Yes, our blaze female, Maila, is also quite deaf. I realized it when she was quite young and easily startled. She would frequently puff up and scream when approached from the rear. I've since learned to always give her visual or sensory cues that I'm in the area. She has become more easy going about it now. As for discipline, well, you really can't. The only things I can do are the "scruff and hold-down" or a slight bop on the nose. But she doesn't care anyway, and it only makes her mad enough to go poop in front of the door. She just takes extra vigilance. A couple of other things I'd be interested in about Valentine: Maila's head and feet seem to be way too large for her body. Is this this true for Valentine or blazes in general? Also, Maila has a strange quirk I've never seen in another ferret: when she's held (with both hands) in a vertical position, she swings her head waaaay back and moves it around. She also does this on her own if she's investigating something. Sometimes it leads her to roll over several times. I'm wondering if this is related to an inner ear problem due to hear deafness. She is also an expert raisin-dunker. --- Randy A. Brown [log in to unmask] [Posted in FML issue 1575]