Take a shallow storage container, the kind you can slide under a bed (not to do that but easier access for your ferrets). Buy plastic Easter eggs, also can be found at garage sales very cheaply or go to Dollar Tree. Fill a container 1/2 to 3/4 full with Easter eggs and let them go. They bury themselves, roll around, this is a fantastic cheap colorful way of entertainment for your ferrets, and it's fun to watch them too! Please keep these eggs out of the reach of dogs that like to chew.
by Deby from Kansas City
Tiles are also a good paper weight and they are fun to use as dry erase boards. If using as a dry erase board, be sure to use the smooth shiny kind and not the rough surface kind.
By Robyn from Hampton, TN
I also put linoleum on the bottom of the cage in places, so it can have a place to lay down and I put t shirts and towels in there for her to cuddle in. She is so sweet! I reach in with a sandwich bag on my hand to pick up what I need to.
Such an adorable pet. I also found out aloe wipes repel fleas in very young kittens so she gets aloe wipe baths often. :)
By Racer from Hampton, TN
I wrote this for my Facebook page for people who wonder about what kind of pets ferrets make.
Ferrets are members of the skunk, weasel, badger, otter family and they are funny, charming, and loveable after having taught them what is acceptable behavior. You do not keep them in a cage, certainly not a terrarium, which I have seen people do.
Ferrets need lots of attention, lots of teaching and training because they are so smart. Some habits will not be able to be taught out of them, such as their penchant for stealing things. Some will steal shoes (Tinker is a shoe stealer). They will do as much as they are allowed to do. They will have a stash of things that they collect that is very hard to get to. Mostly I dig under the bed when something goes missing.
My ferret, rather than having an expensive cage, has a recycled cage that stays open all the time in a back room, that is like a sun room. This gives her room to play and climb and explore and it is a linoleum floor so clean up is easy.
Tinker is a comical little ferret, she is like an otter, she likes to do funny things and show off. Her favorite thing to do is to back off a bed, fall straight down, and then act surprised and laugh at herself. She will look up at you with bright eyes and run with your shoes and take them off your feet if she can.
She has learned to bite when not put down when she wants to be. She does it because she is in a hurry. Ferret skin is very tough and doesn't feel as well as human skin does.
I would not put a ferret around a child or old person, because if they can't react fast, they shouldn't be watching a ferret. Ferrets are sweet, loving and cute and try to get attention by making people laugh. This is a problem when training, if you laugh it is like a reinforcement of a behavior. Tinker will do things that are not really funny, but you can't help but laugh at her, like when she tries to take off a shoe. Well now you see, she is totally shoe oriented, a bandit, which is what the name ferret should mean or translate into.
People who keep ferrets in cages and think you can clean out the cage once a week or so will not be happy and neither will the ferret. They need constant cage cleaning, which isn't that hard at all. If their needs can be met and they are not stuck in a cage, but have their own room or space then they are great pets. They try to get out the door, and that presents problems and you can't get them out of that. They are too smart. They watch and learn. I would not be surprised to learn that ferrets are smarter than dogs, pigs, or cats in their own ways.
Being that they are like "polecats" they will have a smell. If their scent glands are removed and they are spayed or neutered they will be OK. They will always have a smell. I actually like the smell of mine. It is a musky scent, not an offensive one.
Marshall ferrets have two ink spots tattooed on their ear. This means they have been descented and neutered or spayed. A female ferret can actually die from not being spayed.
They are rough players and I am going to get another ferret soon, to be friends with our other ferret since it needs a playmate since they play so rough together.
They are a joy if you know ahead of time their behavior and personality. I would not let a small child have a ferret as a pet since their care needs are too high. They need to be fed a diet high in protein, and given ferret vitamins.
When things get out of hand, if you hold them gently by the scruff they will yawn and go into a sleep like state. This is a way to get them to stay still when you have to examine them or quickly but carefully clip their little claws, with a very small animal nail clipper like the ones used on guinea pigs. Also they love their "supplement" and they will lick that up while you are doing their nails.
I guess you can tell we love our ferret. We got her off of freecycle.org. A lot of people don't really like having them when they find they make a mess. That is fine, there are ferret rescues around, and I am here too. :)
By Robyn
Buy a hammock for the cage, ferrets need these.
Put a box with a hole in it in the cage, big enough for the ferret to get into and sleep, like a shoe box sized box. I used a dollar shoe box from the dollar store, and cut a little doorway in it and put a little fleece blanket inside to let it sleep on.
Get a water bottle, and buy good ferret food. Get a blanket to put over the cage when the ferret sleeps, as they need total darkness when they sleep.
Get the Ferret: Buy one of Marshall Farms ferrets, and bring it home. Let it get used to the cage for a couple of days or hours until it wants to come out.
Take the ferret out, as much as you can, but not too long at a time without putting it back in the cage. Never let the food bowl run out of food, because their metabolism is so fast they can starve to death really fast. They also need to have fresh water and have to water bottle never run out.
Put a bag of sandwich baggies by the cage. You will use this to clean the cage each time you take the ferret out. Put your hand in the bag and pick up any little ferret tootles. Usually they will eventually start going in one spot. You can try a litter box, but mine don't like them, they go on the linoleum in the corners of the cage.
I leave a space for the ferret to see out at night, but most of the cage is covered. Ferrets cannot take heat. I have a little thermometer hanging on the cage to tell me how the temp is. They are more comfortable not in hot areas, but like cool areas. They are in need of lots of stimulation and attention. I have mine out about 6 times a day, all the time with little breaks to eat and drink.
I can't let it run free, because of the dogs and them not being reliable, but you could if you were there to watch them all the time. Mine gets stuck in drawers, and they are like kids, very curious and they are little bandits. They will find a place and put things they like in there. So keep your items out of their reach unless you want them to disappear.
They are so hyper. If you always hold them the same way and talk to them, they will become very attached to you. They are so sweet. Never keep a ferret in an aquarium. It is harmful and they need free flowing air, and the aquarium is for fish. Not ferrets.
They are so wonderful. They are the funniest, most hyper, most comedic animal I have ever seen. In the summer I like to keep a meatloaf pan in the bedroom window sill and fill it with fresh water ever night and ours likes to play in it; they love water, just like an otter would.
Enjoy yours!
By Robyn Fed from Hampton, TN
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
"Where's the Weasel" and Tinker (Ferrets)