Excerpts from mail: 4-Mar-92 Ferret List Issue 224 by Ferret Mailing List@ferr
>We also have one who has taken to biting the carpet.  Now, this I could
>really use some help on.  It doesn't matter where he is, he just plops
>down and proceeds to get his fangs stuck in the loops (purposefully) and
>then rips his teeth out.  So far, he hasn't done too much damage - far
>less than the scratching anyway, but it's got to stop.  Hints?  The
>ferret that is doing it is an unneutered male who's about 5 1/2 months
>old and I think his testosterone levels are up (he's due to go under
 
Scratching is something I haven't solved myself, but mine aren't too bad
about it. They've destroyed the inside of the couch, but the darned
thing was half dead to start with. As for biting the carpet, I think
bitter apple would work well here. When he starts munching, before he's
had a chance to extricate his teeth, run over and spray bitter apple in
his mouth. This might take some doing, and it would be easier if you
could pinpoint the area to be chewed beforehand, but I think it will
work. I suspect after once or twice the ferret will vanish when you
approach :), but he'll get the idea you don't like it. Of course, this
will probably only deter him from munching while you're around ...
(crafty little critters) If the area in question isn't too big, the best
thing would be to spray the entire carpet.
 
re: ferret visiting Mardi Gras ... I take my babies with me to science
fiction conventions all the time. I do a lot of "ferret education", and
have toyed with the idea of making buttons which say: "I'm a ferret. I
eat ferret chow. No, I don't bite." [3 top questions: What is it? What
does it eat? Does it bite?] I've also toyed with the idea of making
another button that says: "Why? Do you taste good?"  At conventions, I'm
usually greeted by a chorus of: "Look! The ferret!" Not, "Hi, Barb."  I
only exist as a vehicle for the ferret! :) And you can't get anywhere
quickly. Every 10 feet you're stopped. Anytime you're still for more
than a few seconds, you'll collect a crowd. I love it! My babies have
one "matchmaking" to their credit. A young couple met each other over
the ferret and ended up getting married! Everytime we see each other at
a convention, they make a point of letting me know that MY ferret was
the reason they met. I've also known shy guys to get a ferret because it
attracts so *very* many women. And these nubile young things will let
that ferret crawl around inside their sweaters! I've gotten much
amusement out of watching the gaping looks of envy on the faces of horny
young men as they watched my ferret crawling around inside a young
woman's sweater ... :) And once Keesa scored the "talk" of the
convention by scooting underneathe the dress of a girl kneeling on the
floor and "goosing" her. She squealed quite nicely, and everyone in the
room ROARED! Hee, hee. She happened to be a great fan of the ferrets
(which is why I let her do that in the first place -- I didn't figure
she'd mind). She just was startled. :)
 
Animals can be a great conversation piece, attention getter and vehicle
to overcome shyness. Besides, anyone who is attracted to a ferret can't
be all bad, right?
 
--Barb--
 
[Posted in FML issue 0225]