Help !! why does our ferret cry ?

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Help !! why does our ferret cry ?

by Cheryl & Emily
(USA)

First , I would like to say what a great site !!

My daughter Emily(12) just got her first ferret, Lucy -

we have done a lot of research before deciding to become a ferret owning family, and went to several shops to hold and learn about them as we wanted to be sure we could care for Lucy properly. We LOVE her, but are concerned about her crying when put in her cage- is this normal?

Lucy is 9 weeks old- we have only had her for about 4 days, but she already knows my daughter is "Mommy".

Lucy is out to play several times in the day but lately, when we put her in her cage she is becoming "crazy", for lack of a better word. She screams (loud enough to be heard from 3 rooms away) and chews the bars so hard we are worried she may break a tooth. I think it is because she does not want to be away from my daughter. Do they bond that strong?

We let her out once to soothe her but she is becoming worse every time we put her up (leaving her out 24/7 is not an option) and she is starting to scare us - we feel so sorry for her but if you try to comfort her she is so frantic and crazed she bites you once the door is open. It breaks our hearts to see her so upset.

She is spayed and has had her shots (otherwise you would think she had rabies the way she acts) when she acts this way we leave the room as staying only seems to upset her (and us) more.

Any help would be much appreciated as we want Lucy to be happy and do what is best for her.

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Help !! why does our ferret cry ?

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Jan 13, 2012
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up date for Lucy
by: Cheryl

Lucy is now doing wonderful, we found out it was a case of #1, she was so young when she was separated from her mom, it was to much stress - we ended up just letting her stay with Emmy almost all day, and also a change in diet, she would nurse in the crook of Emmy's arm, suckling Em's skin seemed to act a pacifier , and the new vet diet was much better for her. She is now a yr old, and run the roost - lol. She is by far the "Queen" of the house, with even the big dogs giving way to her =) She goes everywhere w/ in summer, leash trained very well, and has play dates w/ the local ferrets - great fun for her =)

We thank everyone who has read our story. It was so heart breaking in the beginning, but could not have ended up better - she is happy, sassy, and so very loved =)

Dec 26, 2011
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Hope she's doing better..
by: Naomi

I just read the conversation, & my heart melted for you guys. I remember having the same issues with our first ferret Toby... He was the reason we got Sasha & most of those behaviors disappeared after he got his sister... Shortly there after we became the safe haven for other rescued ferrets as we were friends with the one pet store here & There wasn't anywhere for unwanted ferrets here in our little town.

At one point we had a total of 6 carpet sharks - we had 3 large cages connected with tubes for when we weren't home. Only 1 ferret liked to be alone sometimes but there was enough room that he wasn't always crowded. I hope you guys are doing better now.. Happy New Year!

Apr 11, 2010
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Thank you !!
by: Cheryl

Thanks to all who have helped us with your advice.
Sadly it seems little Lucy has not had the best of starts, but we hope to make her life a nice one-
I appreciate all the post, and am so thankful there is a site like this, and people who care enough to take a few minutes to help a “ stranger” and little Lucy.
Lucy was a rescue, I do not know her whole history, but she was put up for adoption threw a rescue, and policy is they MUST be spayed – we are not real happy about her young age being spayed either- but we just could not leave her there.The shop we purchased her threw is mostly rescue ~ and she was the only ferret in there so I do not have the opportunity to get a litter mate.
I am thinking maybe another ferret too- that is a good idea.
she is out of her cage most of the day, but we have to put her up at night for her safety- we have a large dog ( they seem to like each other, but I would not want to leave them overnight alone, and so far have not let them in the same room, its to soon I think), and large snakes, and I just could not trust that she would not be so clever as to open( go under) the wrong door or pry open the wrong tank lid- but for most of the day she is out to run and play, but never in the snake room.
She does have a little hammock and a blanket we keep for her to rest in when she is in her cage.
I also agree stress must be great for her right now – much changes in such a short time~ we hope we are doing the right things for her, and we will read the site daily :0)
I again want to thank everyone for your help.
Best regards,
Cheryl , Emily & Lucy

Apr 10, 2010
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Stressed Fuzzy
by: tracy

At 9 weeks old she has been taken from the other kits and is very young to be on her own, she does need a companion to play with.
Ferrets love to play and they love company she is probably very stressed when she is left on her own.

Apr 10, 2010
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Ferret
by: Tammy

Ferrets like to be in a group. Get her a friend to snuggle and play with. Someone she was with where you bought her would be great. She needs a cage mate. At least one more.
Also get her something she can hide in and cover up. Ferret.com and ferret depot are great places for those things AND they cost lots less there then pet stores. Good luck with your new ferret they are a joy!

Apr 10, 2010
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a tip
by: Helen

is she in a room with lots of light?
Specially at night keep her place dark, ferrets are not creatures that like to be in a lit room for 24/7. They lose sense of day and night, it drives humans crazy and animals need the same cycle as we do. Some of course sleep during the day but always crawl into a dark place. There are special hammocks for ferrets they can crawl in to.

But I still advice you to join the forum and get
more info. THe help you seek is there!

Apr 10, 2010
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Spayed at 9 weeks?
by: Helen

that is a little too early should not be done until they are at least 5 to 6 months old :-(
It's illegal here thank goodness!

As for the crying, she is lonely it seems... she is ripped from her brothers and sisters and put alone in a cage. When you can not give her more than 2 hours play time which means you will have to play with her for at least an hour it is sad that she has
to be alone.
Some ferrets like it by themselves but obvious Lucy
doesn't. I'd join the forum if I were you get some more info from people who have one ferret.

the books and info on the net sometimes is a little old and does not give you all the info you need. The people you got the ferret from should not have spayed her and let her at least grow up.
Messing around with hormones on babies is never good, what if we started doing that on humans?

Check the link in the menu on the left and please join the forum. It's a great place to learn more and is full with wonderful people!

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Help !! why does our ferret cry ?

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Help !! why does our ferret cry ?