Breeding ferrets is by no means as easy as breeding dogs or cats.  To
give you an idea, this year was a very successful breeding year for us.
We have been far more fortunate in having healthy litters than many of
the other local breeders.  So what does this fortunate lucky year entail -
 
 - We had 8 successful litters and adopted another successful litter.
 - We lost one of my wife's favorite jills to a uterine infection.  Even
with lots of early care from a veterinarian.
 - We lost one of my favorite jills and her hole litter.  In this litter
the first kit was born alive, the second strangled in the umbilical cords
of the others in the litter, six more were born alive, another was still
born a day later but so large that the jill could not deliver him alone.
The jill was given oxatocin and the lifeless kit was delivered by a vet.
The jill apparently ruptured something internal in the process and
bacteria from her digestive tract got into her bloodstream and killed her
overnight.  THis despite the good care of two veterinarians.  We lost
most of the kits along with the mother and tried to rush three kits to
another breeder for a surrogate mother.  Only one lasted long enough to
suckle ans she died a few hours later.
 - In an average litter of 6 to 8 kits normally two to three will be
still born or die the first day.  Our litter sizes are above average in
size and we lost a few from almost every litter.
 - Jills can sometimes go through drastic mood swings (just like humans
as they approach delivery date).  Your sweet little jill can beccome a
monster.  This is why we adopted a whole litter just before birth.  Not
all jill experience this but the hormones that are needed to have healthy
litters are involved so many of those who haven't experienced this are
those who have far more instances of problems such as jills unable to
deliver their kits and having emergency C-sections, litters of one or two
which often don't survive because the mother can't produce milk, still
born litters of partially reabsorbed kits which is kits that starved and
died internal to the mother and were 'digested' in the uterus, false
pregnancies where you get all the problems of a pregnant jill except no
babies.  Other breeders (some on the list) have lost kits due to
strangling in their bedding, have had to watch their kits die from birth
defects, get an unknown muscular condition where they progressively lose
all body control within the first couple months of life, drive across
states looking for surrogate mothers when their jill turned to eat the kits.
 
Okay if you still want to breed your ferrets we will help you.
 
You need to subscribe to the Breeder's Digest.  This is the best single
source of information for ferret breeders written by ferret breeders.  You
need to find a vet that has some idea of the nature of ferret reproduction -
this is much harder to find than a vet who knows ferret medicine for
petstore neutered ferrets.  You have resources here on the FML - several
good breeders are on the list.  It is usually best to have another local
breeder with kits due at about the same time as yours.  Much too often a
jill just can not or will not care for her kits and a surrogate mother will
be required.  We can suggest the breeding cages and other 'equipment' you
will need.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 1327]