Thanks to ShariDiane for the compilation of nip info. After reading it this AM, I know of some ways to help break some bad habits. Also, last night while playing with Gus (6 month old male) I came to the conclusion that his nipping on me is much less than it use to be, but he is a little more nippy with my daughters and my fiancee. I bet this is because they didn't handle and discipline him as much as I did for the last month, so he thinks he "can get away with more" when playing with them. The suggestion on showing compassion after discipline is good and probably something I should have thought of before. I've noticed that many times, when Gus is playing around and I walk up to him, he starts backing awaya from me and then runs off under the couch. I hope this is more play than terror. The fact he lets me hold him, pet him, and that he climbs on me when I am lying down, probably tells me its just play. Finally, I want to mention that I've been trying not to bathe Gus to keep his odor down, but it hadn't seemed to be working until last night. After reading a recent post about ferrets loosing odor after digging, I put about 4" of potting soil in a tall box and showed Gus how to get in. After about a half hour of sheer ferret joy, he came out, and I think he lost a lot of his smell!. The soil is very dry and not very heavy, leaving me to believe that this is going to be an easy thing to keep as a permanent toy. Boy there's a lot of peat in that stuff; it's so light I am not worried about the box falling apart. Gus is still about 40% on using his litter pan. Most of the time he is still using the corner just next to his pan. So, tonight, I am going to make some major alterations to his triangle litter pan. I am going to cut off some of the front wall and add more bedding rags to his cage. I hope that will eliminate some of the "corner" look it gives to the area just outside the pan. I'll let everyone know if it succeeds. [Posted in FML issue 1811]