Q:"....whats the best way to stop two ferrets from fighting?"
 
A: Buy a kitten and toss it in the room....
 
I currently have 4 whole hobs running around together, all in rut, and all
lookin' for a hot lady ferret.  They are a bit agressive to each other,
nothing nasty, just continuous.  I have tried everything from time outs to
bitter apple cream, but the absolute best way to end the fight, and for me
its absolutely immediate, is to drip a few drops of ferretone (diluted with
2/3rds olive oil) on each nose.  Actually, any favored treat is good, but
I've found the ferretone works fastest (Pepperoni is 2nd fastest).
 
Q:"Sometimes my ferrets watch me like if they are actually thinking about
something.  Do ferrets think like people?"
 
A: You mean as much as mallrats, the CaCA Land Fishing Gestapo and
politicans? Get serious...
 
Sure they think; they have brains with a frontal lobe.  They have memories,
they dream, they solve problems, and they can adjust their behaviors to
suit their environment.  But think like people?  No way.  They think like
ferrets, we think like humans, cats think like cats and politicans think
like potted plants.  Ferrets have ferret emotions, ferret thoughts and
ferret desires.  We share some of them, like a desire not to be eaten by a
big predator, or a desire to protect our offspring.  So in a sense you can
say we share the basic core instincts, but since the structure of the human
brain is vastly different from that of the ferret, the thinking process is
also different.  But they *do* think.
 
Q:"...Why do ferrets fight?"
 
A: To support Don King.
 
There are a number of reasons, and they differ depending on the age of the
ferret.  Young ferrets tend to fight in order to learn sexual behaviors and
predatory skills in an activity called social play-fighting.  Ferrets older
than a year probably do most of their fighting to create a dominance
structure.  Older ferrets sometimes fight to drive away other ferrets
because they are grumpy and intolerant.  I'm sure there are dozens of other
reasons for fighting, but I think most of them can be boiled down to three
basic categories; fear, playing and dominance.  There is no real need to
break up a play fight, and I only break up a dominance fight when one
ferret has been whipped or is unable to defend themselves.  I always stop a
fear fight.  I have found ferrets to act somewhat like humans in that some
just can't seem to get along with anyone, and you will fail in every
attempt to introduce them to others.  For the most part, a fight is
meaningful only to the ferret, and breaking them up will only prolong the
situation.  Keep a watchful eye, but let them wrestle.
 
Q:"What is the silliest thing your ferrets have ever done?"
 
A: Move in with me.
 
Hard question.  Ever see "Mouse Hunt" where Catzilla was running around
inside the box, with the four paws stick outside?  A couple of weeks ago,
Tui crawled inside an old tube sock which was missing the toe.  In fact,
there where holes all over it, and it was a tight fit.  Tui somehow managed
to get all his legs out of various holes, and was running around the room.
His head was inside the sock with just his nose protruding, but he looked
pretty sureal.  The funny part was he didn't like it, so he would run a few
steps then spin around to catch the person touching him.  It looked like a
sock was doing s snake dance.  HA HA HA!  Come on, laugh....I guess you had
to be there.  I'll leave now.
 
Bob C and 20 Mo' Silly Sock Sharks
[Posted in FML issue 2569]