>From:    Jenny Blum <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: HUGE dillema
>
>Please help me make a decision or give me aggressive potty
>training techniques.

My Dear Jenny Blum,

This is Edward Lipinski with some few good words for you. Reading your
post I felt so sorry for you that I promptly pulled out my keyboard and
am typing for you a way of litter pan training that has worked for me
and may, hopefully , work for you too.

This method of litter pan training works easier for younger ferrets
than the older, since the older ferrets, on average, take a little
longer to develop what I call associative response.

An associative response is a behavior function that requires a trigger,
a stimulus, often repeated, that will produce a desirable response when
you take advantage to the greatest extent possible of a ferret's
natural behavior, its physiology and its normal instincts.

You should be aware that we are going to enter the ferret's world
through its paw pads. Just like the skunk, a brother to the ferret,
the skunk's paw pads are rather sensitive to touch and how the
rubbing/rolling of a potential food chunk between its paw pads of its
front paws tells the skunk whether or not its rub-rolling something
worth while eating or rejecting. The sniff test also comes into play
here too.

Simply stated, we will train the ferret to choose pooping only when
its paw pads authorize the movement. It goes like this.

After awakening from sleep, it's natural for the ferret to poop and
urinate. You may not like this, but you've got to be there with your
ferret(s) precisely at that time, even if it means sleeping on the
floor right beside your ferrets cage. I would suggest that you do this
in the apartment bathroom where you will ultimately maintain the ferret
litter pan, following the training.

Visitors are always impressed favorably when they see the ferrets going
into the bathroom and nowhere else to do their business.

Here's a list of the equipment you will need for success:

1. High quality water pistol that streams accurately (to enable you to
squirt cold water into ferret's ear as needed).

2. Steel cage minimum size to hold one litter pan loaded with training
litter and a second litter pan in an elevated position loaded with nest
cloth. Top of cage needs hinges and lock such that you are able to
enter cage very quickly in the event the ferret needs instant hand
pickup and repositioning inside cage.

3. Rabbit type water bottle attached to outside of cage. Attach
stick-on label to record dates of refill when bottle is emptied, so
that you know what the water consumption is over time.

4. Soup bowl attached in elevated position inside cage but which can be
filled with liquid soup through side wall of cage.

5. Reform ferret food (kibble?) into a lump-less, warm soup that can be
poured into elevated soup bowl by using a small plant watering can with
a long nozzle, so that you need not open the cage to feed the ferrets
their soup.

6. Very large bag of gritty, sandy cat-type litter for litter pan on
floor of cage. Avoid self-clumping or scented litter. Try to use
ordinary, old fashioned clay litter that is crumbly and sandy.

7, Sample of carpet that matches carpet as close as possible to carpet
in the apartment. Install this carpet securely on floor of cage in a
manner that will prevent the ferrets from tunneling under it. Carpet
sample must cover all of cage floor.

8. Ensure that elevated nest box (another litter pan) is attached
firmly to sidewalls and located directly above litter pan below on
floor of cage, such that the ferret must stepdown onto carpet before
using the pooper litter pan.

9. Cut section out of front walls of both litter boxes so that ferret
can easily exit/enter litter boxes using this narrow opening doorway.

10. Seed into far corner of new litter box or freshly cleaned litter
box with small sample of ferret poop such that ferret knows just where
to poop/urinate.

11. Small plastic squeeze bottle with long nozzle to enable dispensing
Ferretone as a reward to individual ferret that uses litter pan
correctly. (Emptied and cleaned Fleet Enema bottle is good for this;
also can use Safflower oil rather than more expensive Ferretone)

Training Objective.

The objective is to train the ferret to eliminate only when he senses
the crumbly/sandy cat litter under his paw pads and nowhere else, like
on the carpet. Consequently the setup inside the training cage is
highly important.

The ferret, upon awakening, normally will poop/urinate, but not
normally in his nest box. He will attempt to use a litter pan and one
that he knows where it's at . . . just under his nest box. In so doing,
he steps down onto the carpet first, then into the litter pan where he
feels the litter granules under his paw pads. Then he'll back up, lift
his tail and make music, just like the F flat one sometimes hears that
very closely sounds like the opening phrases of Richard Wagner's opera,
Das Rheingold.

Idealistically this is what happens, or rather what may happen. You
gotta be there, lying down on the floor with your nose up against the
cage and watching closely, your water pistol, loaded and in your hand,
ready for use, if need be.

As you may already know, ferrets got minds of their own and don't
always perform as you may want them to. And, after going to all of this
trouble, you want what you want and that sometimes ain't what the
ferret wants. So here goes with the "Ain't No Fun" part. At least no
fun for the ferret.

If and when the ferret, down on the carpet and not on the cat litter in
the litter pan, starts backing up into a corner preparatory to pooping
and just lifting his tail, that's when you do your thing, target
practice! You shoot him with your cold, cold water pistol and squirt
him in one or both of his ears. No where else where he could lick off
the water.

The response is electric. The ferret will jump just as though it's been
hit with a lightning bolt. Oh, the poor ferret, being treated so
nastily by a meanie with a water pistol in her hand and a grin on her
face.

Squirt as often as necessary until you drive the ferret into the litter
pan. Wait until the ferret is finished and does the butt wipe. Then
stick the nozzle of the Fleet enema bottle through the cage wall,
essentially into his face, and squeeze out a small drop or two of
Safflower oil, which he'll sense and likely start to lick.

Once he starts licking the long rubber nozzle of the Fleet enema
bottle, then squeeze out a couple of big, big drops of oil. Here it's
a good idea to reinforce the reward phase with soft words from you
congratulating the ferret for his accomplishment. I should caution you
to remain quiet during the target practice phase, so the association of
water being squirted into his ears is not audibly linked to you.

Now, here's the downside. Always there's a downside when your dealing
with ferrets, but it's not too bad.

For one reason or another, you leave the bathroom and upon your return
you find that characteristic spiral sausage on the carpet and not in
the litter box. Clean it out as soon as possible and maybe dab the
stained carpet with a soapy rag to pick up as much poop residue as you
can. Talk mean and let the critters know you're unhappy with what's
happened.

Then upon the cleaned spot on the carpet, dribble a covering puddle of
their soup so the spot is entirely covered with the soup and let it
soak into the carpet. Either or both may descend to the floor carpet
and lick up the soup. Good. Let them do that, because thereafter
neither will likely ever poop or urinate on that part of the carpet
ever again.

After the training is complete, underlay the cage with four or five
sheets of newspaper. Sprinkle the sandy, chunky pieces of cat litter
on the newspaper all around, just in case the ferret may not return to
the in-cage litter pan and instead dump or urinate just outside on the
paper. Take the offending ferret into the bathroom, and speak nastily
to him for not making it into the cage. Let him see you picking up his
pooper pile and dropping it into the litter pan. You could also secure
him back into his cage for a few minutes so he can realize that his
fresh poop is where it belongs. Then release him and give a couple of
drops of oil to show your are pleased with him a little bit, but not
too much.

Dear Jenny Blum, I know this is a lot of material for you to absorb and
act upon, but I know you'll do your best for your beloved ferrets and
for yourself.

Good luck,

A bove majori discit arare minor (Latin: From the older ox the younger
learns to plow)

Edward Lipinski
Ferrets North West Foundation

PS I'd recommend you learn how to make the meat/veggie soup and treat
your ferrets to superior nourishment compared to that bag of chemicals
we call ferret food. I eat the same soup my ferrets eat. We're all
doing well but I don't use the same litter pans they do, although I'm
trying to get them accustomed to using toilet paper, as do I ... both
sides.

[Posted in FML 6291]