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Post by carnivorouszoo on May 31, 2010 9:36:55 GMT -5
My Jack ;D and Dianne Have no idea what toys are. I can get them to peek in a box of the safe peanuts and Jack will sleep in them. I tried a cat ball and my cat stole it. They did not care. I tried a little bug toy that vibrates and wiggles, they ran and hid. They will go in tunnels but usually to twirl a few minutes then go to sleep. I would like some ideas on how to teach these two to play. Or do I need to get a younger ferret to teach them? (I am not against that and petco has a cinnamon that has been there for months I can try for as well as the 15 or so CL ads I have in my email inbox)
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Post by Heather on May 31, 2010 15:00:42 GMT -5
Depends on their ages. My guys prefer interactive than passive. So games like towel drag gets them all the time. Bed making is another very active and energetic game (bedmaking takes a hundred times longer but hey it's fun ) While you're doing the bed making thing you can play bop the fert with the pillow, squish the bed lumps, catch that bed lump to name a few. My guys like to chase the cat bungee toys that are attached to sticks (certain ferrets like certain toys). Odin likes tennis balls. Ghenghis loved the little cat balls with bells in them. Loki loved his stuffy and Captain Jack loves his stuffy monkey...they would spend a lot of time hiding their stuffies. Pooka loves some little cat balls that rattle, she goes about hiding them. Ferrets are all about the individual, check out this site there are tons of information here on how to stimulate and interact with your fuzzies. Rescues often have no clue so it's up to you to find out what moves them ciao
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Post by halblingefrau on Jun 1, 2010 9:52:02 GMT -5
I agree with Heather, it is really up to the individual fert. Loki doesn't really play with his toys but if you throw one he will scurry out and stash it somewhere. He loves the "flip the towel in the air" but won't ride on it if dragged.
Asher could care less about toys. He likes socks. The smellier the better. He'll grab onto a sock and not let go. He also likes to play the "roll the ferret and bowl with it" game. He goes rolling off and comes back dancing for more.
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Post by sherrylynne on Jun 1, 2010 18:27:02 GMT -5
Willow was like that when we first got her. Not a clue how to play, or anything other than bite and hide. Her very first game was being chased by the big brown shoes mamma was wearing I'd rapidly slide my feet toward her a few steps, and she'd run back away from them, then run back again. So, we'd do it again, and again, and again. It wasn't long before we were actually playing chase. She still tries to get me to do it when I'm wearing those shoes She also liked it when I'd shake a towel at her, and chase her around with that. Until a few months ago, she never got into towel rides. Now- she monopolizes it
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Post by carnivorouszoo on Jun 2, 2010 9:06:13 GMT -5
Thanks for the thoughts guys. So far my cat has gotten Dianne to play but Jack doesn't like him. I would use wand toys but they are my cat's vice and he stashes them (I think he is part ferret lol). Tried the towel thing and they just walked off. Tried making the bed with them this morning and scared them Even though I was gentle and careful. They freaked out so bad it took an hour to get them to come out of the tunnel system. The thing that gets them going so far is going for walks. For now I will keep trying other things but walking with them may be the best bet for exercise and stimulation.
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2010 13:52:07 GMT -5
Hmmm....sounds like they may have been abused at some point if they got scared like that... (you did say that they were adopted correct?). Poor little ones. I bet getting that cinnamon at the store wouldn't hurt...
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Post by Heather on Jun 2, 2010 22:40:05 GMT -5
Sometimes, abused or neglected ferrets take a long time to come around. It takes them awhile to learn to trust, to love and to realize that you're not going to abandon them. Some of these little ones have been abandoned not once or twice but have been shuffled though a number of people in their short little lives. I had one pair of ferrets who had been shuffled 6 times in a 9 month period. Fun-Go had been moved from one home to the next 5 times in the first 9 months of life. People are unaware the damage they do even by just locking these little ones up in a cage and forgetting they exist except to feed them. I've had ferrets that I waited for almost 2 yrs before they suddenly explode and do a war dance. I had one little boy who just wandered around, sniffing, checking things out. He would fall asleep in the first sleepy nook that he found, he never played. He had a constantly sleepy look on his face and if you picked him up, he would immediately go limp and fall asleep. One day I came upstairs and he was resting at the top, I startled him and he bounced. The expression was priceless, the moment forever in my mind. He splayed out his toes, bounced again, arched his back and proceeded to "spaz" down the hallway. Later, I could hear this dooking in the bedroom, really loud dooking. I figured it was Fun-Go who is notoriously loud (deafie). It turned out is was Captain Jack, he was playing with Pooka. Now, it's not uncommon for Captain Jack to be in the middle of things. He has muscled out and doesn't fall over when he war dances (or at least no more than any other ferret ) He loves life. It took him over 8 months to figure out he wasn't a stuffed animal. Rescues take time but the rewards when they suddenly come around is absolutely priceless. ciao
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Post by horse656 on Jun 13, 2010 16:41:28 GMT -5
maybe you haven't found the right toy yet? my girl Pebbles, i got her from a pet store. she didn't really play until i got a package of balls with bells in them. she literally freaked out.
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foxfire
Going Natural
Foxfire Creations
Posts: 157
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Post by foxfire on Jun 16, 2010 10:01:18 GMT -5
Bindi, 7 months old loves a plastic bottle cap, she will flip it over, stick her nose in it, and push it around the room. You can just about hear her going broooom broom, like a little boy playing with a toy car, it is sooo funny. She will play with a little car, but can't control it as much as the bottle cap. Buffy's fav toy is me.. she waits till I am standing close to the lounge, then flies onto the lounge, then jumps on me. Or she will climb up me and sit on my shoulder. She thinks she owns me and no one else is allowed to play with me, so jealous. Ozzie has a ball with a bell in it attached to a rope, he drags it around all night, they are such fun. They all love the towel ride around the room too.
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Post by miasmyferret on Jul 14, 2010 12:39:38 GMT -5
we got a tunnel from petsmart that you can spread out and it looks like a big slinkie when pulled together. well i made a game with my fuzzie i run my finger nail on the other end of the tunnel and makes noises she will run thru the tunnel to the noise and play with my hand. i rolled her ball in the tunnel and she came out on the other end and she rolled a couple times in the tunnel. i wish i had a video recorder.
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Post by sherrylynne on Jul 14, 2010 20:36:36 GMT -5
Try dragging the tunnel, and watch her
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