How often should you bathe a ferret?

[tayrawrrr]

The way I (THINK!!) I understand it, if you bathe them too much, their natural smell becomes much more defined because the oils in their skin work harder to combat dryness?

So my question is, how often should you bathe them??

[Kerit]

Never

Unless they get into something that they can't safely lick off (paint, syrup, etc) there's no reason to bathe them. Playing in water without soap can be a lot of fun, though.

A ferret that smells is probably on some sort of kibble (even "great" kibbles cause mine to have a noticeable smell within a day). Also, all the fabric bedding in their cage will build up odor, so washing that every week or two will help overall.

[taratee]

some people do it seasonally (4 times a year) some people only wash twice a year and i know some people who dont bathe them at all unless they get dirty i only wash them when theyre dirty and rolled into something

[tayrawrrr]

Oh, okay! Perfect! Thanks so much

[WTFerret]

I haven't given a bath in over a year.

[sherrylynne]

I never bathe mine unless they've gotten into something nasty For some, that means every couple of months, for others- they've had maybe one bath in over 3 years
I seldom do soap baths, though. Normally just having them in the warm water is enough to get nasties off.

[3kaw]

Last bath mine got was when i first brought them home.
They do play in water with no soap almost daily, mostly cause my kit wont let anyone go to the bathroom with out asking to get in the tub. LOL
of course if he`s not been in the tub he`s likely gone swimming in the dogs water bowl.

[rarnold18]

I haven't bathed anyone in about a year....if they get poo on them I just take a damp rag and give them a good rub....

[goingpostal]

I wash them off if they get into something gross, Pandora's adventure into their cleaning water was the last time and I just cleaned her off in the sink. I used to bathe them all when I added a new one but never really found that to help with aggression like some say but can be a good idea as one had fleas!

[sunnyberra]

The last time I gave a bath it was to Yogi and he was a kit ... so about two years.

Sian's never even had one, though, and Yogi only got baths because he'd throw tantrums as a baby and roll in his poo when he wanted to be let out of the cage :C

... thank god that phase is over,

[vkp23]

I only bathe mine if they get into something nasty or something not safe for them.

[Heather]

I only bathe when absolutely necessary. Now, my understanding is intact ferrets can afford to be bathed more often. During their season they produce much more oils than our altered fuzzes. These fuzzes require more frequent bathing. Our little ones, don't need to be bathed except to clean up whatever unmentionable mess they sometimes manage to get into their beautiful fur.
ciao

[tayrawrrr]

Thanks for all the responses!!