I just thought I'd share my funny story for the day! Now, all of the ferrets I've had before loved to steal things - as every proper ferret does - but it was usually small things like cat toys, small stuffed animals, basically anything that they could sink their teeth into. My recent adopted boy, Benny, seems to have great ambition and super-ferret strength when it comes to ferret-thieving. Today, I caught him dragging my husband's very large and heavy sneaker behind the couch! I swear, that shoe probably weighed more than him! And when I looked into his little hidey hole ( a corner behind the couch) he had manged to also hide several of my daughter's beanie babies and Cricket's (chihuahua) full sized tennis ball! Benny isn't very large - we went to the vet today and he weighed in at 2.6 lbs. I'm not sure where he gets the strength to drag around all of these toys that are his size or larger but he does! What is even funnier is that Joon just lays there and watches him labor over dragging sneakers and beanie babies with a ferret smirk on her face, a jaunty twitch in her tail, and a pitying look in her eye. As soon as he leaves to find more loot, she runs into his hidey hole and tries to raid the booty! But poor Joon isn't as strong as super-ferret and she usually gets caught and reprimanded with a nip on the neck and a swat on the head as Benny chases her out. I should record a video of this and put it on YouTube - but with my luck, the fuzzles would be more interested in the camera than in raiding the house! I also wanted to say "Thank You!" to everyone who offered advice on the nip training. I spoke with my vet in depth on this matter and he told me - as many of you already have - that nipping is sometimes part of a ferret's personality. Sometimes ferrets will only nip when hurt, ill, or irritated and for others it's a way to communicate and express how they feel. To make the ferret who does this stop nipping completely would be like forcing him to change his personality - and it would also be nearly impossible to do. So I've been working with my ferret, Benny, to teach him that he can nip, nibble, and gnaw a little but only with a small amount of force. So far, it has been very successful. Thanks again! Melissa [Posted in FML 6467]