>I would like the opinions of experienced ferret owners regarding the
>use of "biting" as a technique to teach ferrets not to bite, especially
>kits. Call it a poll of sorts. I'm not talking about holding a ferret
>in your teeth and hissing, I am talking about biting down on a ferret's
>ear/neck hard enough to make it cry/whimper/scream"

We do not suggest this. We use a gentle but firm "scruff & drag"
Sometimes we need to do this repeatedly--but always with love. Remember
you are the mommy / daddy ferret. Not only is the animal learning from
you--it is learning that you are FAIR. A bond is being formed--and
trust too. The ferret must learn that you would never, ever hurt it.

Kurt & I have often licked our biters on the side of the face, while
scruffing them (much the way a mommy fertie does when washing a kit).
It seems to establish dominance, somehow...Sometimes, they just walk
away after that (especially if we have eaten something obnoxious like
garlic! LOL.) Gotta watch that they don`t swivel around & nail your
tongue though.

No matter how it hurts, we try with all our hearts to avoid a "knee
jerk" reaction--In fact, we try very hard to show NO reaction when
they bite. (The abused ones will deliberately test people!) .Sometimes,
they`re looking for attention. We just do a gentle, but firm scruff &
drag. They learn that we will not hurt them, but that this is
unacceptable behavior.

We are very careful to control our tempers. When we release them from
the hold, it is when WE decide to. We are the parents.The ferret must
learn that we are in control. Gentle, loving control. Slowly, it learns
to trust us--and it begins to love us back..

Often, it observes us interacting with other ferrets in the room.

We`re generous with treats, so it comes to know that hands are
good--not mean. We give lots of loving strokes, so it learns that
hands are kind, not cruel. We speak with a loving voice--even to
the deaf ones, because they can feel what we are saying, somehow...

Above all, we are patient with them--and fair.

Sometimes, the ferret you almost don`t like-- becomes the ferret you`ll
cry the hardest over, when it dies. When that day comes, I wouldn`t
want the guilt of remembering the time I bit it until it cried....

Love,
Zoo

[Posted in FML 6096]