Got three fuzzies here, Sprinkles (black-eyed white, about 6 years old),
Bubo (light silver, about 3 years old), and Snippet (silver, just over 1
year old).  They're all female.  Sprinkles came from a private breeder
and still has her scent glands; Bubo and Snippet are both pet shop ferrets
and have been descented.
 
When Bath Day comes (about once every eight weeks or so, on average) I try
to do all three of 'em at the same time, and I do everything at once --
ears, claws, teeth, and bath.  Unfortunately Snippet goes on something of
a rampage for upwards of three weeks after Bath Day.  She will chase the
other two ferrets around and chomp down on the backs of their necks hard
enough to make the them squeal.  She's even drawn blood on one occasion
(not a lot, but enough to be noticed on their white fur).
 
Snippet has always been a "spirited" ferret, faster to nip (and harder
nips) than the others when playing, but with Bath Day it's utterly
predictable.  Bathe 'em, dry 'em, let 'em go, and suddenly it's Fox's new
TV special "When Ferrets Attack".  Then a few weeks later it's all back
to normal again.  Any direct intervention (water gun, picking her up and
moving her, etc) works temporarily but then she's back.  Bitter apple is
useless; Snippet seems unaffected by it.
 
I suspect that Snippet is having difficulty in distinguishing the ferrets
as familiar fuzzies once their scents have been washed out of them but I
don't understand why.  Snippet doesn't appear to be blind; she's able to
follow movement easily, and often chases around a red laser pointer dot.
I don't think her sense of smell could be damaged since she obviously can
tell that there's a difference in scents.  And it's not a "retaliatory"
attack; Snippet very blatantly advances on the others, even when they're
half asleep.
 
Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.
[Posted in FML issue 3491]