Some advice if you please!

[mikeyblue 28]

Hi All,

 

I have a slight problem and Im after some advice. I am new to ferreting and have been out a few times without any problems. I was out yesterday with my young Polecat Jill, and everytime I went to pick her up she would run off back down the hole!! When I finally did get to her, she was after giving me a good biting! The game of cat and mouse went on for a good half hour!

 

We were working in a small bunch of bushes so was wondering if she didnt like me grabbing hold in such an enclosed space? I have not had her long (3 weeks) and handle her daily, perhaps I need to get her trusting me a bit more before working her again?

 

Any views greatly appreciated!

 

Regards,

 

Mikeyblue.

[fensaluki 35]

I think you have answered your own question there mate.Give her a bit longer and more handling and I'm sure she'll come good fella.

Best bet would be to encourage her to go into short lenths of drain pipe or simlar tube in her hutch/court whilst your handling her then she'll get used to being picked up on exit.

Try and let her leave the tube/burrow completly before attempting to pick her up.And dont try dangling a rabbit down the hole if you can help it mate as it can make them a lot worse.

ATB

[mikeyblue 28]

Thanks for the prompt reply and advice.

 

I will handle her more and like you say try her in some tubing whilst handling. Im pretty sure she will come good, she has bags of energy and is a big girl so sure she will be a good grafter for me!

 

Thanks again.

[conor.k 2]

I think you have answered your own question there mate.Give her a bit longer and more handling and I'm sure she'll come good fella.

Best bet would be to encourage her to go into short lenths of drain pipe or simlar tube in her hutch/court whilst your handling her then she'll get used to being picked up on exit.

Try and let her leave the tube/burrow completly before attempting to pick her up.And dont try dangling a rabbit down the hole if you can help it mate as it can make them a lot worse.

ATB

 

 

agree good advice mate

[Aaron_butcher 17]

My two are really placid when I pick them up at home but as soon as they start working they will wriggle and scratch as soon as I pick them up. I've always put it down to excitment.

[The one 8,398]

Best advice is the pipes in the garden let her run in and out and take everything slowly while your picking her up putting her down then get her used the noise and bustle of getting a rabbit out a net etc . But why have you only had her three weeks was this a ongoing problem and sombodies passed it on????

[cjw 1]

try letting her run around in a enclosed area and pick her up while hovering over her if you do this daily she will get used to pretty sharp.

hope this helps

 

keep hunting

 

cjw

[theferreter 311]

I think you have answered your own question there mate.Give her a bit longer and more handling and I'm sure she'll come good fella.

Best bet would be to encourage her to go into short lenths of drain pipe or simlar tube in her hutch/court whilst your handling her then she'll get used to being picked up on exit.

Try and let her leave the tube/burrow completly before attempting to pick her up.And dont try dangling a rabbit down the hole if you can help it mate as it can make them a lot worse.

ATB

some good advice there mate :thumbs and: always let her smell your hand first before you lift her

[mikeyblue 28]

Cheers for the advice lads. I will deffinately try the pipes and repeatedly picking her up and putting her down in a smaller area, Im sure she will come on well!

 

@The One,

 

I got her off a bloke who had worked her a bit, but not a great deal. He said she was a good worker (but then he would say that!!) Im pretty shore with using everyones advice she will be great. I will let you all know how she gets on! Now to Focus for some tube!!

 

[stubby 175]

alot of new ferreters seem to belive a good ferret comes from a good working strain, I disagree, and belive it comes with being worked/handled, most ferrets Ive had, act just like that, and its not untill the second year that they show themselves to be truly good workers

[jamie g 17]

yes they go into killer mode when out in the field

[Ideation 8,216]

The pipe thing is essential. Also (and some people have laughed at this) whenever i feed my ferrets i make the same noise, i guess any noise would work but i make a kinda sucking, whistling noise with my lips. I do this whenever its food time for them and the come running and i pick them up, handle and check them over and let them feed. When out ferreting, if they are down in the hole messing about and i want to go i make the same noise and they come running (most of the time), works with lay ups as well, but i use small jills so this doesn't happen so much.

 

Nothing to lose by trying it

 

I also try to get them out and play with them as much as possible, letting them run around my desk or garage, climb all over me, sit in my pockets or on my shoulder or disappear up my sleeves. When we are out and i drop them by a hole they go down cos it smells good and seems like a fun idea, but once all the bunnies have gone or if they get backed up and kill, they soon get bored and come back up to see whats going on and if they are missing any fun (they stay down until there isn't a rabbit left to bolt!). Basically i'm a lot more interesting to them than an empty rabbit warren and they can eat plenty of rabbit at home, so why waste fun times eating the one they just killed.

 

A few years ago my dad used to use ferrets to shoot hedge rows. He would start one end, drop his two albino jills on the ground and they would head along the hedge until they found the first warren, go down and bolt the rabbits. Dad would shoot them with with the 12g and then when the warren was empty the ferrets would come up and resume their mission along the hedge, they would keep going down and coming up and continuing until Dad wanted to stop, he also sometimes used this method in woodland.

 

I'm sure you will sort yours out mate, just show it plenty of love. And get some tubes!

 

atb,

Jai.

[masmiffy 82]

All the ferrets I have ever owned have done this on the first few trips.

My 2nd year albino jill played on her first few trips now shes brilliant!

Her offspring went out last Sun for her first working day and was exactly the same.

Once they get used to working a burrow and have their first 'chase' I recon they change.

Both mum and her young, a hob and jill, are very tame in their hutch and run have never bitten either me or the kids! Who wants a biting ferret!

[nuggett 58]

Hi All,

 

I have a slight problem and Im after some advice. I am new to ferreting and have been out a few times without any problems. I was out yesterday with my young Polecat Jill, and everytime I went to pick her up she would run off back down the hole!! When I finally did get to her, she was after giving me a good biting! The game of cat and mouse went on for a good half hour!

 

We were working in a small bunch of bushes so was wondering if she didnt like me grabbing hold in such an enclosed space? I have not had her long (3 weeks) and handle her daily, perhaps I need to get her trusting me a bit more before working her again?

 

Any views greatly appreciated!

 

Regards,

 

Mikeyblue.

IF SHE BITES YOU AGAIN KNOCK HER ON THE HEAD

[pink head 28]

there might be a bit of wild polecat in it recently. it made my kitts nuts