future so we can help you with that!

My first thought is that $4-500 is a lot of money for a single ferret, but considering the cost of the cage, other supplies and vet care that actually sounds about right!

Jills reach sexual maturity around 4-6 months of age. Spaying can increase their chances of getting adrenal, but allowing a jill to go into heat without being bred can lead to her death. In the US, most ferrets are spayed/neutered before they ever go to their new homes since they're milled like puppies here. Ferrets purchased from private breeders are usually given what's called a jill jab from their vet to take them out of heat. This would be something you'd need to talk to your vet for to find out the availability. You can also talk to your breeder about the possibility of using a vasectomied hob to mate with her and take her out of heat.

I can't really answer your question about colors being cheaper because that varies by region! I will go into color a bit though because of its links to health issues. Ferrets with a lot of white can often have Waardenburg's syndrome, which is a neural crest disorder. Albinos and dark eyed whites tend to not have this problem, but blaze and pandas do. Just something to be aware of, and something I'd suggest researching.

There aren't a lot of toys marketed towards ferrets only. Bedding and tunnels are pretty much it, but certain cat and dog toys can work very well! My three love playing with cat wands and small dog toys. Just make sure they can't get small pieces off to swallow, and I personally avoid soft rubbery textures because Sega chews on them.

Bathing ferrets should only happen if they get into something nasty. Bathing them dries their skin out, so they secrete more oils which actually increases their smell. When I do have to bathe mine, I use Nature's Miracle hypoallergenic dog shampoo on them. If they're getting to be a bit itchy, I'll put plain oatmeal into a sock and make a bath of oatmeal water for them to soak in. There's no soap involved in this, so it can be done more often than actual baths.

Litter was the hardest thing for me to find for my ferrets! You'll want to use non clumping litter because clumping tends to attach to their eyes and noses and can make them sick. You'll also want to avoid clay based litters, as they tend to be dusty. I use Nature's Miracle corn based litter, but some ferrets will try to eat corn litters. Experiment with different natural litters to see what you and your ferrets like. I've used Swheat Scoop, Blue Buffalo walnut litter and finally the Nature's Miracle.

This ended up being longer than I intended, but I hope it helps! Feel free to ask any further questions and I'll do my best to answer them!

[darkbay]

Thanks!
I wish that I could get more than one but that is not an option.
I am actually building the cage myself (almost done:)) which is why I needed dimensions (I am not spending 350$ on a cage (yeah, that is for the cheapest, smallest cage that is probably better suited for a bunny).

We have all the foods that are available in america, including orijen. What orijen flavor/type do you use? There are A LOT to chose from.

About the litter: will crystal cat litter be ok? It does not clump and has no dust. I dont think that anything like what you suggested exists here, cats her are usually outdoor pets, so nobody puts effort into litter.

[rose.bloom]

hello all! not a ferret owner here but curious and had some questions!

what would you say your ferrets temperament is? and then in general a typical ferret temperament would be?
i've loved the little things since i could remember, but if i've ever brought them up they have a bad stigma. i guess
people think they're aggressive and mean like raccoons or something. and almost everyone i've talked to has said this.
i'm sure this is not the case though so i'd love to hear what you guys have to say!

[Transkitty]

A lot of people that are unfamiliar with ferrets think they're mean because they don't show affection like a dog or a cat does. They also tend to bite in play before learning that human skin isn't as tough as theirs, which people can misconstrue as aggression.

My three are sweet and loving, and don't even bite the vet during their shots! They're playful and inquisitive and can be little trouble makers because of how stubborn they are. They like going on adventures when I take them to my local pet store where I get their food, and they've changed a lot of minds around here about ferrets.

These three aren't the first ferrets I've owned, and I've never had a truly aggressive ferret in my lifetime.

[kisawolfz]

Small update. As some of you may know, I love ferrets and have 5 of my own. And I used to talk about them all the time and share pictures.

Sadly, one of my ferrets passed away in her sleep sometime Monday night/Early Tuesday.


9/25/18