i am getting a ferret soon and am wondering how to litter box train them?? also any other hints/tips on training ferrets would be great!! thanks!
Tags: ferret
-
Great Hideaway For Your Ferrets!
Care For Your Farret or Ferret
Ferret Supplies At Discount
well my belive is to keep a small pice of puu in the litter box and,that should do the job..
First, ferrets tend to poop in corners. Get a corner litter box and place it in your ferrets cage. I would suggest using zip ties to tie it in place or the ferret will be able to move it. To do this you will have to drill holes in the upper corners of the litter box. Secondly place litter and a little bit of the ferret’s own poop in the box. He/she will go there, smell it’s own scent and proceed to use the litter box. It really is as easy as it sounds. If you allow your ferret to run loose in the house they can also be paper trained or you can put a littler box in every corner of the room and clean it out after the ferret is put back in its cage. You should NEVER leave your ferret out and unattended. They get into ALL kinds of trouble. Your ferret MUST have a minimum of two hours a day outside the cage.They are worse than a two year old and your house MUST be ferret proofed. They can be very destructive if left to their own devices. If you have not done so, please get a copy of Ferrets For Dummies and read it thoroughly BEFORE your ferret comes home. They can be taught cute tricks too. My guys all know how to sit up and beg for treats.
Unline cats they don’t take to it automatically. To litter-train your ferret, start him out in a small area, perhaps his cage, and expand his space gradually as he becomes better trained. If it’s a big cage, you might need to block off part of it at first.
Fasten the litter pan down so it can’t be tipped over. Keep a little dirty litter in it at first, to mark it as a bathroom and to deter him from digging in it. Don’t let it get too dirty, though; some ferrets can be pretty finicky about their pans. Most ferrets won’t mess up their beds or food, so put towels or food bowls in all the non-litter corners until your ferret is used to making the effort to find a pan. Bedding that has been slept in a few times and smells like sleeping ferret will be even better than clean bedding for convincing a ferret that a corner is a bedroom instead of a bathroom.
Ferrets generally use their pans within fifteen minutes of waking up, so make sure yours uses the pan before you let him out, or put him back in the cage five or ten minutes after you wake him up to come play. When he’s out running around for playtime, keep a close eye on him, and put him in his litter pan every half hour or so, or whenever you see him “pick up a magazine and start to back into a corner” (backing up to corners)
Whenever your ferret uses a litterpan, whether you had to carry him to it or not, give him lots of praise and a little treat right away. Ferrets will do almost anything for treats, and they’re fast learners. Within a few days, your ferret will probably be faking using the pan, just to get out of the cage or get a treat. That’s okay, at least it reinforces the right idea.
Positive reinforcement (treats and praise) are usually much more effective than any punishment, but if you need one, use a firm “No!” and cage time. Rubbing the ferret’s nose in his mess won’t do any good. He can’t connect it to it being in the wrong place, and ferrets sniff their litter pans anyway. As with all training, consistency and immediacy are crucial. Scolding a ferret for a mistake that’s hours or even a few minutes old probably won’t help a bit.
If your ferret’s favorite corner isn’t yours, you have a few choices, you could put a pan (or newspaper, if it’s a tight spot) in it, ferrets have short legs and attention spans, so you’ll probably need several pans around your home anyway. Otherwise, try putting a crumpled towel or a food bowl in the well-cleaned corner, making it look more like a bedroom or kitchen than a latrine. “Accident” corners should be cleaned very well with vinegar, diluted bleach, or another bad-smelling disinfectant (don’t let your ferret onto it ’till it dries!), specifically so they don’t continue to smell like ferret bathrooms but also as a general deterrent. For the same reason, you probably shouldn’t clean litter pans with bleach, certainly not the same one you’re using as a deterrent elsewhere. Urine which has soaked into wood will still smell like a bathroom to a ferret even when you can’t tell, so be sure to clean it very well, perhaps with Simple Green or a pet odor remover, and consider covering wooden cage floors with linoleum or polyurethane.
Nobody’s perfect although almost every ferret can be trained to use a litter pan, there is individual variation. Ferrets just aren’t as diligent about their pans as most cats, so there will be an occasional accident. Even well-trained ferrets tend to lose track of their litter pans when they’re particularly frightened or excited, or if they’re in a new house or room. In general you can expect at least a 90% “hit” rate, though some ferrets just don’t catch on as well and some do considerably better. At least ferrets are small, so their accidents are pretty easy to clean up.
Finally, if your ferret seems to have completely forgotten all about litter pans, you might need to retrain him by confining him to a smaller area or even a cage for a week or so and gradually expanding his space as he catches on again.
Tips: Get some 8n1 Ferretone is a skin and coat supplement but they love it. You can put a tablespoon or so on their belly and clip their nails with no problems. Also great for your bi-weekly to monthly ear cleanings.
Check out http://www.ferret.com for great deals on ferret items you will save a ton of money…
Put the litter box in the corner…ferrets like to poop in corners..give it time to use the box after they wake up, they poop after sleeping..and remember, even the best trained ferret can only do it 80% or the time.
Easy steps.
Whenever you are near him and he is caged keep an eye on him. Whenever, he wakes up you will hear him moving around, put him immediately in his litter box. He will climb out. Do it again and again 5 or 6 times and eventually he will go in the litter box (or he doesn’t have to go this time). When he goes give him a treat and praise. Keep doing this and keep the litter box clean. People say to leave fresh poo in there, but all three of my ferrets refuse to go if there is any poo in the box.
Personally, I clicker train all of my ferrets.
Takes persistance and patience. You can get a corner litter box, but my ferrets (I have 6 and have owned ferrets for almost 4 years now) perfer larger litter boxes with the low fronts. Put them in corners and make sure not to keep them too clean, but not too dirty either. One little reminder piece of feces should be suficient. And I would say let them choose the corner, because if you try it, it may never work. Also, consider getting several boxes for a large cage or room as ferrets have a small intestinal tract and when they need to go, then need to go then! I reccomend critter litter – very absorbant.
As for other tips:
1. Buy your ferret products online. Much cheaper than in a store, even including shipping. Ferret.com has flat rate 6.99 shipping. Other favorite stores of mine are ferretdepot.com (which I ordered from today), and ferretstore.com.
2. Choose a good quality ferret food. I highly reccomend Totally Ferret. If you write the company, the will send you a sample of their food and treats. My ferrets love the food and it has been reccomended by 3 vets – all small animal specialists. Be careful with treats – they are obligate carnivors – they can’t digest fruits and veggies.
3. Don’t try to bathe your ferret too often. That will make them smell more as they try to relubericate their skin. Once every few months, as needed is plenty.
4. Give them plenty of out of cage time. They need the exercise. Consider getting two ferrets as they are very social creatures and need interaction. They can do okay on their own, but need lots of attention to stay happy and healthy.
5. Choose a good vet and make sure to take them for yearly checkups and shots.
And most importantly, make sure you can afford a ferret. They aren’t cheap to purchase, and their supplies – food, litter, treats, toys, etc. – aren’t cheap either. Also, vet bills must be considered. Ferrets are predisposed to several ilnesses, which you should be aware of and know symptoms for before purchasing. Right now I have a ferret with a tumor – I’ve already paid out over $250 and that hasn’t included any treatment, which I expect to be around $500, assuming she can be helped. (It couldn’t be removed surgically, although they did try).
All this said, good luck. Ferrets make wonderful pets and companions. I love mine. Watch out for ferret math – it gets most people. You’ll start out with one or two… then before you know it, you have 6 or more!