Hello all you ferret lovers out there.  My name is Spot and I am the
senior mascot at The Educated Ferret Assoc.  My donation as a volunteer
is to help educate humans as to why ferrets do certain things.  This
class is on why ferrets eat certain things such as fabric, rubber or
other things.  First not all ferrets eat fabric and we do not eat all
fabrics.:-)  Just think what the fabric is mad of.  Wool comes from sheep
and sheep smell like meat to us.  Not many ferrets like sheep or even
know what there are but they do smell like meat to some of us.  Wool
yarn is from the hair which does not have a real strong meat smell, still
some of us will eat pieces of a sweater, hat or mittens.  One of our
volunteers makes dingle balls and grooming hammocks, for fundraising to
hep with the rescue vet bills.  She usually makes them from human made
yarn.  Someone donated some wool and mohair yarn.  Pumpkin my sister
ferret, went in to the bag and stole three balls.  It was so cute.  When
rescue Mom went to do poop check there was lots of yarn in the poop.
Big lesson for human mom.  No animal hair dingle balls or items in the
rescue.  Now leather belts, wallets and human clothing like coats, hats,
and vests come from an animal skin.  MMMMMMMMMMMMMM so hard to resist
stealing it, and better yet eating it.  Some of us have stronger urges
to eat these things and we just don't understand why.  Please be patient
with us and remember we are obligated carnivores.  Also our ancestors did
not get their food made by humans, they caught their own.  It was met.
 
There are other items of interest to some of us ferrets such as latex,
rubber, and acrylic fingernails.  These are a not for ferrets.  All you
humans know most ferrets are like human children.  We all love sweet
snacks.  When rubber toys are formed in a mold they have a slight dusting
of powder to keep it from sticking to the mold.  OHhhhhhhh!  That powder
smells so good to us.  A deaf ferret 20 away from a squeaky toy can smell
the powder that is inside when a human squeezes it.  They will follow the
smell right to the toy even though they cannot hear it.  Callie our first
mascot taught us this.  Our human purchased a toy with a Big Bird hanging
off it.  Sparky tried to steal it, but he ate his feet the minute our
human went to do poop papers.  Smell a rubber ball, eraser, or a humans
flip flop when you first purchase it.  It smells sweet.  Several of the
ferrets that do not bite will bite on a human lady's fingernails if they
are painted with this special paint called acrylic paint.  It sure smells
good to most of us.  Some ferrets will try to bite it to steal it others
want to eat it.  At the rescue we have lots of ferrets coming and going
and we test them to see what they prefer so their new families know what
to keep away from them.  Again some of us will only steal these things,
but many will eat them.  Inspect your ferrets toy, bedding, den where
they hide things, and litter pans.  Please remember what goes in comes
out and a good dose of Petromalt or a vet visit is recommended.
 
Thank you for letting me share with all the humans who care.  Give your
ferret a hug today and he might just give you a splay.
 
Spot
[Posted in FML issue 4575]