Ferrets as pets

[heladoxa 0]

Can you keep a ferret as a pet in the same way that you keep a cat. When it gets to know and love you, can you let it out in in garden and expect it to come back, or would that be good-bye ferret forever?

[Malt 379]

Ferrets have absolutely no homing instinct or sense of direction, so no you couldn't keep one like you can a cat. You can train them to use a litter tray, but that's where the similarity ends.

 

Why not just get a cat in the first place?

 

[jac 12]

I used to wonder this before I got mine. If you have one, (witch is not a good idea as they love company) , and keep it in the house and let it run free indoors then they can be like having a little dog that follows you about lol. But they do smell and soon the house will stink of ferret, also they are very high energy and never really chill out on your lap like a cat. They also poo were-ever they like even litter trained ones will poo in the corner of the living room. I have three ferrets that live in a ferret court. One is a kit and comes in to the house a lot. He's very friendly. And loves it when I go to get him. He follows me around the house . I say the down side is that you can trample on them as they seem to get under your feet, and they never seem to stop running about so I put my kit back in the court just so I can take a brake lol then I have to look around the house for poo. I would not let mine lose in the garden as they can just take off. But if your garden is secure then you could let them have a play on the grass. Its like having a high energy kitten that never grows up lol

[jonnytraff 8]

ive heard that a ferrets small adapts to its living quaters like they don't smell as bad if they live in the house from a young age bu thats what ive heard.. dont know if its true or not??? anybody else any experience??? jon

[lurcher lass 9]

i wouldn't say thats true at all,

in regards to letting them out in the garden, i used to give mine a supervized run about, but you must keep all most on top of them and ensure they come back to you, they will love it and i used to enjoy watching them run about

now i've moved in with my partner whose dogs aren't ferret safe so i can't

but what i also used to do and may start up again is bring the ferrets out when i walk the dogs and give them a run about with my dogs, makes sure everyone gets on with everyone

[jac 12]

I had my kit in the house for the first few weeks , i dident notice the smell but my other half who i only see weekends said the house stank. thats why he now lives with the jill in the court. but he comes in 3 times a day to play . my ferrets are fast little buggers, and the only time i let my hob lose in the garden he went throw the headge to next door. but i have a mate with a much bigger hob then mine that walks like a snail so he lets it in the garden every day

[bert the fert 28]

I have noticed that ferret smell lessens the more time they spend indoors, although as jac says, you can still tell there's a fert about. Our albino hob spends most of his time indoors and when he wants to conk out for an hour he curls up under the sofa.

 

Our little girl takes him out with the dog and as soon as she gets him over the cattle grid at the top of our farm track, she lets him off the lead. Without fail he goes like a little blonde exocet straight home, and scratches at the front door. That said, i know we couldn't trust any of the other ferts to do the same; Bert's just an oddity.

[Malt 379]

The smell of ferret lessens because like all smells, the brain stops responding to the smell of ferret once it becomes a regular smell. The more time you spend with your ferrets, the less you can smell them

 

That doesn't mean everybody else you know can't smell on you them either! I've had funny looks off strangers in shops after I've forgotten to get changed after cleaning them out!

Edited August 5, 2010 by maltenby

[tb25 4,627]

The smell of ferret lessens because like all smells, the brain stops responding to the smell of ferret once it becomes a regular smell. The more time you spend with your ferrets, the less you can smell them

 

That doesn't mean everybody else you know can't smell on you them either! I've had funny looks off strangers in shops after I've forgotten to get changed after cleaning them out!

i agree,i have the same happin to me lol

[bert the fert 28]

The smell of ferret lessens because like all smells, the brain stops responding to the smell of ferret once it becomes a regular smell. The more time you spend with your ferrets, the less you can smell them

 

That doesn't mean everybody else you know can't smell on you them either! I've had funny looks off strangers in shops after I've forgotten to get changed after cleaning them out!

 

 

I know. I labour daily, under the vague misapprehension that i smell of Chanel. Ho hum.

[jac 12]

I could not get my other half to sit on the sofa with his arm around me as he said i stank of ferret. and i had only been holding my hob for a short time. i cant smell them at all now an less they let of a poof ( what i call the skunk like smell they do if fighting ) and that stinks the house out good and proper. :sick: lol

[jac 12]

here you go, filmed this thismorning for you to see how buzy they are lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqgsd82ON20

[bert the fert 28]

Love the vid That's ferts, chop-chop, work-work, busy-busy, bang-bang

[jac 12]

lol thanks, he's put all manner of things behind the cooker

[bert the fert 28]

lol thanks, he's put all manner of things behind the cooker

 

 

Bert the Fert is just the same. So when i lost my mobile phone i dunno why it took me two weeks to think of checking his stash behind the sofa ! There it was, along with the hifi remote, three pencils, a toothbrush, and a bald tennis ball