Kurt and Sara, Sadly your friends may be in for a long haul with their
biting baby.  I rescued our Dancer out of an increasingly bad situation in
a pet store.  The young girls working with her were hitting her, thumping
her and no telling what else because she was a biter from very young.  She
got worse.... a lot worse.  (And by the way, I did meet with the manager,
gave in-service, and the two worst offenders no longer work there).  By the
time I got her she would tear into me with a vengeance.  I wrote in to the
FML and the lovely people here gave me tons of good advice.  Some of it has
worked but she s is still a biter and I have to watch how and when I handle
her.  (I also have been bite badly enough to take one trip to the hospital
and two trips to the doctors office.) We have finally figured out that
because women abused her she does not like or trust us.  She has only bite
my husband Steve twice.  A scolding tone of voice or a firm stop puts her
into a fury.  So I always speak very softly around her.  She hates to be
scruffed and put in her cage for time out.  She digs out all the liter.
Tears the carpet up, and turns over the food and just really has a tizzy
fit as only Dancer can have.  So tell your friend to try that first.  It is
the least of all the things we can do and sometimes anything else just
makes matters worst.  I go in twice a day and wake Dancer up and snuggle
her and pet her.  I tell her I love her and that she is just the best
Ferret.  (A BIG LIE!) But she never bites me anymore during these quiet
times when it is just me and her.  She can be so sweet and I do love her
but she has tried my patience so much and during those times I have just
had to walk away and let my husband take over.  Sometimes when I am playing
in the floor with her and the other 5 she will do a run and attack.  And
she doesn't stop and I am usually bleeding or angry.  But again these
incidents are getting fewer and I do feel like she is beginning to realize
no one is going to hurt her.
 
Dancer would also bite me before she took her treat.  If she did I scruffed
her and put her in the cage for a time out and she did not get a treat.  I
felt mean but it was necessary.  She does not bite me anymore when I am
giving out treats.
 
The one thing to stress to your friend is that any type of physical
reprimand will only make matters worse.  I know that many folks will
disagree with that statement and I am not judging or condemning their way.
I am only sharing my experience and I think starting with a gentle approach
initially would have helped me deal with Dancer more effectively.  If they
thump him or yell or bite him he will only continue to distrust and he will
continue to bite.  I realize it is hard to be gentle with something that is
hurting us and drawing blood but I think this biting response is caused
from the lack of socialization and fear.
 
Three days ago she bite me and her tooth went down between my nail and
cuticle pretty deep and of course I jerked and her tooth literally tore out
the cuticle.  It hurt so much I was crying and I felt one of my fuzzies
licking the back of my scabby scarred hand.  I looked down and it was
Dancer.  She seemed, for the very first time, to know she hurt me.  There
is hope for this little girl and I wish with all I have that your friends
can keep trying for the sake of their little guy.  And if the time comes
and they feel they simply cannot deal with such a bad biter I hope they
will consider placing him in a shelter with people who have tons of
experience and can maybe rehabilitate him to give him a chance at a
wonderful fun filled Fuzzy life.  My best wishes and prayers are with them.
--
Warm Regards, Victoria
Have a Moment? Take a Peek! Ferrets, Guinea Pigs, Cats and Rabbits, Oh
My!!!<http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Farm/2610/>
 
"Compassion...can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces
all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind." Dr. Albert
Schweitzer
[Posted in FML issue 2678]