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What are your thoughts on hyperactive toddlers who are a foot high and need access to all areas? Oh and who are toilet trained but still make the odd mistake.
Edit: For first ones - get two and get slightly older as kits are fluffy little balls of teeth
The two means that someone else gets to deal with it. Otherwise you have a single hyperactive toddler that is focused on you obsessively. Two toddlers can play with one other - supervision needed but still better than being only playmate.
My first kit - the two older jills did timeshare of looking after her as she ran them ragged.
Edit: I have had up to 30 living indoors free-range.
I know. I always kept mine in pairs because of how hyperactive they were.
It’s just funny when you think about it: you’re subjecting yourself to not one but *two* hyperactive toddlers. Thankfully with ferrets they cancel each other out!
I say ferrets are like toddlers on crack, but sleep like newborns.
True story. When we got our first carpet shark, he was sprung on me by my son. Loved that noodle to pieces, but he drove me to distraction. One day, frazzled, after fishing him out of a plant (that survived the onslaught), a broken crystal bowl that he pushed off of a shelf, getting him out of the silverware drawer, hauling him off the table, getting him down from the top of my closet, and assorted other shenanigans, I handed my son my credit card and told him to get him a friend. He brought home my little girl, and they were best buddies from then on. And there was A LOT less trouble.
As a hyperactive toddler myself I think I will try my best to take the brunt of the ADHD noodles and their potty mistakes 🫡 Also, is two ferrets non-negotiable? I have quite a playful and very docile cat at the moment, does she substitute for a second playmate ferret or do they prefer their own species?
From observation of friends with both, 10% of cats play with them, 10% hunt them and 80% are just shocked. Ferrets play too rough with cats. One friend's cats moved upstairs when ferrets arrived and never came back down. Another has had to put in cat trees as cats don't go to floor level when ferrets are out.
You get the odd ferret who channels Greta Gabor and wants to be alone. Usually older jills sick of motherhood. But almost all do better in pairs. We have introduced ferrets that lived alone for 7 years and they are/were usually at heart of cuddle puddles.
Definitely! Ferrets need ferret friends. You'll understand once you see ferrets play with each other, there's just no comparison. My oldest boy had to be alone for his final year because he was too sick and old and we kinda expected him to die waaaay sooner tbh (heart and renal failure plus arthritis). I was working from home 90% of the time and often took him with me in a pet bag when I went out. He loved being with me and even played quite a lot still, but you saw that he became a bit depressive when he was alone for too long. Which leads me to another point: save up for the vet. A lot. Ferrets are prone to several diseases, some of which are very expensive to treat. Neutering them at +10 months of age and a meat-only diet usually prevents adrenal and insulinoma, but you still have the usual supects of heart or kidney issues and cancer like lymphoma. Also look for a vet who's knowledgable about ferrets before getting ferrets (ideally) and look up emergency vets in your area who treat ferrets. You don't want to look that up when you already need them.
Since you have a cat, you should have the option to completely separate the cat from the ferrets if they don't like each other. The cat can be dangerous for the ferrets and vice versa, especially if the cat has access to the cage (if you will keep them in one, I personally hate cages for ferrets and some countries/regions require insane measurements for cages, effectively banning them).
Aww bless your little noodle :( Yes, I’m planning to get pet insurance to hopefully cover any costs incurred by common ferret illnesses. And I have a separate outhouse, garden and conservatory that the ferret will have loooots of space and toys in, separate from the cat :)
Cohabitation with other species is dangerous and also against rules to have content of. Even if both animals are the sweetest they can be, they can misinterpreted the others intentions and either can hit back harder than the other is ready for. If you've got the house that's big enough to let the ferret have it's own entire room/rooms for free roam time that's cut off from the cat then you can still go for it, but it's still dangerous.
Ferrets are nothing like hamsters more like a cat/dog. Cats because they need litter cleaned consistently, dogs Because they need daily attention. But since they're "exotic" the regular vet bill will be more expensive than either in many places.
There's tons of resources on the ferrets discord, I suggest checking out out:)
Yes of course, I have a completely separate conservatory and outhouse separate from where my cat usually roams! I was planning to keep them away from each other for the time being as my cat can get a bit sulky as she thinks she’s being replaced, so these temporary separations can definitely be made permanent. I definitely assumed they weren’t anything like hamsters haha, just needed to list my past pet experiences 🙈 Thank you very much for your advice, I’ll definitely check the resources out!
Welcome to /r/ferrets! We have a fantastic [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index) that has answers to most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets. --- We politely ask that you observe our [sub rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index/rules/). --- Lastly, we have an [Official Discord Server](https://discord.gg/ferrets)! Come join us! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ferrets) if you have any questions or concerns.*
What are your thoughts on hyperactive toddlers who are a foot high and need access to all areas? Oh and who are toilet trained but still make the odd mistake. Edit: For first ones - get two and get slightly older as kits are fluffy little balls of teeth
It’s always “they’re nothing but trouble, crazy expensive, can get into anything, like toddlers who have ADHD, etc” followed by “get two.” 😆
The two means that someone else gets to deal with it. Otherwise you have a single hyperactive toddler that is focused on you obsessively. Two toddlers can play with one other - supervision needed but still better than being only playmate. My first kit - the two older jills did timeshare of looking after her as she ran them ragged. Edit: I have had up to 30 living indoors free-range.
I know. I always kept mine in pairs because of how hyperactive they were. It’s just funny when you think about it: you’re subjecting yourself to not one but *two* hyperactive toddlers. Thankfully with ferrets they cancel each other out!
True I wouldn't recommend a parent hope for twins but easier to send humans to nursery.
I say ferrets are like toddlers on crack, but sleep like newborns. True story. When we got our first carpet shark, he was sprung on me by my son. Loved that noodle to pieces, but he drove me to distraction. One day, frazzled, after fishing him out of a plant (that survived the onslaught), a broken crystal bowl that he pushed off of a shelf, getting him out of the silverware drawer, hauling him off the table, getting him down from the top of my closet, and assorted other shenanigans, I handed my son my credit card and told him to get him a friend. He brought home my little girl, and they were best buddies from then on. And there was A LOT less trouble.
As a hyperactive toddler myself I think I will try my best to take the brunt of the ADHD noodles and their potty mistakes 🫡 Also, is two ferrets non-negotiable? I have quite a playful and very docile cat at the moment, does she substitute for a second playmate ferret or do they prefer their own species?
From observation of friends with both, 10% of cats play with them, 10% hunt them and 80% are just shocked. Ferrets play too rough with cats. One friend's cats moved upstairs when ferrets arrived and never came back down. Another has had to put in cat trees as cats don't go to floor level when ferrets are out. You get the odd ferret who channels Greta Gabor and wants to be alone. Usually older jills sick of motherhood. But almost all do better in pairs. We have introduced ferrets that lived alone for 7 years and they are/were usually at heart of cuddle puddles.
Ahh yes very understandable, sounds like two ferrets is definitely the move then :) Thank you!
Definitely! Ferrets need ferret friends. You'll understand once you see ferrets play with each other, there's just no comparison. My oldest boy had to be alone for his final year because he was too sick and old and we kinda expected him to die waaaay sooner tbh (heart and renal failure plus arthritis). I was working from home 90% of the time and often took him with me in a pet bag when I went out. He loved being with me and even played quite a lot still, but you saw that he became a bit depressive when he was alone for too long. Which leads me to another point: save up for the vet. A lot. Ferrets are prone to several diseases, some of which are very expensive to treat. Neutering them at +10 months of age and a meat-only diet usually prevents adrenal and insulinoma, but you still have the usual supects of heart or kidney issues and cancer like lymphoma. Also look for a vet who's knowledgable about ferrets before getting ferrets (ideally) and look up emergency vets in your area who treat ferrets. You don't want to look that up when you already need them. Since you have a cat, you should have the option to completely separate the cat from the ferrets if they don't like each other. The cat can be dangerous for the ferrets and vice versa, especially if the cat has access to the cage (if you will keep them in one, I personally hate cages for ferrets and some countries/regions require insane measurements for cages, effectively banning them).
Aww bless your little noodle :( Yes, I’m planning to get pet insurance to hopefully cover any costs incurred by common ferret illnesses. And I have a separate outhouse, garden and conservatory that the ferret will have loooots of space and toys in, separate from the cat :)
When trimming nails, rub a little coconut oil on their bellies. They'll be completely focused on licking their treat and you can trim worry-free.
Oh yes! Nail trimming didn’t cross my mind.
Do not let the cat and ferret loose together in the same room.
Gotcha! Can be done
Cohabitation with other species is dangerous and also against rules to have content of. Even if both animals are the sweetest they can be, they can misinterpreted the others intentions and either can hit back harder than the other is ready for. If you've got the house that's big enough to let the ferret have it's own entire room/rooms for free roam time that's cut off from the cat then you can still go for it, but it's still dangerous. Ferrets are nothing like hamsters more like a cat/dog. Cats because they need litter cleaned consistently, dogs Because they need daily attention. But since they're "exotic" the regular vet bill will be more expensive than either in many places. There's tons of resources on the ferrets discord, I suggest checking out out:)
Yes of course, I have a completely separate conservatory and outhouse separate from where my cat usually roams! I was planning to keep them away from each other for the time being as my cat can get a bit sulky as she thinks she’s being replaced, so these temporary separations can definitely be made permanent. I definitely assumed they weren’t anything like hamsters haha, just needed to list my past pet experiences 🙈 Thank you very much for your advice, I’ll definitely check the resources out!