Ferret litters were asked about by several folks lately...
 
Most folks do not recommend the clumping type clay litters.  They dry out
the fur and skin.  We personally do not recommend any clay litter at all.
 
The newspaper based litters are fine.  Messy as they get spread way too
easily by rambunctious ferrets.
 
Cedar and Pine shavings are definite no-nos.  Aspen however is not an
evergreen and does not have the same problem with the aromatic oils.  This
would be something to recommend to pet stores but being more expensive might
not be used.
 
Corn cob litter is not especially absorbant but is inexpensive and tolerably
absorbant for small ferret households - those still under ten ferrets or so.
(joke folks...) You might recommend this to pet stores as well as they might
already be using it for their birds.
 
The best pet litter in our opinion is Pine Fresh brand.  It is made of
compressed sawdust (not shavings) and does not have the added aromatic oils.
IT is by far the best for odor control.  A list member from Lynchburg
Virginia if I remember orders it directly from the manufacturer.
 
What we use (and is popular among the other breeders in our area) is wood
stove fuel pellets.  These are compressed hardwood dust pellets very similar
to the Pine Fresh.  Not as absorbant but very inexpensive.  When you have
the few dozen litter pans we have you unfortunately have to let price figure
in.  It is some 3 to 4 dollars for a 40 pound bag around here.
 
Midwest cages:
Roberto asked about these cages.  We have a few and are relatively pleased.
They were really designed for cats however.  To avoid the gap where the
ferrets get stuck try moving the shelf one more 'wire notch' against the
end.  The directions do seem to imply having that gap there but we didn't
like it either.  We hang several large hammocks across the top giving a
moving second story to the cages.  Our English ferrets (two from Essex and
one from James McKay) spend almost all of their time at the very top of
these cages.  My only real complaint about them is the plastic rivet things
that 'almost' hold the wheels and the clips for the top to the plastic base.
I've contemplated finding nylon bolts and nuts to replace these if they
continue to not hold very well.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 1447]