newbie hoping to have a reason to stick around!

[gilraen]

I'm a sucker for an animal in need, I guess! There's a young ferret(supposed to be just under a year?) at the local petco up for adoption after being abused(as in, left in a tiny cage, no toys, no hides, and the ONE TIME in 8 months she was taken out, she bit out of fear and was thrown by the "lady"s husband into a wall for it!) I'm really considering getting her, and giving her a GOOD life, but I wanted to make sure that I could handle the care first! My biggest concern was about food. From everything I've read on them, ferrets are carnivores. But sooo manyyy of the foods at the stores have a mainly corn base(not good for most animals!) or if they ARE mostly meat, are also mostly bi-products of this, or preserved with enough chemicals to nearly embalm something with!

I know she's going to be a challenge if I get her(a couple of employees are already saying she is a lost hopeless cause and want to see her put to death for biting them when they stuck their fingers in the cage) but I don't really think she is. Last night I took some of the (yum, GARBAGE!) kibble out of her dish(it was soaking in water until it got soft for a while) while it was outside the cage and she willingly took it from me to eat it. That doesn't really sound like a lost cause to me(I'm strange though ) The store's DM has already said to not adopt her to anyone unless that person can hold her without being bitten, but I talked to one of the managers(who knows the way I take care of my other pets) who is going to ask the general manager if I can bring her home with me. I'm calling back in the morning to see if I can get her, or if she's there until someone can "tame" her or until they give up on her. Hoping I'm up to the challenge!

I really was curious about a more natural diet, though. I've heard that some people feed butchered meat to them, and that some people give them prey animals. With the prey animals(could do, I've owned mice and rats before, but can feed them if I need to, also) can I use frozen/thawed ones like reptile keepers do? Seems like it would be a lot better(no parasites, and no worries about not being able to get more than mice, invertebrates, chicks around easter and nothing more!) since I could get a large-ish variety at once and then feed them off until I need to make another order. Though, like I have mentioned, I'm a total newbie(though I've always wanted a ferret ) and don't know if that is a good way to feed or not. Or should I have some mix of the two for variety's sake?

I figure IF I get her, I'm going to snag a SMALL bag/carton of whatever they are feeding them at the store(think Marshall's. ew.) JUST because the people who dumped her didn't say what they were feeding her(and knowing the *ahem* very nice gentleman who ran the cruddy store in my hometown, who would tell people getting ferrets from him to just use 9-lives >.<) and considering the thought that I doubt anyone who is willing to throw their pet against a wall is to concerned about proper diet. . . They just stuck her on what they feed them there, and if that isn't what she was getting before, I don't want to suddenly switch her food twice in a week on her. And I figured that would give me PLENTY of time, before it was gone, to research proper diet(assuming, once again, that I get her that is) for one. Are there any links here(just somewhat browsed a bit) that say what a proper whole prey diet, or a proper whole prey mixed with other meats(if that is a good diet inclusion?) should be like?

Thanks, and I'll let you guys know tomorrow sometime if I can get her or not(though knowing the new manager of the place, I'm probably getting excited over nothing. . . )

[hillcrestferrets]

I hope you do get her - a ferret that has been abused like this really just needs a lot of time and patience to blossom. Bless you! Let us know if you get her, we can certainly help you get her switched. While kibble is bad, when you first bring her home, bring home the food she is used to eating just to get her comfortable in her new space while you make the switch.

All the best,
ann b.

[Heather]

Hi and welcome. May I first say that you are an amazing person to take on a difficult ferret as your first When I read your post I almost cried. You could have been writing about my Porthos. He was turned into rescue after spending the first 9 months of his little life living in a hamster cage, no litter box, no hammy no bedding, just some pine shavings in the bottom of the cage. He had bitten his person a couple of times, she had or someone had either thrown him or kicked him (damaged his hip, which caused him to walk with a strange little swagger, hence his name Porthos the Pirate), he was so skinny we could count every rib and visibly see his spine. He was so covered in fleas we could see them moving around on him (he was also enemic). As sick as he was, he bit our rescue director so badly, when she first went to take him out of the cage (took them about 10 min to pull his teeth out of her thumbnail and the bite had gone to the bone) that she couldn't handle him. So he came to live with me He was a little wild thing . For the first couple of weeks, he couldn't settle, he just tore around the house. Eventually, after about 8 straight hours, I would lock him up in the hospital cage and he would finaly drop off to sleep. I took me about a year of work but it got to the point that I could take him with me to art shows and exhibitions without fearing that he would bite someone (I never did trust him to behave himself if someone else was handling him) but he loved to be snuggled and held (making up for lost time ). I love the hardcore biters, they have a special place in my heart. I think because they so want to be loved but just can't either get past an experience or like Mr. Squiggly is deaf and was misuderstood. I really miss Porthos(he passed on, a victim of juvenile lymphomas) but I now have his doppleganger in Mr. Fun-Go Squiggly whom I adopted off the forum here as he was a horrible biter too. I've found that treating them softly and not scruffing is one of the better ways of dealing with the hardcore biters. You want to teach them that hands are good and don't provide pain. I use treats, clicker training and time outs to teach these sensitive little souls (they really are).
I wish you luck, please if you get this little one, feel free to post any questions you may have and someone will try and help you out. They're really friendly here. As far as food I've found that a raw diet helps the biters, it gives them something other than your hand to sink their teeth into . There would be no reason as to why you couldn't feed frozen prey....I do Actually, I feed a mix of ground, whole meat and prey. I'm presently starting a mouse colony to try and cut my costs a little and to provide my guys with some treats. Feel free to browse the diet section of the forum, go into some of the mentored switches and see some of the actual switching techniques and definitely take a look at the prey and raw feeding sections.
Good luck and I hope that I will see you around
ciao

[suds]

Hi Gil
welcome to the forum, You found the best place to learn about diets and nutrition , You will have your hands full ,but with time ,love and paitents she will show you lots of love and joy back. Keep us posted even if you dont get her please.
Look around read as many threads as you can there is alot of great info here , ask any questions you mite have .

goodluck and look forward in seeing you around

[Forum Administrator]

I really was curious about a more natural diet, though. I've heard that some people feed butchered meat to them, and that some people give them prey animals.

Yup that is right, there are different types of natural diets out there. IMO the best one is a whole prey diet. This is made up of (you guessed it) whole animals, like mice and yes, absolutely you can feed them frozen-thawed. Some feed live but I prefer frozen thawed. Most people get their prey animals from Rodentpro.com.

When feeding whole prey, variety is key. Variety of prey (I recommend atleast 3 types of animals) and variety of ages (60-70% adult animals with the rest being young/babies or senior animals).

When feeding a RAW diet based on the prey model, people feed a variety of raw foods (meat/bone/organ) and try to replicate the percentages in a whole prey animal (its actually not that hard). Variety is key here to, I recommend atleast 3 types of meat and also switching up the cut of meat as well to provide ultimate variety (which in turn helps to reduce the risk of deficiency).

There are also people that feed raw AND whole prey.

Are there any links here(just somewhat browsed a bit) that say what a proper whole prey diet, or a proper whole prey mixed with other meats(if that is a good diet inclusion?) should be like?

There is info scattered throughout the site, here is a thread of some condensed info on natural diets:

forum.ferret.com/tm.asp?m=59579&mpage=1&key=

Thanks, and I'll let you guys know tomorrow sometime if I can get her or not(though knowing the new manager of the place, I'm probably getting excited over nothing.

I hope you get her! You sound like you would make a wonderful "ferrent" (ferret parent).

[jennifer5799]

Hi! You're awesome for A) considering to take this girl in, and B) for doing your homework first to make sure you can handle her!

Please let us know how it worked out this morning!

~Jenn

btw - you're not alone being a sucker - I've decided that "sucker" is written in pee on my doormat!!

[weloveourweasels]

[gilraen]

I think I've hit a brick wall. She can't go home with anyone until she is sociable. She most likely isn't going to be sociable to everyone if only one person is working with her and she is STILL in an undersized house, and I can't work with her since it would be a liability for them to be sued if I was bitten on store property. I tried to get the district manager's email(first night, decided to research, probably take her home. Went in the next afternoon to talk to someone there to see what I'd need[general guideline sort of way] and was told a so-so list. Went to run errands, came back and was told that the DM had said NO ADOPTIONS until she was able to be handled) and was told that since the store's manager is his pet employee, if she says she is vicious then he believes her and will take her word as gold. So I wasn't given his email.

What else can I try? Or is there some way to look up a district manager's email online somehow?

[Forum Administrator]

Can you sign a waiver or contract that releases the store from liablilty if you purchase this ferret and it bites you? When I adopted my senior ferrets from a shelter I had to sign a form that said I understood the ferrets were old and sick and that if they died it wasnt the shelters fault. What if you signed a form that said you understand the ferret bites, you will not sue if the ferret bites you, and if you no longer decide to keep the ferret you will surrender it to a local ferret shelter. You sign it, the manager on duty signs it, and another employee (witness) signs it. You get a copy for yourself and the original stays at the store in their "records" file.

[gilraen]

That's what I asked. They said I needed to talk to him and then refused to give me his email. Do you know of any way to get a district manager's email? Could I email the company to ask them for it?

[Forum Administrator]

I would call the company, try and talk to someone and explain your situation and let them know WHY you need their number or email address. I doubt you'll find it publically online.

[gilraen]

Will do. Thanks

edit: Used one of the links on the site(with a 1500 character max XD) and sent them this

"Recently the store closest to me got in a small animal for adoption which had been abused pretty badly. I happened to be there that night(I am a regular customer) and instead of impulsively taking her home, went home and did some research to make sure I could handle her. I went in the following morning to see if she was still there and to clarify some information that different sites had disagreed on and said to that employee that I would be back after running some errands to get her and the supplies I would need FOR her. When I got back a couple hours later, I was told by one of the managers that the district manager said she cannot be adopted out since she bites out of fear. That it is a liability for the store and that they must wait(with a couple of employees already saying she should be killed because she is vicious) until she doesn't offer to bite anyone anymore before she can be adopted. I asked if I could have his email so I could contact him about her and was told no, because he listens to the store manager's word as flawless(she was the one who contacted him,) Since I apparently cannot ask him directly, if I provided you with the store, could I get the company to send it a form stating(and signed) that I understand she is potentially dangerous and that as a result I waive any right to take legal action against the store/company as a result of any medical expenses I may incur as a result of her? Thank you, Firstname Lastname"

Figure they may just give me his email, may give the store the form(all I included was that I live in CO and my name/email which is required) or may ignore me altogether. IF they refuse to listen to me, or say that there is no way to go over what the DM said, I'm going to contact a couple of rescues(though the nearest one I can find is still across the state from me!) to see if they can contact the company to see if they can pressure them into releasing the ferret to them. Even if they WOULDN'T give her to me, at least she'd be going to a good home and not just be stuck in that same little cage at the store for the rest of her life or until she goes nuts from the confinement.

[Heather]

Hi PM me....I have contacts in the rescue community that may be able to put you in contact with someone close to you. I'm not sure we can help you get this little one but we can try.
Good luck
ciao

[buzzonesbirdie]

I hope you get her--poor little thing has been through so much and she needs a good person to take her

[gilraen]

GREAT NEWS! I went in and talked to one of the lesser managers(who knows me pretty well) and she let me take her home She's going to tell the manager(who is out of town at a meeting) that someone with other ferrets came in and took her. And warned me that if I couldn't keep her that I couldn't take her back there. But if anything happens and I can't keep her, I'm finding a rescue who can, not just dumping her at a pet store again! And someone on another forum gave me a slight idea on why she may be biting. She was out roaming a bit here and I touched her(had before, same as at the store, they would mess with her for a bit and she'd bite in the middle of it) and her tail pineconed out and she bit(ai! Struck 3 times, the 3rd she got a grip and shook me >_>) me, but was more or less fine right after. And I DID have to tap the base of her old cage to wake her up at the store(had tried talking to her first) so I wouldn't just be grabbing her house and moving it with her asleep. I'm going to try a few times to see if I can get her attention through JUST noise, and if not I'll go with the assumption that either she IS deaf, or that she is a convincing actress! If she is, it would at least make sense as to why she is biting so much(well, other than the being thrown into walls thing.) and give me a better way try to get her out of that habit.

Also tried a f/t fuzzy mouse(that thing was nearly the size of an adult but with barely any fur, are they supposed to be that big 0.o) and she wouldn't look at it. So I gave it to my rats who happily shredded it(so it wouldn't go to waste) And I got her a small carton of the(ew) Marshall's. Can I wean her onto high quality cat food(like Evo kitten) until I get her to accept actual meat?

I'll try to get a picture tomorrow.