As I breeder I know that the 6 to 8 week old ferret is too young to leave
the breeder.  The nipping problem is part of it.  We don't let kits go out
until about 12 weeks.
 
Kits this young should be eating a food such as Totally Ferret.  At this
point in our nursery they would likely still be eating a combination of
Totally Ferret and A/D Prescription canned food.  Their teeth are still
immature during third month.
 
We switch all of our ferrets to Iams cat food (Orange bag not Purple Kitten)
when they reach full size at about 8 months or so.  We occaisionally switch
older ferrets to Iams Kitten or even Totally Ferret as their specific needs
warrent.  We have way to many ferrets to feed them all Iams Kitten - we buy
several 20 lb bags of food at a time.
 
Ferretone or Linatone is NOT a required supplement to a proper diet.  8 in 1
recommends giving Ferretone (their product) but only because their old
formula food was so bad.  We use Ferretone (Linatone) as a treat only.
 
Our nursing Jills get supplements of NutriCal (small doses not nearly as
much as Nutrical recommends) and KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) to Totally
Ferret.
 
Other breeders and owners have success with other feeding plans.
 
As far as nipping the 5 to 10 week old kits are at their 'nippiest'.  Their
main social interaction is chomping on their litter mates.  We leave these
kits with their mother - nobody will stop chomping like a tired momma jill.
They still need work with humans but that is on going in most kits
sometimes until they are a year old.  The older they get the less they nip
if 'properly' trained.  The main goal in training is to convince the ferret
kit that nipping results in unpleasant or undesired experiences and 'sweet'
behavior results in pleasant and desired experiences.  Never put a ferret
kit that nips down - that trains YOU to a behavior pattern.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 1240]