Hello everyone! I've been looking in for the last month or
so, but this is my first posting! My fiance Scott and I
have two little guys, Oakey and Mojo.  Oakey was our first
ferret... he's about 9 months old now... he's a lean sable
that we bought from a local pet store in upstate NY.  He
has two blue dots on his right ear, and we suspect that
he might be a "Marshall Farm Ferret".  He's been very
healthy so far, nothing unusual... are there any particular
conditions that we should be aware of, or should we not
worry about it?
 
Oakey is a sweetie, when he's not trying to pull down the
phone by the phone cord... he loves to grab it in his teeth
when I'm on the couch talking on the phone, or to watch it
sproing up and down over the table edge.  We're very
comfortable with him around the house, and are confident
that he would never nip at anyone.  He loves to chase and
wrestle with us and his little bro... his mission in life
is to successfully dart past us and explore the mysteries
of the basement... the final frontier.
 
Mojo, however, is another story! He's about 6 months old
and is already quite a bruiser.  He's very muscular and
especially furry... when we got him at Path Valley farm
in southern PA, they called him a silver mitt, but we're
not sure what color he is... a mix of white, gray, black,
and yellow, with white paws, and black eyes... really
beautiful and affectionate.
 
Mojo is extremely playful, and rowdy... and needs to
be playing with someone at all times.  It's really
fantastic that he loves us so much... but he has
recently decided to get our attention by tugging at
the wires from the computer, if we're working on the
PC.  The place where the computer is isn't easily
blocked off from everywhere else.  This is a recent
activity.  We've been letting the ferrets run the
house much more lately (they have a room to themselves
normally).  Needless to say... it nearly gives me
a heart attack to see Mojo with his teeth so close to
electric current!  He hasn't left any marks on the outside
wire... so I don't think he presses hard.  He is a
much more nippy ferret... he's gotten better with
people, and has his chew-toys, but this behaviour
with the cord really bothers me.  We're planning on
trying bitter apple.. but it would give us some peace
of mind to hear that other ferrets haven't bit through
wires, and any suggestions would be helpful.
 
Also, I've read in the FAQ and here about hairballs,
and misc. swallowed objects.  Mojo always has a dry
cough, and sometimes coughs up his Iams after he
first eats it, but doesn't seem to be bothered by it
much.  We thought that he just didn't chew enough,
or he wasn't drinking enough water.  Could this
be happening because he has a hairball, or a
blockage.  He's been coughing since he was a kit,
so I don't think he just swallowed something.  Is
there a specific hairball remedy that someone has
found to be the best for ferrets?
 
Thanks in advance for the advice!
 
Kim, Scott, Oakey & Mojo
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[Posted in FML issue 1119]