Happily for those that have both ferrets and nice furniture, there is an
alternative to just throwing away your sofa!  When I got my two guys,
Itchy and Scratchy, they immediately decided that the inside of my NEW
sofa was the best place to sleep.  They tore numerous holes in the sturdy
material on the underside, and then went to work on the foam cushions.
I was worried about them choking or getting poked, as well as about my
sofa!  I tried re-stapling the material, then stapling new material
(bought a nifty, electric staple gun!  Fun thing in any event - love
power tools!).  Anyway, they kept tearing away everything.  Then I had
a vision - what if I found some sturdy plastic material that was thin
enough to staple?  And so I went to the neighborhood Ace Hardware, and
found rolls of 3 mil plastic sheeting used to seal windows in the winter.
This stuff is bendable, but very sturdy.  I stapled it very close to the
edge of the sofa (and trimmed off excess with an exacto) and then sat
back and watched (and laughed) as the obsessive-compulsive fuzzy-butts
tried to dig through.  They could SEE the holes, but could not get
purchase on the plastic at all!  Problem solved!  I went ahead and did
the same thing to the ottoman and easy chair.  Now they just destroy
other stuff!

Hope this helps those who love their ferrets and their favorite lounge
chair, sofa or loveseat!

[Posted in FML 5383]