I have found that the degree of cuddliness varies with individual ferrets.
However, I agree with Celia Varga that the more freedom your ferret has, the
more ready he will be to snuggle up on your lap. My ferrets (all 33 of
them) are virtually cage-free. In our daylight basement we have 4 ferret
rooms (each with a Dutch door with the top part always open), windows and
ceiling fans for ventilation, radio, boxes and tubes for ferrets to play in.
Only at night are a few of the rowdiest ferrets placed into very large (5'
to 6' cages), and they are let out into their rooms in early morning. Now,
even this is not enough, as ferrets need to socialize with and be handled by
their people on a regular AND AMPLE basis. Fortunately I am home most all
the time and can give each and every one tons of personalized attention.
Each group is let out of its room 1 to 2 times every day and allowed to run
free until they tire out, at which time most of them return to their room on
their own to go to sleep. When let out, they race down the hall and into
the "party room" area where there are more boxes and tubes for them to play
in. They are not allowed in the utility room nor the bathroom. They are
allowed to run upstairs to the main part of the house, to the kitchen and
family room, and are only barricaded from the living room and the hallway
that goes to the den and bedrooms, both to control the stampede and amount
of destruction, and also to keep them away from our 3 resident older guys
who live free upstairs with us all the time. (I might say that the reason
we have so many ferrets is that some years ago we began rescuing when we
became aware of ferrets in need or in trouble, and since we had the room and
the means, we kept them all - neutering and spaying everyone. We were even
able to take some of the unadoptable cases, blind, crippled, biting, from
our local shelter. Some have been with us for quite a while and are pretty
old now - 9 to 11 years.) We have found that even the most wild and crazy of
the bunch have become quiet and sleepy in our arms once they have spent
their energy. I have only one, a big dark-eyed white male named Snowy, who
is about 3 1/2 years old, who still remains somewhat hyper. He's been with
us for 2 1/2 years and still tries to resist all that lovey stuff. But even
he, if I pick him up from his sleep, will open his eyes long enough to see
what is going on and then snuggle into my arms. A lot depends on bonding
too. I think that if the ferret only knows you as something to play with
whenever you have the time to let him out of his cage, he will be much less
likely to want to snuggle up to you than if he knows you as a loving friend
who adores him and wants to spend as much time as possible with him. To
Celia I would say that I think you are right on track to assume that leaving
Jake out of his cage more has contributed to his becoming more cuddly. As
to his being your only ferret having anything to do with it, I will have to
refer to the experience I related above and say that it all depends on how
much time you have to spend with each one. These ferrets, even when given
the run of most of the house, want mostly to follow me around wherever I go
- even if it's back into the room from which they have just been released!
If I go upstairs, they follow me up; if I go back down they are at my heels.
When I go into a room where they are not allowed, it is both hilarious and
heart-warming to find 6 to 8 ferrets patiently waiting at the door when I
come back out! Each and every one of our ferrets is as important and loved
as a single would be, and I devote most of my time each day making sure that
they all know that. For this we have certainly reaped the benefits of their
returned love and affection and desire to cuddle!
My best to all you wonderful ferret-loving people. What an inspiration it
is to find so many who strive to do it right. I agree that "ferret people"
are something unique and special! Oh but if only the rest of the world
could love a ferret! What a place it would be!
[Posted in FML issue 1690]
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