Hi Linda,
Good for you for increasing the size of Seiko's cage! I have some
suggestions for you that I think may work.
1. Ferrets poop for a couple of reasons... to relieve themselves and to
mark territory. Depending on how much control the individual ferret has
is dependent upon the size of the territorial poop. Some are small, what
I usually refer to as Hershey's Kisses, while others are of normal in
shape and size. At times, mucousy poops are not unusual either. Your
ferret seems to be sending a message that he is marking the cage and that
he is making it his own. Since he had a cage already, and has now been
given new territory, it is quite possible that he is marking it so that
everyone knows it is his. I would incorporate bleach into your cleaning,
along with some other training adjustments.
Seiko needs to be rewarded when he goes into the litter box and that
means that you or other members of your family will need to be very
watchful of his sleep habits as he will want to poop right after he wakes
up. It means that you will have to put him in it to show him where he
needs to go, force him to stay if necessary by putting up a hand to
prevent him from leaving the box until he goes, and reward him with a
favorite treat of his choice. Positive reinforcement that is given
consistently and persistently will win the day for you and Seiko.
As a last resort, try putting in the largest litterbox you can that will
fill the bottom. This can be a cardboard box lined with plastic.
Eventually you will reduce the size of the box and give him other space
with it. Eventually you should be able to have just a normal litterbox
of normal size in the cage.
2. The litter may need to be changed. Some ferrets are very particular
about the kind of litter used and the shape of the box they use.
Rectangular boxes seem to work best as they have more "corners' than the
triangular ones do. There are a variety of litters that could be tried.
I'm not sure what you are using at present, but you may want to consider
trying a different brand. In any case, move the poop he has extruded to
the litter box. This shows him what it is for. Keep doing it. Try not
to clean the box as often so that he knows that is where the poop goes.
On the other hand, he may be the kind of ferret that likes a clean box.
You may have to work with this for a bit to find a solution.
3. A cage is a cage but it isn't the rest of the home. Ferrets who have
more to do and more room to run outside of the cage, will still see the
cage like a holding tank. You have your reasons for caging Seiko, so
you will need to make his new cage attractive to him. The moving of the
litterbox is a sign of boredom and a sign of play. In our home, the food
dishes and litterboxes that are all over our home are always on the move.
If they can be moved, they are moved. It is the ferret way. Since Seiko
is pushing his around, you have a choice to make... To secure it to the
side of the cage or not. The litter digging is the same thing. It is an
activity to do. Try putting a box in the bottom with one hole cut in it,
and fill it with blankets. Dress up the rest of the cage with toys that
invite play. Petsmart has these great rubber toys for parrots that all
of our ferrets go nuts over. They seem to endure many weeks of play and
hard chewing. Hang hammocks and cubes, and run a dryer tube around the
inside of the cage. Give him a cage that he will want to be in and the
dumping of the litter should become a thing of the past. But remember
to change things around after a bit as he will get bored all over again.
Good luck!
betty and her blur o'fur
for the love of ferrets
missing Spaz...
[Posted in FML issue 4043]
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