>From:    "[log in to unmask]" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: "Safe" Dogs and Ferrets
 
I said:
>>Well, I would question the comment about the dogs being "tolerant" with the
>>ferrets until they "snapped."  In our house, our dogs must be more than
>>tolerant of the ferrets, they must respect them as being more alpha than
>>they dogs themselves.
 
then cadel replied:
>WADR (with all due respect), I know you have alot of experience with dogs...
>but your dogs aren't really letting the ferrets be more alpha than they are.
>They are just tolerating the ferts "bullying" like a parent would tolerate
>the rather rough horseplay from a youngster.
 
Well, I guess that has a great deal to do with how you interpret the Alpha
role.  We did everything possible to show our dogs that we were first, the
ferrets second and then the dogs.  Thus, they know never to snap at, steal
food from or be aggressive with the ferrets.  If a ferret gets annoyed with
one of them and bites them, they'll roll over and be submissive, just like
they do when I scold them.
 
>Your dogs sound greater than great, as were my dogs, until the unthinkable
>happened.  With a sad casualty.  And why did it happen?  Because poor Rocky
>(the fert) escaped from his cage and I wasn't there to reinforce my alpha
>position at a time when it was most needed.
 
No, what was most needed was a crate for your dog and a more secure cage for
your ferrets.  We crate our doggies when we aren't home to supervise, and
our ferret cages don't facilitate escapes, besides which (as an extra
precaution) the ferret room has an unscalable barrier across the door.  As
owners of a multi-species household, we believe in taking all precautions,
since that is our responsibility.
 
>My German Shepherd realized that she could now get her revenge!  If the
>ferrets were truly alpha over this dog, this would never have happened and
>I wouldn't be in mourning.
 
Then your ferrets *weren't* truly alpha over your dog.  In our last home, we
had several ferret escapes and we never came home to a tragedy, just a
ferret curled up napping with a dog.  One rescue also nailed our border
collie in the face, quite badly, in our absence (we were in another part of
the house and heard the yelp) and she was lying on her back grovelling for
it when we came in.
 
>While I respect your judgement, please be careful about the pit bull.  A
>5-month old puppy is one thing, a full-grown male loaded with testerone
>another.  I wouldn't trust any dog, nomatter how gentle, to play with a
>ferret unsupervised.
 
Well, I don't recall saying anywhere in my post that my dogs and ferrets
were allowed to play unsupervised at all.
 
As for being careful about the pit bull, I wonder if you would have said the
same thing if I'd substituted a different breed name for "pit bull." A full
grown male dog who will be *neutered* at the appropriate age, and who has
been taught to always, always respect the ferrets, and is crated during the
absence of humans, and whose play is always supervised, should not be a
danger to the ferrets.  If he is, the owner did not socilaize the animals
properly, or shouldn't own either the ferrets or the dog.  I needn't be any
more careful with the pit bull than I was and still am with the border
collie.
 
>I hope you don't take this the wrong way.  I love ferrets, ALL ferrets, and
>wouldn't want any to come to unnecessary pain.  I had to learn the hard way.
 
And you have my sympathy that you did.  But it doesn't sound like your dog
was penned properly, nor was it as socialized with the ferrets as you
thought.  We crate our dogs for the safety of our home, our cats and our
ferrets, because we believe in leaving very little to chance.  As much as we
trust our dogs (Abi will defend the ferrets against other dogs on walks) we
are also extremely aware of the dangers that are *possible* so we do
everything to minimize the possibility.
 
I would never suggest that anyone leave their dog, *no matter what breed,
age or sex* to roam loose with the ferrets, and we always recommend
supervised play times.  But I will reiterate that in all the years we have
had dogs and ferrets together, we have never, ever had an accident or cause
to be concerned.  It's all about how willing you are to take precautions and
socialize the animals properly, and if someone is willing to do that, then I
see no reason why they shouldn't add "man's best friend" to the household if
they like.
 
IMHO of course,
 
Sheena - [log in to unmask]  | "To Err is Ferret ... To Forgive|
VP - Greater Vancouver      | "... Well, That's Our Job"      |
     Ferret Association      (Wherret Web Pages Coming Soon!)
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[Posted in FML issue 1831]