How to Take the Bite Out of Ferret Play Time

Ferrets are vivacious and friendly and that is why for many people they make wonderful pets. Every ferret has an infidel personality some will be shy and other ferrets will be outgoing. Some will respond more to affection, while others will only really like to play. Still like all specific breeds of pets they have a number of behaviors that a ferret owner will want to be familiar with.

Nipping and biting are unpleasant behaviors that are normal to all ferrets, especially young ferret kits. It is best to discourage this behavior in young ferrets from the earliest time possible. Too many ferrets end up being forgotten pets when this behavior of excessive nipping and biting discourages owners from spending time with their pets. It is your job as a responsible pet parent to train your ferret to be as social as possible.

Leaving your ferret is a cage for a long period of time only causes your pet undue stress. It may actually increase the unwanted nipping when you then try to interact with your ferret. You should return your ferret to his cage when the context of the nipping is play. Young kits nip; when they play and then become overly excited. Giving your ferret a short time out will get him or her to associate the loss of beloved play time with nipping behavior. Again, you should give your ferret a short time out and return to playing with them until the unwanted behavior occurs again.

When your ferret nips teach them about verbal warnings. If they are too excited they will not respond to your saying their name. This point you can put your ferret in time out. If they do respond to their name they will stop the behavior of nipping and look towards your direction. Redirecting their activity by using their name is a way to stop ferret nipping in its tracks. It will take several attempts at this before it becomes an effective tool with young excitable ferrets.

You can also pick up your ferret when they start to bite when playing. The act of lifting them from the ground will again distract the ferret from the behavior. The ferret then will want to return to playing and you can repeat the process so the ferret associates biting with a loss of play time. If you give your ferret treats at play time denying treats when they bite will not work. They will simply be stressed by the loss of the treat. If you use treats to reward them for following commands it is also counterproductive to use denial of treats for unwanted behavior. The withdrawal of food is too stressful for most ferrets to 'get' why the treat is being removed.

Bitter apple spray on your fingers will deter older ferrets from biting when you handle them. They tend to hate the smell and taste of bitter apple spray. If you are training a ferret avoid using the spray because it will only serve as an unpleasant distraction for the ferret from what you are trying to teach them.

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