>From:    Ferret Mailing List <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject:  Ferret List Issue 416
> I currently have two ferrets: a male and a female.  The male is about 6 years
> old and I obtained him when he was about 3 weeks old.  I had to bottle feed h
im
> using an eye dropper and prepared milk.  He is neither fixed nor descented.
> The female is about a year old.  I bought her at a pet store.  She is both
> descented and fixed.  Where is this leading to?  Okay here goes:
 
Give her a while.  She'll mellow out a bit.  Remember, she's a
teenager right now...  But, chances are that she'll never be as
laid back as your male.  Females are generally a bit more high
strung.
 
To try to get on her good side, try giving her treats.  Raisins,
cheerios, Nutri-cal, Linatone, melon, table scraps, etc. should
work.  It may take her a while to "learn" about treats, but once she
does it will help her figure out that you are O.K.  Also, wait until
she falls asleep, then pick her up and pet her gently.  If she just
squirms away, wait until she goes asleep again, and try again.
She'll soon figure out that you aren't going to let her get any
rest until she lets you hold her for a while.  (try to hold her
still, but not too rough, you don't want to scare her)  Only do this
when she's really sleepy, don't do it when she wants to play or
you'll just end up frustrating her and making her mad.
 
Also, for her bedding try to use stuff that smells like you.  For
instance, sleep with a towel in your bed for a few days before
putting it in her cage.
 
It sounds to me like the problem is that she wasn't socialized by
humans during the critical socialization period when she was
very young.  If she wasn't handled and played with by humans
during the month or two of that time, it's going to be difficult
to make her learn to like humans.
 
If you do decide you have to give her up, let me know.  I have a
neighbor who goes to IUP.  I'm sure he would bring her to our
ferret shelter where she will be assured of finding a good home.
 
> Subject: ferretone
>   I'm afraid I have to take exception to your comment in Issue 414 about
> the manufacturers of Ferretone purposely labelling for a higher dose simply t
o
> make money.  I don't pretend to know anywhere near as much about ferret
 
I'm not an expert, I just hear a lot from people who do know about
this stuff.  So, basically, I'm just a parrot...  ;)
 
I have heard that the levels of fat soluble vitamins in linatone are
at a level that only about 2 or 3 drops a day should be given.  Upon
comparing labels, Ferretone actually has MORE of the fat soluble
vitamins.  I can't cite sources for you, but that seems to be the
general concensus in the "ferret circles" that I'm in, which include
people who have done the research on it who are very reputable.
 
If I have some time (ha, ha... yeah, right!) I'll try to look through
some newsletters to see if I can find some proof.
 
Do you have some more information on the laws?  I'm curious as to
whether they include long-term effects and side effects?  Also,
how strictly are they enforced, and how much testing is required?
 
- Nancy
 
Nancy Hartman                     CIS graduate student
[log in to unmask]                  U. of Delaware
        President and founder, Delaware Valley Ferret Club
          Owner of Percy, Bree, & Popcorn, the ferrets
 
[Posted in FML issue 0418]