Karen Dale Dustman - Ferrets: Providing the Best Home for Your Ferret

Vice President, Chief Content Officer: June Kikuchi

Vice President, Kennel Club Books: Andrew DePrisco

Production Supervisor: Jessica Jaensch

Production Coordinator: Tracy Vogtman

I-5 Press: Jennifer Calvert, Amy Deputato,

Lindsay Hanks, Karen Julian, Jarelle S. Stein

Rachel Rice, indexer

Book design and layout by Michele Lanci-Altomare

The black-footed ferret photo on page 13 is courtesy of Wyoming Game and Fish Photo.

The ferrets in this book are referred to as he or she in alternating chapters unless their gender is apparent from the activity discussed.

Text copyright 1998, 2001 by I-5 Press. Previously published in a larger format in Ferrets! A Fun & Care Book.

Photographs copyright 1998, 2001 by Stockdale, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of I-5 Press, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.

The Library of Congress has cataloged an earlier printing as follows:
Dustman, Karen Dale.
Ferrets / Karen Dale Dustman ; photographs by Renee Stockdale.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ).
ISBN-10: 1-889540-72-2 (pbk.)
ISBN-13: 978-1-889540-72-6 (pbk.)
eISBN-13: 978-1-937049-28-7
1. Ferrets as pets. I. Title.
SF459.F47 D86 2001
636.976628dc21

2001001331

I-5 Press

A Division of I-5 Publishing, LLC

3 Burroughs

Irvine, California 92618

Printed and bound in China

15 14 13 12 11 5 6 7 8 9 10

Acknowledgments

IN WRITING THIS BOOK, I HAVE DISCOVERED JUST how warm and giving ferret folks truly are. This is my heartfelt thank you to Dr. Deborah Briggs, Jeanne Carley, Dr. Diane Cosko, Chrissy DeNayer, Dr. Deborah Kemmerer, J. C. Matalon, and Diane Rogers for reading drafts, sharing background material, making terrific suggestions, and answering innumerable questions. I could not have completed this project without their kind assistance.

Special thanks are due to Dr. Tom Greek and to Micki Wingate, who endured repeated rough drafts and phone calls with grace and humor.

While each and every one of these wonderful people did their very best to point out mistakes and suggest corrections, the responsibility for any errors that may remain is, of course, purely my own.

Although legal issues are touched on in several places in this book, please be aware that it is not intended to be relied on as legal advice. The legal status of ferrets in some parts of the country is in flux and may well continue to be so. Questions about your particular situation can best be answered by a lawyer in your state.

I wish I could introduce you personally to Rene Stockdale, the artist behind the beautiful photographs in this book. Although I didnt know her before I began this project, Rene became a special friend by the time we finished. I am so fortunate to have had her feedback, suggestions, and constant enthusiasm! Special thanks, also, to Pets International, Ltd., and Marshall Pet Products for generously providing products for these photos.

Above all, Id like to wish a weasel war dance of happiness to you, the reader of this book. May your ferrets always be dancing.

K.D.D.

I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MICKI WINGATE OF Checker Farm Ferrets; Kristin and Micki from Pet Stop of South Lyon, Michigan; The Humane Society of Huron Valley; Shannon Valley Ferrets; and the human models Amy McDonald, Dr. Mark McDonald, Marti Jo Blackwood, Myia Blackwood, Keli Quigley, Robin Meinicki, Jake Meinicki, Trevor Meinicki, Jerid McDonald, Maxine Harris, and Ken Harris for their assistance with this book. Special thanks to the ferret models Gabriel, Possum, and Perry.

R.S.

Contents

Queen Victoria treasured her albino ferrets, like the ferret pictured here, and ordered extravagant cages to be built for them.

Ferrets have a rich and fascinating history, which has included association with such famous figures as Augustus Caesar and Genghis Khan.

F RIENDLY, FRISKY, AND INQUISITIVE, DOMESTIC FERRETS are relative newcomers to the American pet scene. But theyre hardly new human companions. According to some sources, the domestic ferrets long and illustrious history may date back as far as 3000 B.C., some ancients are said to have used them to hunt rodents in granaries.

Although subsequent details of the domestic ferrets history remain sketchy, ferrets reportedly were popular in ancient Greece and Rome and won fame (if not fortune) helping Augustus Caesar combat an overabundance of rabbits in the Balearic Islands. Some historians speculate that returning crusaders brought the domestic ferret home to Europe; others say it was the Romans or the Normans. In the thirteenth century, Genghis Khan was a ferret fancier, and in the fourteenth century, King Richard II of England granted his subjects licenses to use ferrets to hunt rabbitsprovided they didnt hunt on Sundays.

In more recent times, Queen Victoria kept a group of pampered albino ferrets in royal style, presenting them as gifts to special friends. Sometime around 1875or perhaps even earlierferret pioneers came to the New World, likely serving as rat catchers aboard sailing ships.

The playful otter is a distant relative of the ferret.

Ferrets earliest association with people probably was in a working capacity. Their lithe, sinuous bodies are perfect for ferreting out mice, rats, and other agricultural or domestic pests, and people quickly figured out ways to use ferrets to help hunt rabbits and other game.

Around the turn of the twentieth century, one entire townNew London, Ohiowas nicknamed Ferretville because of the number of ferret breeders who lived there. During the areas heyday, an estimated 40,000 ferrets a year were raised and shipped out by rail to destinations across the country. Shipping companies bought from fifty to one hundred ferrets at a time to keep wharf rats in check. Other customers were farmers and hunters. One Ferretville breeder reportedly cleared $30,000 a year selling ferrets to huntersa goodly sum in those days.

Not surprising for critters related to the mink and ermine, ferrets sleek and silky pelts have also been prized by the fur industry. One researcher speculates that Jasons Golden Fleece was actually the pelt of a sable, a close relation of the ferret. As late as 1950, some 400,000 ferret and polecat furs were being sold around the world.

Today, ferrets are weaseling their way into a growing number of American hearts and houses as pets. Intelligent, playful, fastidious, and quiet, ferrets integrate well into homes ranging from city apartments to mansions. Like cats, ferrets can be playful and independent. Like dogs, ferrets are affectionate and can be taught to do tricks.

Still, caring for a pet ferret is not the same as caring for a cat or dog. Many ferrets needs and behaviors are different from those of other pets and may take a little getting used to if you have not had the joy of living with a ferret before.