Have I ever seen one ferret kill another in battle?  No.
 
But, as a shelter operator, I have seen several ferrets who display the
traits you describe.
 
There is a simple, easy answer... the problem is there is the rare ferret
who does not like and can not tolerate other ferrets.  There are a rare few
this way naturally, but more often it is seen in rescues who were victims
of severe neglect, abuse or an only ferret for a long period.  These
ferrets do not want to be intergrated into the gang, pure and simple.
Leaving a ferret of this nature in with the gang, in my humble opinion, is
cruel.  It causes stress, aggravation and the risk or injury for all the
ferrets involved.  The best solution we have is painfully simple... these
ferrets need to be *only ferrets*..  even if only in their own mind.
 
We recently had a similar ferret in shelter, and she had the nastiest
disposition... a biter and mean tempered.  Once we figured out her problem
and fixed her up with her own seperate cage, seperate playtimes and let her
be alone, she has blossomed into a sweet tempered, gentle, loving girl..
her coat filled out and she is not even the same ferret.  In fact she
became so wonderful that my shelter assistant adopted her!
 
Granted, buying and maintaining a seperate cage, seperate playtimes etc for
just one ferret is a bit of a pain... but it will be worth it in the end
when ALL your ferrets are happy and well adjusted.
 
Just my 2 cents.
Susan
[Posted in FML issue 2922]