I hope someone here on the list can help me with a problem that has me at
my wit's end.  If I don't find a solution soon I may be forced to find a
new home for one of the ferrets.
 
My SO and I are owned by two ferrets, Ozzy and Luna, as well as two
min-pins and a cat.  Everybody gets along well for the most part, except
for Luna's propensity to beat up the cat, who weighs approximately 10
times what she does.
 
But that's not the problem.  On April 30th, we lost Toby, life-long cage
mate to Ozzy -- they had been together prior to my rescuing them from a
bad situation.  Since Toby's passing, Ozzy has become completely obsessed
with digging at the carpet.  He has always shown a tendency to dig, but
before now I could easily divert his attention to less destructive
activities.  I'm not certain that Toby's death is the catalyst, but it
seems likely.
 
My dilemma is that I have tried all the usual suggestions for this
problem.  I made a dig box out of a clean kitty litter pan.  He ignored
it.  I made a dark cubby hole out of an empty cola case with shredded
newspaper inside.  He won't go near it.  He won't play with any of the
toys available.  I give him time out in the cage.  When the time out is
over he immediately runs over to his spot and starts digging.  I put
carpet (and plastic) runners on top of the carpet hoping to get him to
dig on the runners instead.  He crawls underneath to get at the good
carpet.  I put plastic tubing for him to crawl through behind the couch
(where his spot is) covering the area.  He shoved it out of the way.  A
friend suggested cayenne pepper sprinkled on the spot where he digs most.
He merely moved to a new spot.  And it clashed with the carpet.  I give
him lots of attention and try to keep him occupied, but as soon as he
can slip away from me--you guessed it.  I ferret-proofed a room they had
previously been denied access to, thinking that expanding their territory
would give him new things to explore.  That lasted two days and he found
a second place to dig to supplement the first.
 
I purchased one of the Marshall Products small animal play pens with the
expansion pack.  When the ferrets get up for play time, they are allowed
run of their entire area.  As soon as Ozzy starts digging he gets time
out in the play pen (which has plenty of toys and other diversions
available).  Right now it seems like the only thing I can do is keep Ozzy
confined in the play pen during his play time.  I feel guilty about this
because there isn't a lot of space for him to play in.  In fact, he
usually goes into a sleepy sack and stays there until he is allowed out
again.
 
I simply can't think of anything I haven't already tried.  My partner
is threatening to make me find Ozzy a new home before the carpet is
destroyed.  Of course I don't want to do that.  There isn't anyplace in
the house that doesn't have carpet (except the bathroom and kitchen) so I
can't make a play area without carpeting.  I would like to expand their
territory to include the kitchen but there are problems there.  First,
old-fashioned heating vents are not ferret-proof and can't be made so.
Second, there are the appliances and I'm not sure how to ferret proof
things like the electric range.  Third, the cat and dog litter boxes are
in an out-of-the-way corner of the kitchen and I can just see the litter
flying when the ferrets find it.
 
Can somebody help me find something that I haven't thought of yet?  There
have been major fights over this issue and I am at the end of my rope.
 
Please email me off-list as I don't always have the time to read the
complete list every day.  Thank you for any help you can provide me.
 
Guy E. Gerhard
Ozzy and Luna (the ferrets)
Lady Penelope and Napoleon (the miniature pinschers)
Merlin (the magical kitten)
Council Bluffs, Iowa
[Posted in FML issue 4559]