Dear Julie,
I know how frustrating it can be when you have a ferret who likes to nip.
I have a fert named Chong who was a biter.  It took a LONG time to curb
this habit, at least 6 months for any results and up to a year to make
a serious difference.  She is now 2 1/2 and is MUCH better.  She
occasionally will give me a "love nip", but now gives kisses and loves
attention.  In fact, that was part of the problem, she always wants
Mommie's attention and can be quite demanding.  Trying to find out why
they bite is a large part of the solution, which can be difficult figuring
out what's going on their little heads.  Also I think Chongers might have
been in a less than ideal situation in her first home, she was distrustful
and fearful when she first came home with me.  Now all of my babies took
quite awhile to learn nipping was not appropriate.  Ferrets use their
mouths to communicate, and human skin is much more tender then ferts skin.
That can take a while to learn.  As they get older they get a lot better.
 
I have used scruffing with "NO BITE" along with hissing and sometimes
gently dragging them on the floor (that's how Mom ferrets do it and it is
best to try to use their own language) I have also used time outs with
good results.
 
Each ferret requires different approaches to learn and it takes time to
find out which is best.  With time, patience, consistency and repetition
all of your hard work will pay off!
 
Good Luck,
Suzi and da ferts- Cheech, Chong, Goose, Mookie and Ruby
P.S Ferret Central on the internet has a great section on bite training
[Posted in FML issue 3743]