Hi, everyone,
 
I have to agree with Benita Booker's post.  Deafness doesn't seem to
slow ferts down or act as much of a handicap to them.  My Pertwee is the
wildest, most playful ferret of our nine.  He's a four and a half year
old deaf albino with limitless energy.  The only way to slow Pertwee down
is to put him on your shoulder.  Then he's in his favorite place and is
content to look at the world from high up while you walk around.
 
FWIW, you can train a deaf ferret as well as any other.  Everything has
to be tactile or visual to communicate, though.  If we rap on the floor
and get Pertwee's attention he'll happily respond to a wave to come on
over.  Most ferrets aren't nearly as consistent at coming when called as
Pertwee is.  He's also as perfectly litter trained as any ferret can be.
 
Don't worry about having a deaf ferret.
 
All the best,
Caity and the non-stop nine
[Posted in FML issue 4057]