might get a ferret

[Shanna66]

not anytime really soon, not till after my girl rats die and they are still going strong. hubby and i havent really fully talked about it but we both love ferrets and both agree that one would be a perfect playmate for stowrm since she is so good with the rat girls when she lets them out. we have also decided that we are not allowed to look at the ferret section of any pet store for more than a couple minutes or else we would get one right then

i guess this means i will have to start fidning the parts to my critter nation or just save up and buy a ferret nation since my critter nation is located in 2-3 different houses right now

the more i think about it the more i realize i dont really want a second dog , i love that i am stowrm's favorite person in the world and im greedy and dont want to share all that attention, plus another dog means more leash training and i really dont like leash training. and i could take a ferret with us on walks which is something i cant do with my vermins since leashes for rats are useless  

[Akiska]

I'd go for a pair and go to a rescue. There are ferret rescues all over the country. I'm sure you can find one easily. Best quality grain free food you can find. A lot of my ferrety friends swear by a food called Wysong, or Epigen90. Both are freeze dried raw foods. Just remember Insulinoma sucks, and along with adrenal is pretty common.  

[Shanna66]

Akiska

I'd go for a pair and go to a rescue. There are ferret rescues all over the country. I'm sure you can find one easily. Best quality grain free food you can find. A lot of my ferrety friends swear by a food called Wysong, or Epigen90. Both are freeze dried raw foods. Just remember Insulinoma sucks, and along with adrenal is pretty common.

for food i would probably go with evo or wellness core and do a bit of raw every now and then. i know evo has a ferret line but ive been told that cat food has all the stuff ferrets need and is a bit cheaper

and i think that i will probably just get one ferret for now. it wont be alone since my dog always has free range of the house and would always be wanting to play with it. and after doing research on all the shots and speutering/implants, i dont think i coiuld afford 2 right now. and ive read that you dont NEED a companion for them if you spend alot of time with them unlike rats

i also need to talk to my vets and see if either of them do ferrets. i hope so, they are great vets and i dont want to have to find another building to drive do whenever i need something  

[Akiska]

Most times they come already spayed/neutered, unless you buy directly from a breeder. I've always heard they're happier in pairs [or more] for the most part, they play more, so on so forth. It's not needed as in they will mope themselves to death if they don't. I belong to a ferret group on FB if you can get past some language and a bit of drama now and then they're really good about teaching, and letting us non-ferrants hang out with them and learn.  

[Shanna66]

Akiska

Most times they come already spayed/neutered, unless you buy directly from a breeder. I've always heard they're happier in pairs [or more] for the most part, they play more, so on so forth. It's not needed as in they will mope themselves to death if they don't. I belong to a ferret group on FB if you can get past some language and a bit of drama now and then they're really good about teaching, and letting us non-ferrants hang out with them and learn.

if i didnt have stowrm or if i worked more often i probably would look into getting 2, but im home most of the time so the ferret would be getting plenty of out of cage time. there is always a chance i might get another someday, but for right now im just planning one getting one.

im hoping to find a breeder but if i cant then i will look into rescues, if i cant find any there then i will look at pet store ferrets. i do know i want to get a baby though, but im unsure what the youngest is i should be looking for, i dont want to get one too young. but im hoping to find an unaltered ferret and do the implant thing, from what ive researched it seems like the best option, but if i have to get an already spayed ferret then it wont be the end of the world

do you have a link to the fb group? if anything else i can just lurk around and learn some new information

also i still cant decide it i want a girl or a boy. i like that boys get bigger but i also hear that boys smell a bit more so if thats true i think i might lean towards a girl  

[Akiska]

I'm a slacker. Ferret Owners for Adults [no, it's not a hookup, it's a more loosely moderated group] is a good one lots of information on raw feeding, best diets, etc. Also even if it's getting a lot of out of cage time with toys nothing wrestles with a ferret like another ferret [just saying] I've been around both boys and girls, and in the US [again common pet store] they smell about the same to me. Breeder boys might smell different because they have the "poof" as the ferret group calls it.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/ferretowners/494375430613089/?ref=notif¬if_t=group_comment_reply#!/groups/310592775704345/  

[Shanna66]

Akiska

I'm a slacker. Ferret Owners for Adults [no, it's not a hookup, it's a more loosely moderated group] is a good one lots of information on raw feeding, best diets, etc. Also even if it's getting a lot of out of cage time with toys nothing wrestles with a ferret like another ferret [just saying] I've been around both boys and girls, and in the US [again common pet store] they smell about the same to me. Breeder boys might smell different because they have the "poof" as the ferret group calls it.

]http://www.facebook.com/groups/ferretowners/494375430613089/?ref=notif¬if_t=group_comment_reply#!/groups/310592775704345/

the poof?

i might get another down the line, but for now since they cost so much and need so much attention im just going to get one. besides, it will also be playing with stowrm. i know that sounds like a horrible excuse but you should see her play with the rat girls. she rough houses with them very well but never hurts them. she rolls them around the room and they jump all over her  

[Skeksis]

They do fine as only ferrets if they get plenty of attention and out of cage time. I have one girl at the moment who I believe would switch to being an only ferret without batting an eyelid, and the others would adjust easily. If I hadn't conditioned them to enjoy the company of other ferrets they would live solitary lives quite happily!
Ferrets like the company of other ferrets if they are taught to enjoy it- go on ferret forums and you will find plenty of people going through rough introductions.
At one point I had five ferrets and three separate cages because of 'personality clashes'. Getting youngsters to accept each other- easy. They view each other as littermates.
Getting adults to accept new adults? Not always smooth sailing!  

[Shanna66]

Skeksis

They do fine as only ferrets if they get plenty of attention and out of cage time. I have one girl at the moment who I believe would switch to being an only ferret without batting an eyelid, and the others would adjust easily. If I hadn't conditioned them to enjoy the company of other ferrets they would live solitary lives quite happily!
Ferrets like the company of other ferrets if they are taught to enjoy it- go on ferret forums and you will find plenty of people going through rough introductions.
At one point I had five ferrets and three separate cages because of 'personality clashes'. Getting youngsters to accept each other- easy. They view each other as littermates.
Getting adults to accept new adults? Not always smooth sailing!

oh! you posting here reminded me that i wanted to let you and savage know that i have decided not to buy from that exotic store i was looking into. they recently started selling some kittens, not adopting out to help a shelter, selling. someone who works for them had an oops litter i think. anyways it put a bad taste in my mouth so i wont be buying from them

but that list of rescues you had given me before turned out to be not so helpful. found a couple rescues close by and its been a couple weeks and no one has returned any emails i have sent out.

finding a ferret in my area is turening out to be really tough. luckily its not something i plan of having happen for a while  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

I think I might follow in your footsteps...after Fae, I might be done with all this heartbreak. Fell in love with a fert at school.  

[Latrans]

I want a ferret so bad. :[  

[Shanna66]

Gabrielle_AnimalLuver

I think I might follow in your footsteps...after Fae, I might be done with all this heartbreak. Fell in love with a fert at school.

they need to make rats that live as long as dogs. 1-3 years just is not enough time for an animal that you fall so in love with sad


@latrans
future pet for you? or do you live somewhere that doesnt allow them. i cant remember what state you live in and i know some places out west arent as ferret friendly  

[Whiskey On A Sunday]

I am moving next month, so I may be getting one as well. I haven't had a ferret in 5+ years and miss them terribly.  

[Karii Enore]

YES ferrets ate my favorite i have 2 boys of my own and there so loving. i feed them on chicken based cat biscuits because i buy them for my cat as well so it makes it easier. i also supplement there diet with chicks every couple of days and other raw meats when i can.  

[Latrans]

Shanna66

@latrans
future pet for you? or do you live somewhere that doesnt allow them. i cant remember what state you live in and i know some places out west arent as ferret friendly

I live in California, so no ferret for me, until I move.