Hi Mike,
 
I recently used Soft Paws with my two cats.  I wonder if even the small
size would be small enough for ferrets?  I used medium.  They did adhere
pretty well (they are glued on using a generic Crazy Glue), but my one
cat did manage to remove some of them, a few weeks later.  Since they
were hot pink, they were easy enough to find.  Since ferrets don't have
nail sheaths, they would probably be less irritating to them than to the
cats.  Also my cats' Soft Paws finally fell off because they shed their
nails two months later, but ferrets don't shed their nails.  You must cut
them back as the nails grow or they get too long, even with cats.  An
inexperienced ferret owner such as this, could easily quick the nails
when cutting the Soft Paws back because the entire nail is covered.
 
Is quicking better than declawing?  Absolutely!  Since they are unproven
in ferrets, though, I would encourage caution and placement of only 1 or
2 at a time.  Also, the edges could also get caught on bedding, so fleecy
things would be a bad idea.  My cat's Soft Paws would even snag on the
Berber carpeting.
 
Personally, I have found vinyl carpet runner and regular nail trimming
the best protection against digging.  If the owner is unwilling to do
this, then Soft Paws might be a solution...
 
I hope this helps!
 
Dodie
[Posted in FML issue 4089]