> From:    "Victoria \\Vikki\\" <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Ferret Math, a message to skeeter and a few questions
>... She is sleeping in our room in an isolation cage till she gets a
>little bigger.  I was winding the alarm clock and she bolted out of her
>sleep sack, barking and a hopping and gave me a look to kill before
>climbing back into her sleep sack.  She DIDN"T like that sound for sure.
>...She is obviously a fert with an attitude.  Does anyone else have a
>barking fuzzbutt?
 
i heard that sound a lot at the pet store- it sounded like a yap, like a
poodle.  unfortunately, in my experience that is a fear noise.  it was
usually from brand new baby ferrets who had not had human contact before
they came into the store, and was accompanied by puffing the tail and
biting the humans hand when we startled them by opening the cage.  my three
now will make it if something really startles and frightens them, and with
them it is often accompanied by momentary incontinence.  i also heard it a
lot when kits who had just come off an 8-10 hour trip with no food or water
defended their share of mushed kibble against other kits.  if she makes
that noise at you, try to be very sensitive with her.  don't startle her,
and try not to do anything that will give her a reason to fear you.  the
kits i knew who made this noise often grew up very nippy and fearful if we
did not have the time to socialise them properly.  on the other hand, my
second ferret, Hoggle, did it when he was first brought into the store by
his former owner (he was neglected and likely mistreated), but when he came
home with me he soon learned not to be afraid and is an absolute angel now.
 
>We also wondering when we can leave her in with the big guys.  We have
>three boys and a girl.  Two of our boys are big and the smallest and
>youngest boy, Kodo, is really rough.  We let her play in the ferret room
>during play time and they grab her and drag her around and try to run in
>their hidey holes with her in their mouth.  She makes little noises.... but
>when we rescue her she just goes after them as soon as we put her down!!!!
>How will we know what is too rough for a seven week old baby when it all
>looks to rough to us?
 
if she screams (it's a horrible high pitched, LOUD, sometimes drawn out
noise), poops or pees, or if there is any injury (ie, blood) on her then
it is too rough.  otherwise it is just the normal process of establishing
dominance in a group of ferrets.  as long as it isn't getting too rough it
is best to let it happen.  if you interfere unnessesarily it can make the
fighting worse as the dominance situation becomes more confused.  what
should be happenning is that the older ferrets will hold her down and shake
the scruff of her neck to show their dominance.  if you interfere it can
stop them from being able to establish this safely and they may be rougher
with her in order to demonstrate their dominance.
 
siani
[Posted in FML issue 2610]