Ummm...
 
I'm afraid it's all too possible that a very critical point of perspective
may have been missed in these "no mountain tall enough" cases...
 
Who says they "can't" get down.  Perhaps they don't feel they should be
required to exert that particular effort!  After all, what else are humans
for?  Don't you lift them up over other obstacles from time to time or
provide elevator service from inside cages, backs of chairs & sofas, etc.
 
Or maybe, their extended stay at the top of the cage is simply a
not-so-subtle hint that you are EXPECTED to place food, water, bedding,
and litter facilities there, just as you have in other locations of their
preference.
 
Climbing up is fun and occurs at the peak points of exploration and energy
levels.  Down, however, occurs at bored, tired of playing, ready for nap
time.  Duh, humans.  How about a down ramp?  (They really don't care that
a 20 foot piece of 4" black plastic drainage tubing doesn't fit with your
Early American den furnishings.  Ferrets are most definitely "function
before form" beings.)
 
Seriously, though, I once had a DEW who was quite capable of a safe "down"
climb.  Powder knew to back over the edge to begin the downward climb and
managed 5 foot down climbs as easily as the upward trip.  After watching
her, I decided to try to teach Chiquita, another chronic climber, how to
climb down.  After pushing her bottom off the top edge several times, she
finally started stepping down... with a little encouragement from me by
loosening the death grip of one paw at a time & repositioning it on a
lower wire.  All the way down the 5 foot cage to the floor.  Once all four
paws were on the floor, she looked up at me utililzing her "bulldog
defiance" stance (which should have warned me...) But I was so proud of
her and praised her and finally I picked her up to pet her and cuddle her
as a reward for such a wonderful accomplishment... and promptly got my
nose nipped.
 
The moral is:
 
I (not the ferret) learned the lesson.
 
Debi Christy
Ferrets First Foster Home
 
Practical & easy training, care, & maintenance articles available at
http://www.geocities.com/ferretsfirst/
[Posted in FML issue 3792]