Before hybridization took place the differences were more obvious. To begin with the polecat would normally be darker in color and have a much larger ‘mask’ which covered it’s entire face up to the base of it’s snout, as opposed to the ferret which often has a light colored face and/or ears and only a very small mask just around the eyes. Polecats are also more muscular and have stronger jaw and bone structure than ferrets.

Probably the biggest difference though is seen in their temperament. Ferrets are more friendly, sociable and trainable as would be expected from a domesticated animal, whereas wild polecats live solitary lives and tend to be a bit cagey and unmanagable when forced to live in captivity. It is possible to keep a wild polecat hybrid as a pet, though they are mostly used as working animals for hunting purposes, and not so much for companionship. Even then the ferret is actually a better choice as they have been bred to flush rabbits out of holes in the ground, whereas polecats are independent minded hunters and often decide to eat the rabbit themselves rather than just chasing it of it’s hole for their human owner.

Let’s examine some of three most common reasons ferrets bite.

Teething – In the weeks after a ferret is born, it will bite almost constantly. Until their eyes open up, biting is partly a way for them to ‘see’ what’s around them. It’s also how they communicate with their littermates, and for some chewing relieves the pain of teething. The important thing to know is that their second set of teeth will be much less sharp than the first set. And they will bite less as they get older too. You cannot do much about biting in this stage of a ferrets life as the ferret is not yet old enough to learn. Just know it’s temporary, and be ready to start nip training as soon as your ferret outgrown the infant stage.

Play biting – Once ferrets are old enough to start playing, that’s when play biting starts. What you have to understand is that play biting isn’t meant to be mean. It’s just the result of a misunderstanding. You see ferrets love to play rough and in fact they have much thicker skin than we do, so they often need to be taught to adjust their bite when playing with a human, to make up for our much thinner and more sensitive skin. This can be achieved easily. For more detailed information, check out my tips on nip training your baby ferret. The good news is ferrets tend to play bite less as they get older.

Ferrets that like to chew – Chew biters as I call them will often start off licking or nibbling your hand (or toes) and then at some point they just lose control and bite you. It’s nothing personal against their owner. This kind of biting isn’t malicious at all. It’s more of a compulsion. For some reasons human hands and feet are just irresistible chew toys for some ferrets. The down side is that you will probably never get your ferret to completely stop doing it. The upside is that chew biters usually don’t break the skin and they tend to warn you ahead of time with the licking. This gives you a little time to distract them. Blowing gently in their face sometimes distracts them enough to get them to forget about chewing on you for a while.

The fear factor- Ferrets that feel threatened will often bite as a means of self defense. This kind of biting is a normal reaction to some abnormal problem in the ferrets life, and should not be punished or treated like a problem but should be treated as the symptom of a problem. Sometimes fear biting is triggered by physical pain and is a sign of medical problems, other times it can be a result of deep insecurities, such as a ferret might develop if they were abused or neglected. Fearful ferret bites are usually more serious than other types of bites because the ferret is actually intending to do you harm. But even so the bite itself is not the real problem. The best way to stop this kind of bite is to find out what triggered it and then eliminate that from the ferrets life.

Clucking – One of the most frequent noises you may hear your ferret make is the dook sound. It sounds sort of like a chicken cluck. At times this can indicate nervous excitement, like human laughter. You may notice ferrets do this most often when they are in social groups.

Screaming – Ferrets rarely scream or cry. If a ferret makes any sort of yelping or crying noise you can be sure he or she is in serious pain. You may hear this noise if two ferrets get into a squabble and one bites too hard. The smaller one may scream to stay STOP!

Hissing – This low pitched noise can sometimes be difficult for the human ear to pick up. It sounds sort of like the screech of a hawk. And it seems to mean something very serious to ferrets. I have seen my ferrets get in some nasty fights with one another. Fights that are hard to break up. But the hiss will usually stop a very bad fight dead in it’s tracks. It was my dominant female who usually hissed when a fight was getting out of control, so I suspect it may carry some authority. The hiss usually comes after the scream, as a sort of last resort when the scream fails to stop an attack. That is when you will often hear the hiss.

Rolling Over – Ferrets do love to wrestle and one of the ways the winner seems to declare victory is by rolling the other ferret or flipping them over on their back. Sometimes a smaller ferret will roll on it’s back to avoid a fight with a larger one, as a way of showing submission.

Bottle Brush Tail – This is usually a sign of fear though it can also signal excitement. Ferrets will sometimes fluff up their tail hair if you let them explore a new area that they are not used to. Or if they are introduced to new ferrets.

Tail Wagging – Often indicates happiness and anticipation of something fun.

Standing Up On Hind Legs – Curiosity. Ferrets will do this to try to get a better view of something. It can often be interpreted as begging but in fact your ferret is just trying to see if you have a treat for him.

Standing Up On Hind Legs And Hopping Around – Aka the weasel war dance. Ferrets do this to show how blissfully happy and excited they are. Usually they cluck loudly while doing this. Sometimes while doing the weasel war dance your ferret will hop forward right into your leg and bounce off, then start hopping backward. Which is his way of saying come get me. I want to play!

So I’m going to tell you what to expect.

First, of all baby ferrets need to be litter trained and trained not to nip. This can be frustrating as they have a very very sharp set of teeth (sharper than adult ferrets), which are almost like little razors. Don’t worry their jaws are usually pretty weak at this point. But the sharpness of their teeth can still make training them not to bite a pain literally, as they are born with the instinct to nip at anything and everything that comes near them. This instinct will diminish somewhat as they grow older though. A lot of people handle a baby kit for the first time say oh my God! I can’t deal with this animal he bites like crazy! If only they knew that this is just a passing phase. And once he is old enough to start understanding things there are ways to teach him that biting hurts. You can read more about nip training here.

Second, you will need to litter train your baby ferret. This isn’t really hard as baby ferrets have an instinct to poop away from their food and in corners in particular.  But  what you need to understand is that ferrets aren’t as picky as cats about where they go. They will naturally choose a corner but teaching a baby ferret to always go  in exactly the right spot in that corner can take some work. 

Next baby ferret require special housing to protect them from just about everything. You must take extra precautions to make sure your baby ferret’s cage is safe and does not have spaces where his head or feet can get stuck. When he gets old enough to be released from the cage you must be extremely careful at first and only let him have very limited, supervised excursions outside his cage. This is the case with new older ferrets to some extent but with babies you have to be extra careful. If there are older ferrets in the house you must keep your baby sequestered from them because sometimes older ferrets act funny around new babies. They mite see the baby as a threat and bite. Even if they respond positively they could hurt the kit just because they weigh so much more. Ferrets like to snuggle and lie on top of one another. Ferret babies have extremely fragile bones which can easily be broken by an adult putting too much weight on them.

Baby ferrets also have special medical needs. You must inquire when buying a baby ferret what shots or vaccines he has been given so your vet will be able to know which ones he still needs. Normally eight weeks is the age when kits get their distemper shot. A booster is then given at eleven weeks. Then a few weeks later is when the first rabies vaccine is given, which is also followed by a booster a few weeks after that. Also if your pet is not spayed, neutered or descented you must have these things tended to yourself. Most breeders neuter and spay all their kits before selling them but it’s still something to inquire about because female ferrets that are not used for breeding can become seriously ill if they are not spayed.

After a few minutes smelling at it the two went inside its ‘mouth’ into it’s ‘belly’ where they devoured their Christmas presents, curled up and went to sleep. Ever since it’s the only place they will sleep. They seem to really like the bell which they have been trying to get at for months but it keeps eluding them. LOL..

What I really like is that the material is really soft and more importantly washable. It’s also very durable. Most of the toys I have bought my ferrets were quickly torm to peices but this alligator is still in good condition after a year of use.

Right now breeding is probably the biggest factor. It’s a unfortunate fact that many ferret breeders do not take health into account but will often breed kits just for their fur or eye color. This reckless practice has allowed cancer and other genetic illnesses to be passed down that normally would not be if natural selection were
taking place. As a result large corporate breeders have a tendency to sell adorably cute and docile ferrets who are pretty much doomed to a short life span. What can we as ferret lovers do about this? Well to some extent we can exert influence on these corporations. But the best idea is to avoid them altogether and opt instead for
ferrets bred by small business owners or hobbyists who are more likely to actually care about the well being of the wonderful creatures they sell.

The second factor in ferret life span which ferret owners can control is the ferrets diet. One mistake that is often made by ferret owners is that they will spoil their ferrets health with sugary treats which are bad for them. I know many people who think this is just fair considering that humans like to indulge their sweet tooth once in a while, but the fact is humans are omnivores and sweet things are a part of their natural diet, while ferrets are carnivores and do not have the capacity to deal with sugar the way we do. They are very quick to develop diabetes and other illnesses. Therefore the less sugar you give your ferret, weather it be in the form of fruit, or in the form of starchy foods like bread, the better. Remember one of the reasons ferrets in the United Kingdom have often been said to live longer is because of the fact that many were kept outside and allowed to hunt their own food. This does not eliminate all fruit or sugars from their diet but it keeps them down to a healthy level. A good rule of thumb when deciding weather its OK to give your ferret a sweet snack is to ask yourself, “Is this something that could be found in the digestive tract of a mouse?”

Ferrets do tend to be slightly more active in the evening or late night than during the morning or afternoon. Therefor a lot of people will allow their ferrets to have free roam of their house (or atleast a few very ferret proofed rooms) while they are work.

This is generally a good idea because ferrets are curious animals that need mental stimulation just like people do. They might wake up every few hours while their owner is at work, to eat and poak around the house, but will usually save their really big bursts of energy for when they have someone to play with.

One problem that develops frequently is that because ferrets have such sporadic sleep patterns people will often find it difficult to be there to play with them when they wake up. So one solution is to get multiple ferrets to be companions and play mates for each other. A group of ferrets are able to amuse themselves and each other wonderfully without needing much human input. Though having some human supervision is always best. A group of adult ferrets will tend to synchronize their sleep patterns so they can all wake up and play at the same time every day.