I don't especially like sleeping indoors, so I sleep most nights in a tent
in my yard.  A couple of my ferrets, all of whom are uncaged whenever I'm
home, have picked up on this and they manage to wake up from a deep sleep a
few minutes before I get ready to head outside at night.  They stare at me
as though they can't imagine how I could get a good night's sleep without
their company, so I often end up carrying one out with me (along with the
dog and cat, who always come).
 
Ferrari, my current regular sleeping partner in the tent, is something of
a carpet digger in the house, so I had my doubts how he'd do in the tent.
Guess what?  He hasn't yet tried to go through the mosquito netting -- just
stands up occasionally with his paws on the mesh looking out.  I never
imagined I'd be able to get a good night's sleep in a backpacking tent with
a dog, cat, and ferret all piled on top of me, but it seems to work.
 
This is not a complete answer to "camping with ferrets", but I wanted to
encourage you to give it a try.  Be cautious, though.  Bring a carrier as a
back-up.  I am a very light sleeper and all my ferrets wear bells, so I'm
not too worried about them escaping while I sleep, but when it comes to
ferrets, "never say never."
 
As an aside, I'm surprised to hear about people whose ferrets use their
cages for wrestling matches, etc.  My ferrets do nothing but sleep when
they're in their cage.  They're all in the 3-5 yr old range, neither kits
nor "geriatric" -- is it possible that ferrets who spend their cage time
playing need more play time outside the cage?  Anyway, if your ferrets
spend their cage time snoozing, you can probably convince them to do the
same in a tent.  If not, camping with them could be a bit exhausting.
 
-- Kim
 
PS I've also taken ferrets on week-long sea kayak trips, with great
success.  At the start, I let them fall in the water if they want to, and
after that they seem pretty content just to ride in my lap and watch the
scenery go by.  I don't recommend a ratio of more than one ferret to a
person though.  You need to be able to give a ferret your undivided
attention now and then when the occasion demands it.  Besides, I would
worry about being deposed by an FLO coup if I let them all in the boat at
once.  They'd probably truss me up, toss me in the bilges, and set out for
Siberia to visit the relatives.
[Posted in FML issue 2663]