Considering buying a ferret

[dogmandango]

the only thing to feed your fert is flesh its ther natrul food cheap as road kill cost nothing a few rabbits of your local game keeper

never had one of mine to the vets only to have ther bits and bobs out witch is cheap and simple

[Gazellianaimee]

local game keeper, there actually is one in every town? Where would you find them? And, would they sell stuff like roadkill etc? I thought if they found them they'd sling it into some grass or chuck it away. I assume you'd feed it to them raw? This is probably more for future reference, as i think that 250pds(my deposit) is a lot to risk loosing.

My parents will be living in Norfolk, so if someone happens to be going away for a short time and feels safe leaving their beloved animals with me, in about 6 weeks for a while after that, then don't hesitate to give me a bell. I think if we're talking about ferrets though they'd probably need to be trained with a lead, just incase mum isn't keen on them playing in the house excessively, and will probably be more interesting for them to a certain extent, as well as getting me out of the house a bit.

We should have a couple of completely empty rooms there as the place they are moving into has more than they need, so could just put some mats down in a couple of 'prime digging spots' and then stick some of their toys down and play a bit, and she should be fine with that, as long as they are for the most part litter trained too.

[Doninha Princesa]

Originally Posted by Marinam2

OMG mac my big male has a thing for the airing cupboard door. It doesnt matter how many time i move him away or shout "stop" he carries on regardless it drives me crazy.

Marina

My boy will dig at any door reguardless, my littlest girl is bad too, i used to keep a plant sprayer to hand and give them a little squirt of water when i shouted no so now when i say no, or move to reach over, they know its wrong and run off, normally just outta reach where they dig for about a second, then look at me to see if i notice. You could put something in the way, but mine can move stuff if they can get behind it, like litter trays and boxes. I use a box full of dvd's that i havent unpacked yet if i wanna stop them gettin somewhere. lol.

Do yours have a thing for shoes/boots? I think mine have a real fetish. Any trainers and the smaller girls dive straight in, and have a dig around, and any long boots ( i have motorcycle boots and knee high goth type boots, and my boy climbs straight in, you just get his tail out the top while he has a good root around! I actually "donated" my old bike boots into the ferret box when i bought a new pair.

I personally wouldnt feed my ferrets road kill or anything like that as i dont know where its come from, what its carrying, and yes thats what wild ferrets would eat, but mine arent wild, they wouldnt survive in the wild, and i have too many other pets to have the ferrets connect fur to food! Ive had several of my ferrets playing in their run next to the rabbit run when i had rabbits and my boy was the only one who was a bit too interested, the others ignored them. The same as my cats dont play with toy mice or anything that looks similar to the ferrets because if one escaped, i wouldnt want the 3 cats to catch and kill. Mind you, they do have toy snakes and i wouldnt want them to chase a snake, for their own safety. lol.
My ferrets get raw chicken yes, but the stuff i buy from tesco for my dinner, Baby had chicks when i first got her, but she used to drag it into her bed and sleep with it, then have a chew of its face, and curl back up with it to sleep. So i took it away and she's not had them since.

Like i say, its only my personal preference not to feed them actual animals whether road kill or not, each to their own. They are fed their ferret food, they are quite happy and they get meat as a treat every few days, they have no need for dead animals. Same as i dont feed my cat or my dog dead animals when if they were "wild" as in before they were domesticated, they would hunt and kill! Ferrets are domesticated and dont "need" (IN MY OPINION) that kind of food, its just your choice if you decide to give it to them.

[Gazellianaimee]

Well, i was thinking similar,actually...I'm actually vegetarian, but the boyfriend is not so i could nick bits of his anyway:P.lol.

I don't think the landlord will let me have any anyway, apparently. And, although he always tells us before he comes round, i'm not sure i could hide a big ferret cage and two ferrets! lol. In some ways it is better, as i really am not sure if i could afford vet fees anyway, it sounds like it is more likely to get more expensive than when i looked into reptiles (though i think there is less chance of that being needed if you buy them from a breeder instead of taking them as rescues), more possibilities of them getting ill or hurt too. He said no to rodents too, but i might be able to get away with hiding a couple of mice or something, if i did get any, although i'm not sure that i should risk it. I thought about getting a couple of laying ducks, as i heard you could tame them, and i'd get some eggs, but it would be a miracle if they managed to survive my dogs at home! Looks like i shall just be sticking to plants for now.

Thank you very much for all of your help (and your lovely offer dogmandango). I really hope i'll be able to put it to some good use one day...