Ferret Biting?

Question

Hi,
I am getting a ferret and I wanted to ask some questions about biting. Do they carry diseases? (Rabies...etc?) What's the best way to stop biting? Can they really break bones by biting? I saw that as an answer earlier lol. Anything else I need to know?

Answer 1

You do not want to flick their noses or physically punish them otherwise. They will learn to associate the human hand with pain and that is likely to make a biter bite worse. I hate it when people suggest that, grrrrr.
I adopted a biter last year, a 3 1/2 month old male named Bart. First off, young ferrets like that are mouthy, like most young animals, they experience the world around them with their mouths. This behavior will let up a bit as they get older.
Secondly, learn to read your ferret. If you have one that easily gets over-excited, don't try to force cuddle time on him when he's at peak capacity, let him run it off a bit or play with him lively enough to wear him down a bit before you actually handle him. While you play with him like that, keep a toy between you. I use a towel to play, or this mitten I found called a "Kitten Mitten" which is a glove with long fingers that have pompoms and bells at the end of the fingers.
Then, as far as disciplining an unruly biter: take the ferret by the skin of the back of the neck(=scruffing), look him straight in the face and with a very loud and stern voice say "NO BITE!!!" (or whatever other command you pick, it doesn't really matter, you can just make a loud noise, really). Then put him down. If he continues to bite, you can also drag him along the floor or the couch or whatever surface you are on for a few inches or so, GENTLY!!! This is how an older ferret or a female would discipline the youngster.
I've tried these things and they have worked for me.
Some people claim that TIME OUTS work as well, but only if the time out does not exceed 5 minutes, as ferrets have a short attention span. It has never worked for me, but every ferret is different. Good luck to you.
Diseases like rabies? Your ferret will need annual distemper and rabies shots.
Breaking bones? I guess if you were a small child it could, but ordinarily......NO.

PS: Bitter apple only works if you animal ALWAYS bites you in the same spot, of if you don't mind soaking in the stuff, lol.

Answer 2

lol Please don't believe any nonsense. If it sounds 'off' its probably because it is. Ferrets can contract rabies and distemper. It is a good idea to get your ferret vaccinated against both, however, it is not required in all states.

I imagine a ferret could break the bones of a small rodent or bird but not a human bone. Ferrets do 'nip' and it is almost only ever out of play. Typically this is common with 'kits' (baby ferrets) and eventually the ferret 'grows out of it'. Even so...adult ferrets will still nip in play. This is normal and is typically not painful or bothersome in the least. If it does bother you, you could try to not use your hands to play with your ferret. Instead utilize toys for play time. Problems with biting arise when a ferret bites their human owner and breaks the skin. This is not normal and the problem needs to be addressed immediately.

Any other information is fairly easy to find. You could purchase a few books OR visit some ferret websites. I happen to like these two:

http://www.ferretuniverse.com
http://www.ferretsr1.org

Answer 3

Hey Hun, firstly NO ferrets I am sure cannot break bones, no way I could not imagine my ferrets ever wanting to either.
They do not carry disease either Hun so no worries there.
As for biting well I had this with both my boys but now they are fine and with patience and training yours will soon grow out of it.
Some ferrets never bite for long, my first ever ferret Squiggle was never really a biter, he just used to push me at the start to see what he could get away with the tinker!
Bradley my other was a nightmare for it! When ferrets are babies they live with other kits and their form of play is to bite eachother, and roll about nipping and dragging eachother around squeaking joyfully, the thing is when they go to live with a human they do not realise that our skin isnt as tough as their ferret friends and you have to teach them this isn't allowed anymore.
I would say nip it in the bud, do not allow biting from the start, I often found ferrets love to go for the inside of your arms dont know why, They do not do it to be vicious or mean they are just asking you to play its the way they know how to.
You will learn when your ferret will bite, it wont be a sudden thing out of the blue where the ferret lunges (this would be rare maybe with a badly trained older ferret or a ferret that has a health problem)
Before he bites he will jump up and down playfully the nip and nip again, mine have sometimes walked upto me when I have been sitting on the bed and nibbled my toes, for some reason another irrisistable part of the human body to a ferret!
So if he bites you VERY gently scruff the back of the ferrets neck, (you will notice his expression compleatly change as he submits and stays still) this is as the mum ferret would have done this to them to put them in their place in the litter and groups of ferrets do this too when trying to establish who is pack member.
Once you have scruffed speak "NO" clearly then put the ferret straight down,
If he does it again the scruff again and hiss (as the mum would) then GENTLY drag the ferret along the floor, PLEASE be careful this isnt cruel if done properly.
If this dosent work and he will not leave you alone enough is enough, as soon as he bites pick him up and place him in his cage for a few minuties.
Eventually with this if you stick to it the ferret will rather not bite as he knows what to expect, you often also find when the ferret matures he will not bite anymore anyway.
Another thing that worked perfect with my bradley was when he used to bite I would blow a loud raspberry near his face, he hated that! hehe!
One other thing to consider before getting a ferret is, do you definatly have the time? ferrets love excercise and to spend time with you.
Also I would reccomend a MALE ferret for the reasons that Female ferrets go into heat in their first spring (generally in February) and they will remain in season until successfully mated. If mating does not occur, the females will succumb to aplastic anemia and die a most painful death. So female ferrets will need to be spayed. PLEASE be aware of this.
Here is a helpful website and a forum!
Goodluck and mail me if you need to! xxx
EXCUSE THE SPELLINGS SPELL CHECK WILL NOT WORK DAMMIT!
http://www.ferrets.org/Caring_For_Ferrets.htm
http://forum.ferret.com/default.asp

Answer 4

All commercial diets are really somewhat processed garbage designed to make the puppy nutrition marketplace wealthy no longer keep your ferret healthful (in spite of what some vets/the attractive lable on the packet says). the great element you should do on your ferret (and your wallet) is grant him with a technique of total raw proper prey products like rats, mice, quail, and rabbits. those will be offered frozen from reptile nutrition vendors, kept on your freezer,m and thawed as mandatory. If for some reason you're unable to get total prey products, the subsequent wonderful element must be to feed whats elementary as a prey style nutrition plan. Google prey style nutrition plan for ferrets and also you probable arise with a heap of excellent information on the thanks to attempt this.

Answer 5

There is a product line, Bitter Apple, and Sour Grapes, used to deter biting in all pets. I have used the Bitter Apple, and it tastes extremely bitter! So, to use it, spray it on your hands or wherever your pet is biting. When they bite you and taste the spray, they will be less likely to bite again, or may bite more gently. I have a ferret who used to bite. I sprayed my hands, and he has learned not to bite hard. He still likes to bite in play, and that is fine as long as he remembers to be gentle. If he bites too hard, I'll say "OW!" and he becomes more gentle.

Answer 6

They can bite. They can bite pretty hard too. They need to be vaccinated for rabies just like dogs and cats. I guess one could break a finger if it bit it hard enough, but not very likely.

Answer 7

One of the easier ways to train them out of biting is to gently flick their noses with your finger whenever they try to bite. They learn that if they try biting you, they get pain for their troubles. They learn very quickly to stop. I've had a ferret trainer tell me that if the problem persists they stick their finger down the ferret's throat (very briefly and not far enough to suffocate), but I could never do that. The flicking their nose seems to work with most ferrets I've come across that are inclined to bite.

Answer 8

Had Ferrets all my life....If handed gently.they are not inclined to bite.If they do ,no they do not break bones .No diseases,but they do smell.musk.They can also ,if not cared for properly get fleas and ticks. LURCHERMAN

Answer 9

if you piss em off, he will bite you. If he bites u, bit em back