Manitoba ferret association

Perhaps the ferret is unaccustomed to being picked up, and becomes frightened. If the ferret is blind or deaf it could become extremely startled. If this is the case, make sure the ferret knows you are there before you snatch it up into the air. Perhaps you tried cuddling the ferret when it was instead in the mood to run, and put it down after the ferret nipped you. Unfortunately, this then teaches the ferret that "Nip = Release," which ferrets seem able to learn very quickly. Like some children, ferrets seem to learn bad behavior much faster than they learn good behavior!

Ferrets play rough, and they need to learn that your skin is more sensitive than their furry playmates'. A common mistake made by people who are unaccustomed to playing with ferrets is to play rough with them. It might seem cute to allow young ferrets to nip your hands while roughhousing, but believe me, it becomes less cute when they grow older and have stronger jaws. Ferrets can be very sensitive to par- ticular odors, and certain perfumes or soaps can trigger biting even in a normally gentle animal. Nicotine from cigarettes appears especially provocative to some ferrets, especially when it lingers on a smoker's fingers, mouth and clothing. A ferret may hate the smell and bite at people who smoke.

On the other hand, some ferrets appear to love the smell of nicotine, and actually seem to get "hooked" on it. Our home once housed a smoker, and at that time we had a problem with a ferret that we adopted out to a new home. The ferret suddenly began nipping for no apparent reason. After two weeks, the ferret stopped biting. The adopter figured that the ferret was probably suffering from nicotine withdrawal, and was just as cranky as any human who was quitting cold-turkey would be. Ferrets have also been known to react to hand and face lotions. Some ferrets relish the taste of the oily, sweet-smelling lotions, and they may lick or nip the wearer. Some ferrets may also react to the alcohol in men's aftershave lotion.

A SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING TOE-BITING

Your ferret may not realize your feet are off-limits to nipping. I think it takes awhile for such a small creature to realize that your hands, feet and face are all a part of a huge you. Believe it or not, there seems to be something about stinky feet that ferrets appear to find irresistible. A wiggling toe in a sock is just as fascinating to them. So realize, you can train and retrain your ferrets, but every once in a while your pets may sneak a little toe-nipping in because human toes are just meant to be nibbled!

MORE REASONS FOR BITING

Babies of every species use their mouths to explore the world. Even human babies go through a phase in which they feel compelled to stuff everything in their mouths. Baby ferrets that nip may not be accustomed to handling and might need a little training, or they might be teething. If an older animal, or one that is normally sweet-tempered, starts biting, schedule a veterinary exam to see if there could be a medical reason. The ferret could be going blind, or it may be developing a disease that could be causing pain. Some ferrets appear to enjoy testing their owners' authority. They can be very nice, they know biting is naughty but every once in a while they'll bite somebody anyway. My first jill was very spoiled when I first obtained her, and she loved biting my foot. After awhile, I decided enough was enough and embarked on a moderately successful retraining program. Later, this jill would approach to consider my tempting foot, peer up at my face, and I could practically see the gears in her little head spinning, deciding whether or not she wanted to bite. Usually, she listened to the angel on her right shoulder that told her to be good, but sometimes the devil on her left shoulder got the better of her.

Environmental changes may bring about some biting behavior. Have you recently moved, or experienced other major changes in your living arrangements? Was your ferret accustomed to four large rooms in which to run, and is now confined to a cage most of the day? Did you get married, divorced, take a new job or begin working longer hours? Did you introduce any new pets to your home, or have a baby? Any changes such as these might cause a ferret to become uncomfortable, and it may exhibit that discomfort as an occasional nip.

Ferrets can be susceptible to stress, and may act up because of it. Bringing a new ferret into your home is a big adjustment for the ferret. I recommend people give new ferrets two to three weeks to settle in before becoming overly concerned about any behavior problems, including biting. Many times, once things have calmed down and the ferret becomes accustomed to its surroundings, behavioral "glitches" will resolve themselves.

Continued on the The Enigma of the Biting Ferret Part 3