Mary Allen
They become affectionate and tame, and it is great fun to watch the lively small animals: ferrets, the lively predators, are gaining more and more fans as pets. We’ll tell you what to look for when it comes to posture.
Curious Ferrets Don’t Want to Be Alone
First of all: You should definitely keep two ferrets – one alone would make them lonely. You like to play and need someone of your own species to do so. However, uncastrated males often do not get along well. In terms of character, they are curious, active, and enterprising, but also clearly show through bites when something does not suit them. They are not suitable as pure cage animals because they have a great urge to move around and need several hours to run free a day. Like cats, the small animals are crepuscular and nocturnal.
Ferrets Have a Strong Odor
Anyone toying with this pet should know one thing in general: ferrets have a very strong odor of their own. However, this does not come from the secretion of the so-called stink glands, which are located next to the anus. The specific body odor is particularly intense in males. The secretion of the anal glands is usually released in case of danger and is used for communication or to signal their unwillingness. Therefore, the removal of these glands is forbidden according to Section 6 (1) of the Animal Welfare Act.
Keeping Your Dog and Cat
If you already own a dog or cat, getting your pets used to ferrets is usually not a problem. Caution should be exercised with other small animals such as guinea pigs, rabbits, or rats: ferrets are predators.
Always offer your little ones a sufficiently large enclosure, because they want to do gymnastics. The Veterinary Association for Animal Protection recommends that the enclosure for a pair of ferrets should have a floor area of around 6 m² and a minimum height of 1.5 m². An additional 1 m² is to be made available for each additional animal. Equip the housing facility with several floors so that your animals feel comfortable. Stones and tree roots are also used to subdivide, and at least one litter box (ferrets are house-trained very well), bowls, a drinking bottle, and several sleeping boxes must be included. In order to meet the great urge to play and move around, always give your loved ones something to keep them busy, for example, dog and cat toys are suitable here. In warm temperatures, the animals are also happy to have a bath, as they are very sensitive to heat.
As already mentioned, ferrets need several hours to run free, make sure that the environment is “ferret-safe”. Power cables should be made inaccessible and plants that are poisonous for the animals, as well as cleaning products, should be brought into another room to which the animals have no access. With an outdoor enclosure, you should make sure that it is breakout-proof because be careful, the little ones can dig under a fence.
Ferrets and Its Diet
By the way, a female ferret is called a ferret – she is between 25 and 40 cm tall and weighs 600 to 900 g. The male can even be twice as heavy and is up to 60 cm in size. There are six different breeds that are actually just colors. Ferrets are carnivores. You should offer special ferret food, for a change you can also give wet or dry food for cats and cooked meat is just as popular. In addition, food animals such as day-old chicks, mice, and rats can be fed.
When to the Vet?
It is important that you always observe your animals closely. If they suddenly seem lethargic (apathetic, sluggish) or snappy, if their coat changes, if they lose weight, or if they have diarrhea, you need to see a vet. By the way, a well-cared-for ferret can live up to ten years!
Ferret
Size
He is 25 to 40 cm, males up to 60 cm;
Look
six different colors. Females stay significantly smaller than males. The tail length is between 11 and 14 cm;
Origin
Central Europe, North Africa, Southern Europe;
Story
Descent from the European polecat or forest it is with a high degree of probability;
Weight
About 800 g, males up to twice as heavy;
Temperament
Curious, playful, enterprising, agile, but can also be snappy;
Attitude
Feeding twice a day. Daily play and petting are essential. Keeping not as a single animal, but always in pairs. The enclosure must be very spacious so that the ferrets can exercise. Ferrets need a litter box, food bowls, a drinking bottle, and a sleeping house.
