Post by mustelidmusk on May 18, 2008 10:20:42 GMT -5
Here's a enrichment tip I posted on one of my ferret groups that I felt might be of ineest to this forum. I started this practice shorly after I started feeding raw.
Enjoy,
-jennifer
Instinctual Manners - eatng in privacy and caching behavior
Please Note: This enrichment tip is for those who are tired of finding food all over house - especially if you're offering raw meat!!!
Observation of wild polecats has helped to explain domestic ferret behavior at the dinner table. Unlike domestic ferrets, polecats lead a solitary life and pair up for breeding season only. The females raise their babies, and young polecats are typically out of the nest by 3 months of age. Once on their own, polecats live in underground dens, many of which have been excavated by their prey! (Moral of the story - don't invite a polecat over for dinner !!!)
Polecats tend to inhabit grassland areas. As such they're wary of predators from both land and sky, and they prefer to eat in private, safe locations. Polecats also take prey that's relatively large, perhaps larger that the polecat itself. As a result, caching prey in the den and consuming it over the course of a couple of days is normal feeding practice for the polecat - as well as for many other other mustelids.
So, we've just uncovered the origins for:
1. Eating in privacy (Does your ferret ever run under the bed or sofa to consume a facorite treat in privacy?)
2. Caching food (when was the last time you found food in your ferret's hammock or potty box???)
Ferrets LIKE to eat in dark, protective dens; and they LIKE to cache their food, even if they know their food bowl will always be full! You can enrich your ferret at dinner time by providing a feeding den. A den can be a small waste paper basket laid on its side with a towel draped over the opening - or even a cardboard box on its side. And of course, each ferret must have his own den for stress reduction to be effective!!!!
I've found that my ferrets have two eating styles:
1. Food inside the den (hide inside the den and eat there!
2. Food outside the den (take a bite an run inside to eat!)
It's possible to gain some measure of control over caching habits. However, training is pretty much limited to food that is not free-fed since you need to supervise table manners. For example, I provide raw dry foods freely, and I offer raw wet food twice a day. I offer the raw meat outside the dens. each ferret grabs a bite and runs into his/her den to eat. They return to me when ready for another bite. If the ferret starts to run off to another location, I guide the ferret back to the appropriate den. They learn very quickly!
I can tell when the ferrets are getting full because they start to run into the den and return TOO quickly for more. At this point, I know the caching has started. I allow them to cache a few small tidbits in their dens before ending the feeding session.
Overtime, my ferrets have learne dthat they need to be caching wet foodin their dens, and they rarely "miss". This makes for easy cleanup
Enjoy,
-jennifer
Instinctual Manners - eatng in privacy and caching behavior
Please Note: This enrichment tip is for those who are tired of finding food all over house - especially if you're offering raw meat!!!
Observation of wild polecats has helped to explain domestic ferret behavior at the dinner table. Unlike domestic ferrets, polecats lead a solitary life and pair up for breeding season only. The females raise their babies, and young polecats are typically out of the nest by 3 months of age. Once on their own, polecats live in underground dens, many of which have been excavated by their prey! (Moral of the story - don't invite a polecat over for dinner !!!)
Polecats tend to inhabit grassland areas. As such they're wary of predators from both land and sky, and they prefer to eat in private, safe locations. Polecats also take prey that's relatively large, perhaps larger that the polecat itself. As a result, caching prey in the den and consuming it over the course of a couple of days is normal feeding practice for the polecat - as well as for many other other mustelids.
So, we've just uncovered the origins for:
1. Eating in privacy (Does your ferret ever run under the bed or sofa to consume a facorite treat in privacy?)
2. Caching food (when was the last time you found food in your ferret's hammock or potty box???)
Ferrets LIKE to eat in dark, protective dens; and they LIKE to cache their food, even if they know their food bowl will always be full! You can enrich your ferret at dinner time by providing a feeding den. A den can be a small waste paper basket laid on its side with a towel draped over the opening - or even a cardboard box on its side. And of course, each ferret must have his own den for stress reduction to be effective!!!!
I've found that my ferrets have two eating styles:
1. Food inside the den (hide inside the den and eat there!
2. Food outside the den (take a bite an run inside to eat!)
It's possible to gain some measure of control over caching habits. However, training is pretty much limited to food that is not free-fed since you need to supervise table manners. For example, I provide raw dry foods freely, and I offer raw wet food twice a day. I offer the raw meat outside the dens. each ferret grabs a bite and runs into his/her den to eat. They return to me when ready for another bite. If the ferret starts to run off to another location, I guide the ferret back to the appropriate den. They learn very quickly!
I can tell when the ferrets are getting full because they start to run into the den and return TOO quickly for more. At this point, I know the caching has started. I allow them to cache a few small tidbits in their dens before ending the feeding session.
Overtime, my ferrets have learne dthat they need to be caching wet foodin their dens, and they rarely "miss". This makes for easy cleanup
