Hi, all.  We have two ferrets, a 4 month old we got 2 months ago and a 6
month old we got two weeks ago.  The 4 month old has ALWAYS used the litter
box in ANY room EXCLUSIVELY, even when we first brought him home.  The only
times he has ever not used the boxes was when he was on his leash in a
nonferretproof room and he couldn't reach it (our fault).  He'll get up
from sleep, run to the box, use it (with his sleepy look) then run back
to bed.  He'll stop playing to use it.  He's that good about it.
 
However, we adopted the 6 month old from a shelter recently, and they
didn't have boxes there out of the cages (newspaper everywhere-they really
don't have time to litter train everyone out of their cages, perfectly
understandable), and I don't know that his previous owners even tried to
get him to use one, at least outside of a cage.  He keeps finding corners
of rooms other than where we have the litterbox and going there.  He
usually limits this to one corner per room, but it is frustrating use b/c
he KNOWS where the litterbox is and uses the litterbox 50% of the time or
more.  He often runs to it first thing when he wakes up and uses it, but
then tries to go in the corner under my desk (and on the only carpet in my
bedroom) to do more a few minutes later.  He's even gotten lazy in the
cage, preferring to pee on the floor RIGHT NEXT TO the box.
 
What's worse is that our youngest/first ferret, who even uses the box
exclusively when we're in a new place for the first time (such as our
parents' houses), has also started, just in my room, occasionally pooping
in the same place in the bedroom as the other one.  It's as if his new
big brother taught him a bad habit.
 
Nothing we have used has deterred them-Febreze, regular carpet cleaner (we
keep them away from it till it's dry so they don't get sick or poisoned),
vinegar and club soda mix, ferret deodorizer spray.  We have loaded that
area of the floor with toys and boxes to climb in, we have hung an old neck
tie from the back of my desk (we read on the FML about someone hanging
bandannas to successfully "scarecrow" corners).  They'll just move the
stuff and poop or pee anyway.  Especially the new guy.
 
We reward them with Ferretone every time we see them use the box, and we
are vigilant when they are loose about watching them and trying to catch
them when they start to go where they're not supposed to, scruffing them
and saying "no" and then putting them in the box to finish, then rewarding
them when they finish in the box.
 
I'm at my wit's end trying to train our older one.  I think our youngest
would stop even being tempted to go anywhere except the box if the older
one would start using it exclusively, too.  I know "ferrets are not for the
fastidious" and that sometomes a lot of them have accidents, but obviously
since our youngest used the box exclusively, it is possible to train them
to only go there.  Any suggestions to get our older one to use the box at
least 90% of the time?  I want to be able to take them places, too, without
the older one pooping and peeing wherever his little heart desires (I know
that they're more likely to have accidents in new places-but a place they
go frequently should be a place they also use the box, since it'll be
familiar territory).  And I don't want to be cleaning poop up every day
from under my computer desk, and I don't want a litter box under my
computer where my feet go while I work.
 
PLEASE HELP!  Sorry this post is so long-I wanted to be as detailed as
possoble b/c we are desparate for suggestions!
 
-April
[Posted in FML issue 3337]