Once upon a time there were three ferrets in my happy family.  An old
male, a middle-aged female, and a young female.  There is also a cat.
He is usually very well behaved, although he had a habit of bullying the
old male.  The middle-aged female got along with the cat, and the young
female terrorized the cat (jumping on the cat's back and biting the back
of his neck).
 
The old male recently passed away (old age), and the middle-aged female
has slowed down a bit.  Now I'm starting to see the cat starting to act
a bit like a bully to the middle-aged female.
 
In self-defense, will she bite hard enough if the cat really messes with
her?  Right now, it seems like she is more interested in running away,
which just hits that predator-prey button on the cat.  The cat is a
chicken when it comes down to it.  I know he'll back off of her if she
gives him a good bite.  It seems like the cat is just picking on whomever
is least able to defend themselves.
 
Any insights?  Can I outfit the middle-aged female in a porcupine suit?
[Posted in FML issue 5116]