Were wanting another one

[crichton]

Hi all. Our house is soo quiet now . The little lady an I are wanting another baby but were trying to get a pair so thay can play. Kinda a his an hers thing. So were been to the local pet store <Petco> AN thay had FuZzIes. 5 of them we instantly took up with 2 of them 1 male one female. I had forgoten how much of a dare devil Thay can be. How something so small has zero fear. But sadly we left without them. Thay were Marshal farms ferret. I would like to get the forms idea of the marshals farm "I know i am opening up can but oh well"

[Forum Administrator]

Yeah, they are cute little buggers aren't they? So tiny and hyper!!!

As far as where to get a ferret you have several options:

1. Petstore: These ferrets are usually from Marshall Farms or Path Valley. These are young ferrets. Kits have not yet been potty trained, or nip trained. They are VERY hyper compared to older ferrets. However, they are eaiser to switch to a natural diet. You might pick a ferret that is the right fit for you and then again you might now. It really is the luck of the draw.

2. Ferret Shelter: You can find a wide variety of ferrets here. Young, old, sick, healthy, calm, hyper, etc. Marshall Farms ferrets, path valley ferrets, private breeder ferrets, etc. Ferret shelters help to pair you up with a ferret that is the right match for you, something that petstores just cant do. PLUS you are saving the life of a fuzzy. Ferret shelters often have pairs (or triples) available and they are often already vetted and vaccinated before you adopt. What City/State are you in? You can find local ferret shelters near you by viewing the list below:

www.ferret.org/links/shelters.html

3. Craigslist.com: People often rehome their ferrets on www.craigslist.com (in the pets category). The medical background of these ferrets is unknown, usually.

4. Natural Ferret Breeder: Depending on where you live (and how much money you can spend) adopting a ferret from a private ferret breeder that raises their ferrets on a natural (raw/whole prey) diet is also an option. If you are interested in this option let me know. I can provide you with a list of natural ferret breeders. BTW, one of our memebers: fire7chix,adopted 2 (and a 3rd ferret on the way!) from a breeder in NC that raises their ferrets on natural foods.

These are your options when it comes to finding a new ferret.

You ask about Marshall Farms ferrets, was Sassy a MF ferret, or was she from another ferret breeder?

[crichton]

Sassy was a M.F ferret. We live in arkansas an have tried. To find a local adoption but our luck is not going so good. We would enjoy havein 2 new babies in the house. Old or New tif has only seen a older ferret. I have had ferrets since i was 11 y/o an I am now 30.
Personaly I think ferrets sould come with a warrning
"Caution I am Cute I am Fuzzy I will Steal your Heart"

[jojodancer]

Isn't there a rescue/shelter in NW Arkansas? I think there is even a raffle going on right now to help them with their expenses. (http://www.ocferrets.org/raffle.html)

Being so close to Texas, there's a chance you can get some of the Rainbow Exotics rescue ferrets, too. I don't know where they all went, but they were rescued in the Dallas Area, and local shelters took 6-8 each.

[jennifer5799]

I think where you get your ferret from is a personal choice only you have to live with. If you want a baby and the only ones available are the mf ones at petco, then by all means, pick 'em out! As much as most ferret owners would love to see the big farms go out of business, it's probably not going to happen without some huge catastrophe.

Personally, my first 2 ferrets came off of Craigslist. My third ferret, whom I haven't met yet, came from an animal shelter. I can't tell you where my future ferrets will come from. I'd love to have a ferret from a specific natural breeder on the natural ferrets group, but I can't afford one right now, and don't know if I'll ever be able to justify so much $ on one, when I could rescue 3 from a shelter for the same cost. But, that's just me. Oh - all 3 of mine are MF ferrets, too, but that didn't play any part in my picking them out...

I guess what I'm trying to say through all my rambling, is that personally, I'd opt for a rescue first and go from there, but to each his own....

[nwheather]

May 2, 2008 9:12:47 GMT -5 Forum Administrator said:

Yeah, they are cute little buggers aren't they? So tiny and hyper!!!

As far as where to get a ferret you have several options:

1. Petstore: These ferrets are usually from Marshall Farms or Path Valley. These are young ferrets. Kits have not yet been potty trained, or nip trained. They are VERY hyper compared to older ferrets. However, they are eaiser to switch to a natural diet. You might pick a ferret that is the right fit for you and then again you might now. It really is the luck of the draw.

2. Ferret Shelter: You can find a wide variety of ferrets here. Young, old, sick, healthy, calm, hyper, etc. Marshall Farms ferrets, path valley ferrets, private breeder ferrets, etc. Ferret shelters help to pair you up with a ferret that is the right match for you, something that petstores just cant do. PLUS you are saving the life of a fuzzy. Ferret shelters often have pairs (or triples) available and they are often already vetted and vaccinated before you adopt. What City/State are you in? You can find local ferret shelters near you by viewing the list below:

www.ferret.org/links/shelters.html

3. Craigslist.com: People often rehome their ferrets on www.craigslist.com (in the pets category). The medical background of these ferrets is unknown, usually.

4. Natural Ferret Breeder: Depending on where you live (and how much money you can spend) adopting a ferret from a private ferret breeder that raises their ferrets on a natural (raw/whole prey) diet is also an option. If you are interested in this option let me know. I can provide you with a list of natural ferret breeders. BTW, one of our memebers: fire7chix,adopted 2 (and a 3rd ferret on the way!) from a breeder in NC that raises their ferrets on natural foods.

These are your options when it comes to finding a new ferret.

You ask about Marshall Farms ferrets, was Sassy a MF ferret, or was she from another ferret breeder?

Yep! I am so happy with my ferrets from Julie (GFX) There is a huge difference between my rescued farm ferrets, & her private bred (raised on natural/whole prey) ferrets. All of them, the babies & the adults have more muscle mass, & are very healthy!
Since I have been back, I have had some problems getting the babies to eat whole mice again, but I had on hand the fuzzies, they are used to lg full grown mice, so I will get more & try agian. In the meantime, they are on the chicken gravy (mixed with Pingford's Porridge) as a supplement to the Evo/Wysong kibble.
They are gluttons right now, so I am guessing they are about to hit a growth spurt! LOL!
I flew from WA state to NC to get my two babies, & I am working on getting Ace back home after the end of the month, once he's neutered. Julie sometimes meets you partway, it doesn't hurt to ask. =)
She's got another potential litter due this month. ;o)

[tobysmindy]

I think the FM question is a fair one to ask. As a breeder, you are getting what you pay for from them. The chances of you having to deal with an illness is greater. But its not the fuzzys fault. It doesnt make them bad.

I would make sure you get a healthy baby, and make sure hes eating soild food first. Some of the petstores are taking babys as young as five & six weeks. Its really hard to see whats normal soft baby poop and whats sick/soft at that age.

But litter and nip training will be the same for just about any baby. Stress and past history are always an issue. If its a MF baby, then they arent handlend, trained, and have just been kicked, shipped, and poked. If its a shelter, you most likely are looking at a past history of not the most loving great start to life. You needed to baby them too.

As for the private bred, any of them worth anything (we all know that there are bad breeders out there) then your getting a baby whos had the best start in life and your one step ahead of the game as to handling and most-liking feeded a good food.

I will be honest, Toby is a petstore MF. Born early Oct 07 and I picked him up Dec 12 07. I do not have a ferret shelter in my area, but I dont know if I would have gotten a shelter kid. I went with the petstore for a few reasons. I am new to the ferret world. I did all the reading and talking. But I understood that I was still new and there is a difference between learning with a little one, and having the chance of having to work though isses with a shelter kid.

I didnt trust that I could litter train, nip train, and work him into my family if things where not a clean slate. What is cute for a six week old puppy to do, is not so cute for a six year old 150 pound dog as an example. Its the same reason that I only got one, and not two. I didnt want to be in over my head and hurting two fuzzys at the same time.

I can say that I was worrying over alot of nothing. And I will be looking to pick up another fuzzy later this summer or eary next winter. My next one will be a shelter kid!

The choise comes down to what you are willing to do and what your looking for.

[ferretmaster]

If you are in Ark i know Sue personally she runs the the Arkansas Ferret Rescue Shelter and also owns and runs the Arkansas Hospice and Sp Needs Ferret Shelter, if you are interested just PM me and i will give you her contact info so you can adopt some kids.

I know with the recent tornadoes in her area she has taken in about 8 ferrets found wondering around outside, i know she is going to wait a few months before adopting them out so she can try to find their owners first.

[Forum Administrator]

What a nice offer, thanks Dom! Hopefully chricton will see this and take you up on the offer.