I just acquired a new ferret from the local auction.  He is going to be a
challenge as he is the nastiest biter I've seen in a long time.  He doesn't
just bite, he GRABS and shakes his head or spins like a crocodile..and he
is only about 9 weeks old.  My older ferret certainly lost interest in
playing with this little hellion real fast and stays out of his way.  It
will take some patience and a lot of Bitter Apple (tm) to teach him not to
eat fingers, but he is a gorgeous little albino and seems smart enough to
come around in time.  Either he was not handled at all, handled by someone
who didn't know how to teach a baby ferret not to bite or perhaps abused,
so I've been mostly just sitting and talking to him for now, till he gets
used to being in a new place.
 
His only stressful thing will be the trip to the vet to get his shots and a
descenting/neutering, but with his personality, I don't think he needs to
grow up to be a breeding ferret, when there are plenty of sweet natured
males around to do the job these days.
 
The fun part is figuring out what to name this little ruby-eyed devil.  My
older ferret is named Mako, due to his being a bit of a biter as a baby,
which he grew out of..
 
But Mako met his match with this baby.
 
Mako: 'What the heck is this evil white thing you brought home, Mom?  A
wild mink or what?'
 
Piper (the dog): 'Hi!  Wanna play?  OUCH!  MY NOSE!  Thats it..I don't want
anything to do with those little weasel-things.  I'm gonna go play with the
cat.'
[Posted in FML issue 2667]