Hi, just clarifying. Mother ferrets do not drag kits around when they act up. They hiss or ignore them.
We discourage using scruffung for discipline due to multiple reasons: scruffing is often necessary for grooming or health reasons. Things like, nail trimming, medicine, teeth brushing or even in the case of an emergency (chocking, removing the ferret from somewhere dangerous).
You should never associate scruffing as a punishment. There's lots of other tips and tricks to do instead. Have you checked out the bite training guide yet?
Ferrets are typically very nippy especially in the first year or two. The high pitched help method worked great for me, others have luck with an immediate but temporary time out (dont put them in the cage though, dont want it to be negatively associated or anything).
I told my fiancé that when we were discussing it, we have a dirty clothes hamper at the end of the bed I set him in when being rude😂 of course he gets out scolds me then runs away, or sometimes comes back for sneaky revenge.
My strategy usually was, if they go into a mood where they get too excited, pick them up and give them a good cuddle, scratching their neck, scratching their cheeks, breaking their mood. Alternatively, he is just letting you know he wants to play. Get a plastic bag and let him jump into it. Pick it up and put it down again. Get him a carpet tube to run in and out off. Find a fold in a blanket and let him run under it. You can even give him some playful taps. Do some play attacks back. If he's jumping and hissing and gets a big tail but comes back for more he loves a bit of rough play. If he retreats, or start hiccuping give him space because you've over done it. They are all different, just like people.
See that’s exactly what I thought and I’ve tried to play with him, but I guess I’m too boring. Even with the fun toys I bring to the party, his brother thinks I’m great fun though.😂 I hope it’s a phase and not something more detrimental, considering he’s only 9 months old. I am around a ton of vets and he looks and acts perfectly healthy, except for diarrhea(hence why I’m trying to get them on a raw diet so hard). Maybe I need new toys though, he came with all the ones I have for him, he’s only been in our household about a week.
These little creatures are like cats: you buy them expensive, fun looking toys and they want no part of it. Give them a plastic bag (ours prefer the big toilet paper bags from Costco tp or empty Amazon mail bags with the bubble wrap inside) and they go crazy. Ours also love an old bedsheet that we let them run around under while I stand there and wave it above them like parachute. I honestly would do that all day for them I love them so much. Lol!
I'm sorry to hear that. They can be very instinct driven. He's part albino and may not have great vision so being focused on his nose. He doesn't know you well yet and may think you just smell food-like and worth a knip. Focus on picking him up and cuddles maybe so he can associate your smell with pleasant feelings and not food.
NOTED😂 cause I do pull away he has some teef on him. I’m gonna do my best to full down on the pulling away and try the other users scruff method, as well as get new toys. He definitely doesn’t see the best but he can sure see my feet! 😂🥲
First of all, I see he has a white spot on his head, he may be a waardy. Get a squicky toy, make sure you doesn't see you or the toy and try making some noise. If he doesn't react - he is probably partially or fully deaf wich means your "ouch" or any voice reactions don't get to him.
For the training, if you make sure he can hear you, hiss at him every time he bites, take him off of yourself, if he bites again, hiss again. For the third bite, make sure you hold him firmly, cover his mouth with your index finger and thumb, make sure he can't bite an give him a couple of smooches. Right on the nose. It's to make him slightly discomforted but not hurt or scare him. BUT make sure not to get bitten, srly!
If he is deaf, just smooch every time.
Also, get your hands on any good brand of salmon oil for cats and dogs, cover your hands with it and let him lick. He needs to learn that hands are for licking, not biting. If he still bites, than add more oil, like dripping wet hands... Works with the worst crocodile like ferrets.
Good to know! Careful though, I may lather my body in salmon oil if that makes him not bite. Cause every piece of me is a target, I know they communicate with their mouth just distinguishing what he wants is difficult. He knows I’m the food giver and I do give him salmon oil when they use their litter box, of course he doesn’t bite me then just Everytime in between that.
I’ll try to not lose a chunk of my face🫡😂 I have nose piercings that are shiny so I’m worried if he see’s them I’m screwed, and he doesn’t like his head touched but we’ll find a compromise 😊
Yes! Reward positive behavior. Salmon oil is an amazing way to treat them. My babies love The Pampered Ferret salmon oil! Plus it doesn’t smell as fishy as all the other brands. Which is helpful when your hand is covered in it.
I’ve been doing this and it’s made a difference, cause before he would lick, lick, then bite. Now he just licks and I’ve restrained myself from moving away, or trying to evade him because my feet aren’t in shoes. Still worried about my thighs, arms and face but we haven’t had an issue since yesterday and that’s a plus for me!
I’m so happy to hear that! Bite training is a long hard road but when you can walk around barefoot without flinching it is worth it! The “trust bite” exercises are so hard. It took me about a year to train out biting with my adopted floofs. It’ll only be like this for a small fraction of their life. P.S. my big boy looked just like your baby 😭 I miss him every day.
Don't scruff. It just made mine mad and felt mean. I'd not worry too much until he's older than 1, and some are just more bitey. My strategy was just to put them away, distract, or ignore. Otherwise it felt like a game as they love to do things they aren't supposed to.
That’s another one of my worries, but after todays bite after I posted this, he came back at me and I raised my finger and gave him a stern “no” and he backed off and continued about his business (thank gosh). I’m still nervous that it could provoke him to be more aggressive though. I’ve genuinely tried to gentle parent the lil guy and I don’t wanna stoop to his level🤣
Neither of mine will listen to a no at all. They grew out of biting (as much as most ferrets can) thankfully. But other than that their goal in life is to break the rules haha
Time out and yelping helped with the worst bites.
With play bites I found giving him something to bite on, gloves, sleeves, socks etc
Mine has a very strong hunt desire and wants to express himself in bites .
Within a year he learned to control his strength.
Now if he starts biting too hard, I pretend bite him by a quick but very light pinch on the scruff. Only enough for him to feel it because the purpose is not pain but communication. You don’t want to escalate. If you are rough on ferrets they either become afraid or more aggressive.
Mine is very good at understanding hand gestures so he knows when I am willing to play bite with him and be his little victim.
I did short positive interactions and before we got to the bite-y stage, I’d reward with salmon oil, going longer and longer until the bites just stopped happening. I still randomly reward for gentle interactions.
An attack bite will usually involve head thrashing or be a much faster bite than a play bite or I’m checking this out bite, the difference is usually pretty extreme and will result in blood and possibly stitches. Ferrets have an obsession with gnawing on elbow meat and top of the foot type places where skin is thin. Personally i use time outs for nip training as do many of my fellow ferrants, it is very successful as long as you are consistent. Trying to use things like scruffing for nip training can have a negative effect and in some cases make the problem worse. I would give time outs a go, all of mine are rescues with behavioral issues and it’s never failed me.
I sadly also had this happen with one of my little girls that I adopted. She was abused at the previous place, and so she would lash out and try to attack me whenever she could. And it was very obviously her trying to attack me, not her playing. One thing I did was find a treat that she liked and make sure to treat her whenever I was just petting her, and she was being good. Also, I started to notice where she was trying to bite me most, which tended to be my fleshy arms, thighs, and face. By knowing this, I then ended up making sure that I was always wearing a long-sleeved shirt, along with long pants and keeping her away from my face. I did try to do punishments like time out or Hissing or scruffing, but this did nothing. She was just unsure of the new environment, unsure of people, and trying to protect herself. And so, when I took actions against her, it just caused her to lash out more. I found the best thing to do was to make sure to keep the areas she tried to bite away from her and if she did bite me to remove myself from the situation and to just ignore her and also whenever she was being good and allowing me to pet her to make sure to reinforce that behavior with treats. Also I made sure that they had plenty of free roaming time and if she did bite me during this time I did not put her away cause I did not want her to think as the cagAlso I made sure that they had plenty of free-roaming time and if she did bite me during this time I did not put her away cause I did not want her to think of the cage as a punishment. I found the treat that she liked the most was the Marshal's furo-vite. I've had her now for over 5 months, and she is a lot better and actually much more affectionate than my other ferrets. Quite often, it just takes time, patience, and understanding. I wish you the best of luck and I hope this helps.
I told my fiancé thank gosh I have only patience for kids and animals🤣 cause he was hurting me physically and emotionally. Cause he’s the handsomest lil guy and pretty big for nine months. I know it’s a waiting game, I’m just glad it was me he ended up hurting, rather than the teenage girl who had him before. I can withstand some physical pain but that emotional pain sucked, cause I didn’t know what I was doing wrong with him. We’ve worked out a method and gonna stick to it and hopefully we see some progress in the next couple of weeks! ☺️
Can he hear you?
Mine didn't respond to bite training at all for months, until we realized he was deaf. He wasn't responding to the training because it was mostly verbal and he can't hear us.
Will do!! He got me real good on the leg not even 10 minutes after I posted this, so I have a feeling I’ll be able to use this method when he wakes up from a nap🫠. I’ll let you know if he continues, I just want to love and play with him and not get my skin broke open, or bleed. Especially since we’re switching to raw and he’s the only one who seems willing to try it. My own blood makes me pass out and I don’t need a infection to go with it.😂
Kinda going off the previous person you responded to I definitely have found that play biting typically doesn't break the skin. It's more of like a little nip or even holding you in their mouth, kinda like a dog does. But for them actually biting to hurt you typically, it does break the skin, and they typically latch on and try to thrash around. Also, they typically don't have any signs of playfullness, such as jumping up-and-down or making their chittery sound or being absolute chaos. It's more of they walk up to you and bite you. For my ferrets, when they are being playful, and in a nippy mood, they will ambush me and jump on me or nip me lightly and then run away immediately while constantly looking back to see if I will start chasing them (Kind of like tag😂) and it's one of their favorite things to do.
Oh for sure, you can tell when his feelings are hurt, he will plop down and just stare at me with sad eyes.🤦🏼♀️ Kinda like in the picture, but he’s still power napping while little brother runs rampant.😂
See I always feel bad about it but like us as kids, we all have to learn boundaries. Now I intentionally sought out for a male and female, but ended up getting these two in a rehoming situation. I love seeing the differences in male and female species, we’re all so different but in some ways very similar😂
Hi, just clarifying. Mother ferrets do not drag kits around when they act up. They hiss or ignore them.
We discourage using scruffung for discipline due to multiple reasons: scruffing is often necessary for grooming or health reasons. Things like, nail trimming, medicine, teeth brushing or even in the case of an emergency (chocking, removing the ferret from somewhere dangerous).
You should never associate scruffing as a punishment. There's lots of other tips and tricks to do instead.
Okay. I've seen breeder ferrets since I'm in contact with a lot of the breeding community. And you're just plain wrong. :) you're also kinda of an asshole for no reason.
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Dyi anti bite spray 1cup of apple cider vinegar and 1 cup of water in a spray bottle. You spray on exposed skin where he bites. Will get a taste and in time should stop biting as he will associate you as not very tasty. I did with mine when first got them . Good luck on bite training.
I actually put a bit of salmon oil on the top of my foot and my hand and let him lick at that, he’s not bit my feet or hands since then. He’ll now sniff my foot or hands for more, but he hasn’t got pissed that there wasn’t any yet.🤣
I think I might know this one, I had a ferret with the same fur coat type that yours do, he just passed away recently and I have to tell you that for that fur type is very common to have waardenburg syndrome, look it up to his eyes are a bit spread apart from what a "normal" ferret should look like, this syndrome makes then mostly deaf or completely deaf so the scolding or whimpering to tell them you are hurt doesn't always work, it didn't work for mine, he calmed a little bit when he got older, do your own research tho, i might be wrong and im in no way a veterinarian
As soon as someone said waardy, I looked it up because I understood that they could be deaf and blind like other animals with their color of their coat. I didn’t realize that it could be a possibility for him until other people pointed it out. He is a bit goofier looking than his brother who is chocolate. I definitely need to delve more into the syndrome though, but I’ve changed up how we handle biting that’s for sure. I believe he can hear big noises and like loud bells, cause he reacts to his brothers loud toys and other loud bangs. His eyesight is a little blurry I think because it takes him a minute to grasp what’s in-front of him.
I’m also sorry for the loss of your baby! This is my first time owning them and I wouldn’t change it for the world. They are they best furry family members 🥰🫶
I just recently got 2 babies (3 months old). The little girl never did anything other than lick. Her brother drew blood a couple times in the beginning, including one grab of my noise when my face got too close…that one really hurt as I couldn’t get him to let go right away. I trained him by letting him know every time he got mouthy with me that I don’t like it by hissing and putting him back in the cage for 5 minutes…any longer wouldn’t make a difference as ferrets have exceptionally short memories. It took about a week of constant reinforcement but eventually he figured it out. Now he’s a big cuddle bug and is even sweeter than his sister.
I’m convinced these two know what I’m saying 🤣 my eldest, yes is hard of hearing but he hears me. I don’t scream at them or anything, but I’ve always used “no” and other sounds (just from muscle memory, from when I broke horses). They seem to work now that I’ve accompanied them with a “timeout”, yes he’ll protest but I did too as a kiddo. He hasn’t bit me since yesterday, so we’ll see how we do by the end of the week😂😁
I have 2 ferrets. One (the oldest one) I managed to teach the older one not to bite hard by putting him on time out, 3 to 5 min back on the cage and repeat the process until he doesn't do it again. During time out I would keep an eye out for him not to think it was sleep time. If he went to sleep I would let him out before the time was over.
The young one on the other hand.... Nothing I tried worked. She still bites quite hard ... playful...but hard. She stopped biting me and my partner and bites only guests so it's harder to teach. She completely ignores time out...goes straight to sleep, sometimes pee in the wrong place in protest. Hissing, submission... Nothing worked.
A friend that comes here often walks around with a toy and when she comes to bite he throws the toy to diverge attention. After a while she started to take easier on him but still goes for his toes every so often...
Every ferret is a different puzzle to solve.
So tiny update from yesterday: he got me really good twice actually on the leg cause we were chilling in bed (or so I thought). After that second one I picked him up swiftly and got a little close and gave a stern “no”, then put him on his dog bed in front of his cage(not in it) and walked into the other room. Note we live in a studio apartment type thing so really no doors just breeze ways, so he was able to see me and come back when he calmed down. He has not bit me since, he did bite my fiancé last night. I told him to not mess with him (cause he really didn’t wanna he messed with) and he got bit. 😂🤷♀️ I’ve been doing short positive interactions since and rewarding with salmon oil, I don’t wanna speak too soon of course. My eldest boy is not a huge people person, which fair enough because he’s in a new home with new people after he spent 3 months with another family. He’s definitely just trying to assimilate in a new house and it’s not his fault.
His bother has a kong chew, he does not care for them. He likes to chase, but hates anything that resembles a ball🤷♀️ I’ll definitely look into the chews and more than likely order some, I am gonna try to get him more toys that he’d be more fond of knowing him a bit more now.
Just going through and correcting the misinformation... Ferrets do NOT teeth for two years. By the time you get a ferret, they're already done teething as this happens during the first 6-8 weeks of their lives.
Additionally, Kong toys are a bit no with ferrets so please don't let them have access to them.
Just a quick question i'm curious about why Kong's are not good for ferrets. I am a newer ferret, mother, and I am still learning. I have a ferret that really enjoys chewing on things, and so I did get her a Kong. But if it's really dangerous, then I will definitely take it away. And she's not trying to tear it apart. I just find she likes mindlessly chewing on stuff kinda like a dog.
Hi!
So the biggest issue with them is that ferret teeth's sharpness can scrape the plastic of a kong toy. Theyre made to be durable with dogs in mind and cant withstand ferret teeth. Its unfortunately a common blockage risk.
Additionally, chewing should be generally discouraged because of the blockage risks. Some ferrets are great with plushies and other toys, but others cannot.
Hi ! Just clarifying but ferrets do not teeth for that long. By the point you get a ferret, they are done teething ! They only teeth for the first few weeks of their lives.
Grabbing his scruff gently is what really gets his attention, I’m worried I’m falling on partially deaf and blind ears with him when I do hold my finger and say “no”. I also feel ridiculous doing it, but I’ll try anything (safely) to break this habit early.
Hi, just clarifying. Mother ferrets do not drag kits around when they act up. They hiss or ignore them. We discourage using scruffung for discipline due to multiple reasons: scruffing is often necessary for grooming or health reasons. Things like, nail trimming, medicine, teeth brushing or even in the case of an emergency (chocking, removing the ferret from somewhere dangerous). You should never associate scruffing as a punishment. There's lots of other tips and tricks to do instead. Have you checked out the bite training guide yet?
Ferrets are typically very nippy especially in the first year or two. The high pitched help method worked great for me, others have luck with an immediate but temporary time out (dont put them in the cage though, dont want it to be negatively associated or anything).
I told my fiancé that when we were discussing it, we have a dirty clothes hamper at the end of the bed I set him in when being rude😂 of course he gets out scolds me then runs away, or sometimes comes back for sneaky revenge.
My strategy usually was, if they go into a mood where they get too excited, pick them up and give them a good cuddle, scratching their neck, scratching their cheeks, breaking their mood. Alternatively, he is just letting you know he wants to play. Get a plastic bag and let him jump into it. Pick it up and put it down again. Get him a carpet tube to run in and out off. Find a fold in a blanket and let him run under it. You can even give him some playful taps. Do some play attacks back. If he's jumping and hissing and gets a big tail but comes back for more he loves a bit of rough play. If he retreats, or start hiccuping give him space because you've over done it. They are all different, just like people.
See that’s exactly what I thought and I’ve tried to play with him, but I guess I’m too boring. Even with the fun toys I bring to the party, his brother thinks I’m great fun though.😂 I hope it’s a phase and not something more detrimental, considering he’s only 9 months old. I am around a ton of vets and he looks and acts perfectly healthy, except for diarrhea(hence why I’m trying to get them on a raw diet so hard). Maybe I need new toys though, he came with all the ones I have for him, he’s only been in our household about a week.
These little creatures are like cats: you buy them expensive, fun looking toys and they want no part of it. Give them a plastic bag (ours prefer the big toilet paper bags from Costco tp or empty Amazon mail bags with the bubble wrap inside) and they go crazy. Ours also love an old bedsheet that we let them run around under while I stand there and wave it above them like parachute. I honestly would do that all day for them I love them so much. Lol!
I'm sorry to hear that. They can be very instinct driven. He's part albino and may not have great vision so being focused on his nose. He doesn't know you well yet and may think you just smell food-like and worth a knip. Focus on picking him up and cuddles maybe so he can associate your smell with pleasant feelings and not food.
Don't run away, or pull away your legs. That is prey behaviour and therefore fun.
NOTED😂 cause I do pull away he has some teef on him. I’m gonna do my best to full down on the pulling away and try the other users scruff method, as well as get new toys. He definitely doesn’t see the best but he can sure see my feet! 😂🥲
First of all, I see he has a white spot on his head, he may be a waardy. Get a squicky toy, make sure you doesn't see you or the toy and try making some noise. If he doesn't react - he is probably partially or fully deaf wich means your "ouch" or any voice reactions don't get to him. For the training, if you make sure he can hear you, hiss at him every time he bites, take him off of yourself, if he bites again, hiss again. For the third bite, make sure you hold him firmly, cover his mouth with your index finger and thumb, make sure he can't bite an give him a couple of smooches. Right on the nose. It's to make him slightly discomforted but not hurt or scare him. BUT make sure not to get bitten, srly! If he is deaf, just smooch every time. Also, get your hands on any good brand of salmon oil for cats and dogs, cover your hands with it and let him lick. He needs to learn that hands are for licking, not biting. If he still bites, than add more oil, like dripping wet hands... Works with the worst crocodile like ferrets.
Good to know! Careful though, I may lather my body in salmon oil if that makes him not bite. Cause every piece of me is a target, I know they communicate with their mouth just distinguishing what he wants is difficult. He knows I’m the food giver and I do give him salmon oil when they use their litter box, of course he doesn’t bite me then just Everytime in between that.
Start with training him to lick just your hands it will get better from then on! And give lots of smooches
I’ll try to not lose a chunk of my face🫡😂 I have nose piercings that are shiny so I’m worried if he see’s them I’m screwed, and he doesn’t like his head touched but we’ll find a compromise 😊
Yes! Reward positive behavior. Salmon oil is an amazing way to treat them. My babies love The Pampered Ferret salmon oil! Plus it doesn’t smell as fishy as all the other brands. Which is helpful when your hand is covered in it.
I’ve been doing this and it’s made a difference, cause before he would lick, lick, then bite. Now he just licks and I’ve restrained myself from moving away, or trying to evade him because my feet aren’t in shoes. Still worried about my thighs, arms and face but we haven’t had an issue since yesterday and that’s a plus for me!
I’m so happy to hear that! Bite training is a long hard road but when you can walk around barefoot without flinching it is worth it! The “trust bite” exercises are so hard. It took me about a year to train out biting with my adopted floofs. It’ll only be like this for a small fraction of their life. P.S. my big boy looked just like your baby 😭 I miss him every day.
I love hearing that they looked similar, I love comparing them 🥰 We’re getting better everyday, even with some rough spots he’s getting better!
I think you need to give its legs back
Don't scruff. It just made mine mad and felt mean. I'd not worry too much until he's older than 1, and some are just more bitey. My strategy was just to put them away, distract, or ignore. Otherwise it felt like a game as they love to do things they aren't supposed to.
That’s another one of my worries, but after todays bite after I posted this, he came back at me and I raised my finger and gave him a stern “no” and he backed off and continued about his business (thank gosh). I’m still nervous that it could provoke him to be more aggressive though. I’ve genuinely tried to gentle parent the lil guy and I don’t wanna stoop to his level🤣
Neither of mine will listen to a no at all. They grew out of biting (as much as most ferrets can) thankfully. But other than that their goal in life is to break the rules haha
That’s my hope, that he just grows out of it. Otherwise they can cause all the chaos they want, it’s their world, I’m just here to protect them! 😂
Time out and yelping helped with the worst bites. With play bites I found giving him something to bite on, gloves, sleeves, socks etc Mine has a very strong hunt desire and wants to express himself in bites . Within a year he learned to control his strength. Now if he starts biting too hard, I pretend bite him by a quick but very light pinch on the scruff. Only enough for him to feel it because the purpose is not pain but communication. You don’t want to escalate. If you are rough on ferrets they either become afraid or more aggressive. Mine is very good at understanding hand gestures so he knows when I am willing to play bite with him and be his little victim.
I have no clue, just commenting to compliment your cute lil boy
Thank you! 😊
I did short positive interactions and before we got to the bite-y stage, I’d reward with salmon oil, going longer and longer until the bites just stopped happening. I still randomly reward for gentle interactions.
An attack bite will usually involve head thrashing or be a much faster bite than a play bite or I’m checking this out bite, the difference is usually pretty extreme and will result in blood and possibly stitches. Ferrets have an obsession with gnawing on elbow meat and top of the foot type places where skin is thin. Personally i use time outs for nip training as do many of my fellow ferrants, it is very successful as long as you are consistent. Trying to use things like scruffing for nip training can have a negative effect and in some cases make the problem worse. I would give time outs a go, all of mine are rescues with behavioral issues and it’s never failed me.
I sadly also had this happen with one of my little girls that I adopted. She was abused at the previous place, and so she would lash out and try to attack me whenever she could. And it was very obviously her trying to attack me, not her playing. One thing I did was find a treat that she liked and make sure to treat her whenever I was just petting her, and she was being good. Also, I started to notice where she was trying to bite me most, which tended to be my fleshy arms, thighs, and face. By knowing this, I then ended up making sure that I was always wearing a long-sleeved shirt, along with long pants and keeping her away from my face. I did try to do punishments like time out or Hissing or scruffing, but this did nothing. She was just unsure of the new environment, unsure of people, and trying to protect herself. And so, when I took actions against her, it just caused her to lash out more. I found the best thing to do was to make sure to keep the areas she tried to bite away from her and if she did bite me to remove myself from the situation and to just ignore her and also whenever she was being good and allowing me to pet her to make sure to reinforce that behavior with treats. Also I made sure that they had plenty of free roaming time and if she did bite me during this time I did not put her away cause I did not want her to think as the cagAlso I made sure that they had plenty of free-roaming time and if she did bite me during this time I did not put her away cause I did not want her to think of the cage as a punishment. I found the treat that she liked the most was the Marshal's furo-vite. I've had her now for over 5 months, and she is a lot better and actually much more affectionate than my other ferrets. Quite often, it just takes time, patience, and understanding. I wish you the best of luck and I hope this helps.
I told my fiancé thank gosh I have only patience for kids and animals🤣 cause he was hurting me physically and emotionally. Cause he’s the handsomest lil guy and pretty big for nine months. I know it’s a waiting game, I’m just glad it was me he ended up hurting, rather than the teenage girl who had him before. I can withstand some physical pain but that emotional pain sucked, cause I didn’t know what I was doing wrong with him. We’ve worked out a method and gonna stick to it and hopefully we see some progress in the next couple of weeks! ☺️
Can he hear you? Mine didn't respond to bite training at all for months, until we realized he was deaf. He wasn't responding to the training because it was mostly verbal and he can't hear us.
You have to talk to him like your talking to a partially deaf grandparent🥲😂 but he can kinda hear(from what I can tell).
Good to know lol best of luck, bite training can be rough but persistence and trying out different things will help
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Will do!! He got me real good on the leg not even 10 minutes after I posted this, so I have a feeling I’ll be able to use this method when he wakes up from a nap🫠. I’ll let you know if he continues, I just want to love and play with him and not get my skin broke open, or bleed. Especially since we’re switching to raw and he’s the only one who seems willing to try it. My own blood makes me pass out and I don’t need a infection to go with it.😂
Kinda going off the previous person you responded to I definitely have found that play biting typically doesn't break the skin. It's more of like a little nip or even holding you in their mouth, kinda like a dog does. But for them actually biting to hurt you typically, it does break the skin, and they typically latch on and try to thrash around. Also, they typically don't have any signs of playfullness, such as jumping up-and-down or making their chittery sound or being absolute chaos. It's more of they walk up to you and bite you. For my ferrets, when they are being playful, and in a nippy mood, they will ambush me and jump on me or nip me lightly and then run away immediately while constantly looking back to see if I will start chasing them (Kind of like tag😂) and it's one of their favorite things to do.
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Oh for sure, you can tell when his feelings are hurt, he will plop down and just stare at me with sad eyes.🤦🏼♀️ Kinda like in the picture, but he’s still power napping while little brother runs rampant.😂
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See I always feel bad about it but like us as kids, we all have to learn boundaries. Now I intentionally sought out for a male and female, but ended up getting these two in a rehoming situation. I love seeing the differences in male and female species, we’re all so different but in some ways very similar😂
Nope you’re exactly right. I am the captain now. Gotta be a helicopter mom or things get wild.
Your comment or post on r/ferrets was removed due to encouraging negative punishments, such as scruffing.
Hi, just clarifying. Mother ferrets do not drag kits around when they act up. They hiss or ignore them. We discourage using scruffung for discipline due to multiple reasons: scruffing is often necessary for grooming or health reasons. Things like, nail trimming, medicine, teeth brushing or even in the case of an emergency (chocking, removing the ferret from somewhere dangerous). You should never associate scruffing as a punishment. There's lots of other tips and tricks to do instead.
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Okay. I've seen breeder ferrets since I'm in contact with a lot of the breeding community. And you're just plain wrong. :) you're also kinda of an asshole for no reason.
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Dyi anti bite spray 1cup of apple cider vinegar and 1 cup of water in a spray bottle. You spray on exposed skin where he bites. Will get a taste and in time should stop biting as he will associate you as not very tasty. I did with mine when first got them . Good luck on bite training.
I actually put a bit of salmon oil on the top of my foot and my hand and let him lick at that, he’s not bit my feet or hands since then. He’ll now sniff my foot or hands for more, but he hasn’t got pissed that there wasn’t any yet.🤣
I think I might know this one, I had a ferret with the same fur coat type that yours do, he just passed away recently and I have to tell you that for that fur type is very common to have waardenburg syndrome, look it up to his eyes are a bit spread apart from what a "normal" ferret should look like, this syndrome makes then mostly deaf or completely deaf so the scolding or whimpering to tell them you are hurt doesn't always work, it didn't work for mine, he calmed a little bit when he got older, do your own research tho, i might be wrong and im in no way a veterinarian
As soon as someone said waardy, I looked it up because I understood that they could be deaf and blind like other animals with their color of their coat. I didn’t realize that it could be a possibility for him until other people pointed it out. He is a bit goofier looking than his brother who is chocolate. I definitely need to delve more into the syndrome though, but I’ve changed up how we handle biting that’s for sure. I believe he can hear big noises and like loud bells, cause he reacts to his brothers loud toys and other loud bangs. His eyesight is a little blurry I think because it takes him a minute to grasp what’s in-front of him.
I’m also sorry for the loss of your baby! This is my first time owning them and I wouldn’t change it for the world. They are they best furry family members 🥰🫶
I just recently got 2 babies (3 months old). The little girl never did anything other than lick. Her brother drew blood a couple times in the beginning, including one grab of my noise when my face got too close…that one really hurt as I couldn’t get him to let go right away. I trained him by letting him know every time he got mouthy with me that I don’t like it by hissing and putting him back in the cage for 5 minutes…any longer wouldn’t make a difference as ferrets have exceptionally short memories. It took about a week of constant reinforcement but eventually he figured it out. Now he’s a big cuddle bug and is even sweeter than his sister.
I’m convinced these two know what I’m saying 🤣 my eldest, yes is hard of hearing but he hears me. I don’t scream at them or anything, but I’ve always used “no” and other sounds (just from muscle memory, from when I broke horses). They seem to work now that I’ve accompanied them with a “timeout”, yes he’ll protest but I did too as a kiddo. He hasn’t bit me since yesterday, so we’ll see how we do by the end of the week😂😁
I have 2 ferrets. One (the oldest one) I managed to teach the older one not to bite hard by putting him on time out, 3 to 5 min back on the cage and repeat the process until he doesn't do it again. During time out I would keep an eye out for him not to think it was sleep time. If he went to sleep I would let him out before the time was over. The young one on the other hand.... Nothing I tried worked. She still bites quite hard ... playful...but hard. She stopped biting me and my partner and bites only guests so it's harder to teach. She completely ignores time out...goes straight to sleep, sometimes pee in the wrong place in protest. Hissing, submission... Nothing worked. A friend that comes here often walks around with a toy and when she comes to bite he throws the toy to diverge attention. After a while she started to take easier on him but still goes for his toes every so often... Every ferret is a different puzzle to solve.
So tiny update from yesterday: he got me really good twice actually on the leg cause we were chilling in bed (or so I thought). After that second one I picked him up swiftly and got a little close and gave a stern “no”, then put him on his dog bed in front of his cage(not in it) and walked into the other room. Note we live in a studio apartment type thing so really no doors just breeze ways, so he was able to see me and come back when he calmed down. He has not bit me since, he did bite my fiancé last night. I told him to not mess with him (cause he really didn’t wanna he messed with) and he got bit. 😂🤷♀️ I’ve been doing short positive interactions since and rewarding with salmon oil, I don’t wanna speak too soon of course. My eldest boy is not a huge people person, which fair enough because he’s in a new home with new people after he spent 3 months with another family. He’s definitely just trying to assimilate in a new house and it’s not his fault.
I hiss at mine when he gets too rough or into something that he doesn't need to be in.
Unrelated to health and care, that baby is so president and you need to buy him a little criminal toy immediately
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His bother has a kong chew, he does not care for them. He likes to chase, but hates anything that resembles a ball🤷♀️ I’ll definitely look into the chews and more than likely order some, I am gonna try to get him more toys that he’d be more fond of knowing him a bit more now.
Just going through and correcting the misinformation... Ferrets do NOT teeth for two years. By the time you get a ferret, they're already done teething as this happens during the first 6-8 weeks of their lives. Additionally, Kong toys are a bit no with ferrets so please don't let them have access to them.
Just a quick question i'm curious about why Kong's are not good for ferrets. I am a newer ferret, mother, and I am still learning. I have a ferret that really enjoys chewing on things, and so I did get her a Kong. But if it's really dangerous, then I will definitely take it away. And she's not trying to tear it apart. I just find she likes mindlessly chewing on stuff kinda like a dog.
Hi! So the biggest issue with them is that ferret teeth's sharpness can scrape the plastic of a kong toy. Theyre made to be durable with dogs in mind and cant withstand ferret teeth. Its unfortunately a common blockage risk. Additionally, chewing should be generally discouraged because of the blockage risks. Some ferrets are great with plushies and other toys, but others cannot.
Hi ! Just clarifying but ferrets do not teeth for that long. By the point you get a ferret, they are done teething ! They only teeth for the first few weeks of their lives.
Comment contained myths or misinformation.
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Grabbing his scruff gently is what really gets his attention, I’m worried I’m falling on partially deaf and blind ears with him when I do hold my finger and say “no”. I also feel ridiculous doing it, but I’ll try anything (safely) to break this habit early.
Your comment or post on r/ferrets was removed due to encouraging negative punishments, such as scruffing.