Hey all. Please don't stone me for asking stuff that is often discussed on the FML. I've never really had a problem with this. One of our ferrets, Static (MF silver female approx. 4 mos.) has recently begun to bite. I think it started as a game, but I'm not sure. Most of our other ferrets don't "bite" but they might put their mouth on you while playing. Static now bites quite ferociously (especially feet, but she doesn't restrict herself to just feet). She hasn't broken the skin, so at this point it's just a bad habit I really want to break. I've heard people list reasons why a ferret might bite. Fear was the most often listed, I believe. Also I've heard that they might bite when they are in pain, they want attention, or they play with you like they would play with a ferret. I've tried to reason out why Static is biting to try to determine the best way to stop her, but she has nothing to fear (she's not a scaredy cat, either), she doesn't act or look like she's in pain, we play with her a lot, and she's never bitten like this until recently. I'm stumped. I've tried thumping her nose (I'm not fond of this type of discipline), scruffing her, hissing at her, and time out. Really nothing works so far. Hissing at her gave her pause for a moment, but then she went on with biting my feet (at least if she bit my finger, I could try gagging her (ouch! she just bit my ankle again). Anyone have any suggestions? I just want to cure her before she learns that it's okay to bite us. Well, thanks a lot for all the advice. I know that this subject has been beaten into the ground, so if someone would like to respond, you can write to me personally. Take Care. Kelly Reverend Maynard: "when you grow older and wiser, you'll realize that the only place that tastes good on them humans is the crook of their elbows." Cosette: "No, the humans don't taste good at all." Static: "Mmm...finger licking good..." (chomp) Magkij znak: "hey, can I try that?" --->Kelly |\__\ /__/| Head of Animal Optometry | o o o o | "Damn you, Let the Rabbits wear glasses" / =p= =q= \ University of Houston | | (everybody's gotta love crappy ascii art...) Reverend Maynard: "I'm not looking at you." Edie: "Snore, squeak." ** "The following sentence is true. The previous sentence is false." ** [Posted in FML issue 1831]