Wendy, and other new ferret owners--
     "Missing" her litter box, heh?  As anyone on this mailing
list might tell you, that is the single most common ferret
offense.  But that offense (along with other offenses, such as
human-biting, etc.) can be controlled with the old carrot-and-
stick approach.  First, be certain that you have a sandbox in
every room in the house (ferrets have short legs and weak
bladders).  The stick:  watch your critter like a hawk--when
s/he backs up into a corner, grab her, spank her nose, and thrust
her into her sandbox.  Without actually hurting her, you must
make it clear that poo-pooing in the wrong corner is _no_fun_
_at_all_.  The carrot (or raisin):  in every room, also have a
box of raisins (or your favorite ferret-treat).  When you see
doing "business" in the right place, grab the box of raisins.
As soon as she is finished, make "good boy/girl" sounds, and
give her the reward.  It seems to help if you standardize the
"good girl" sound, and make it distinct from the "come-to-
daddy" sound, which also deserves a raisin reward.
     Now the bad news.  In my experience, the ferret learning
curve is long, and plateaus-out at less than perfection.
My critters, Johnnie & Yoko took six to eight weeks before
achieving a 75% target accuracy.  A year and a half later,
they still score at less than 85% :-( .  For this, and reasons
of mischief, one veteranarian told me, "You have to be a
_meticulous_ housekeeper to own ferrets."  Meticulous. . .*me*?
 
     Clint                  | flames to:
       Part-time triathlete,|  [log in to unmask]
       Full-time scientist. |  Department of Molecular Biology
                            | The ferrets:
       "Me, too! Me, too!   |  Johnnie & Yoko
 
[Posted in FML issue 0462]