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<<<was formally known as ferretfanatic

Ferrets make wonderful pets, my baby girl (who well, isn't really a baby anymore) is the picture in my avatar.

Ferrets are a very different type of pet from a guinea pig. IMO, ferrets are much more social and will bond with the owner much more. My girl is very well trained; she uses her litterbox 95% of the the time, comes when squeaked, and never bites. I can't imagine teaching a guinea pig to do any of those things.

Ferrets do come with expenses though. Like Lisa (meriadoc) said, the price for the actual animal will be upwards of $100, and vaccinations for rabies and canine distemper, plus annual yearly checkups will bring you up for another couple hundred. A good quality kibble (I feed my girl a blend of three) can also be expensive.

I highly recommend a ferret over a guinea pig, if you're willing to spend the time and money involved with them. Please feel free to PM me if you'd like anymore information.

Ferrets for Dummies is a good read, I have it myself and have been through it many times over. I believe this book has a good introduction, that gives a step by step "Is this the right pet for me?" thing. Your local library should have it- I recommend reading it before you decide.

~Ferret

Ferretfish attached this image:


-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

FerretFish: Depends on how much you like to spoil your babies.
3 or 4 high quality brands of food... $40.00 a month at least *some stores are more expensive then others*.
Litter, $6-17.00 per month, depending on what you buy.
Bedding... if you use something other then cloth $5-20 per month.
Monthly cage/ferret cleaning supplies $10-20 per month
Treats $5-20 per month
Washing all that ferret cloth bedding $10-20 a month *stupid electric!*
Yearly Dist & Rabies Vac, $13-35 each, office visit $25-50.
And lets not even get into if your furry fall sick

So if you estimate high, you could be looking at around $1,941.00 per year.
Estimate low and your looking at, $963.00

That's just the price for ONE ferret as well.

Yes ferrets can be kept singely if you can provide the love and attention that they need on a daily basis, though it really is best to get them in a pair or trio at least, if said ferret is willing to get along with others.
I had Keiji until he was about 5 years old or so, a lone ferret, he's always been happy and healthy, but I gave him away to a home with 13 other ferrets, because I wanted him to retire with other ferret friends, something I was unable to do for him here.


This is an older pick of my former dook dookerin.
http://angel.pwnd.org/ferret/keiji418037.jpg

Last edited by AngelZoo at 03-Jan-2005 21:40

i can tell you now, that vaccines will not be free. If they're a young ferret, and most come from marshall farms, the first distemper shot is included in the price, but the rabies and the two following distemper shots will run about $20 a piece.

unless you got a really good pet store - no places will include those in the cose.

Definately look into Guinea Pigs. They are extremely social with their owners, lower maitainence that ferrets, and dont carry a high price. By nature GPs rarely bite, also.

My guinea pig had the personality of a puppy. We used to let her run loose (supervised of course) and she never failed to climb onto my lap and purr. There was also a few times where i got my face licked as i layed down to watch tv She was quite a character.

Edit: Im not sure if youve decided but i wanted to throw my 0.02$ in.

Last edited by katieb at 03-Jan-2005 20:26

I'll do graffiti,
If you sing to me in French.

The rats at work are evil. I don't trust them.

And I just must add, that I have met a ferret of Angel's before, and he was a big boy! Easily close to 5lbs. But such a sweetie!

Although people recommend keeping ferrets in duos and trios, my girl is single. She was alone when I bought her, and remains Mommy's spoiled little brat. Ferret friends are better, but my girl won't accept anyone else after being alone for so long, which is why I was wary of taking in Angel's last ferret. IMO, as long as you can make the committment of keeping a ferret active and allow lots of out-of-cage time, they *can* be kept solo. Though I would not recommend it if you can avoid it.

Ferrets are costly but thousands a year? I don't think it's THAT much. Vet bills, litters, kibble, toys, treats, initial set up...it does add up in the end, but the joy of a carpetshark is worth it. I'm sure Lisa and Angel will agree with me when I say that NOBODY can resist laughing at a little Weasel War Dance with dooking.

I second the idea of looking into ferret rescue if at all possible. There's a lot more I'd love to say on this topic, but I gotta get to bed. More later...

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

well.. i mean they dont bite u purposly!!!! sometimes they bite if they get excited or if you scare them- but mine have never biten me!!!!! and from my experience and my moms- ferrets are mean and so are guinea pigs!! ]

and i have 2 add: the only other rodent that is smarter than rats is squirrels....

Last edited by zebra at 03-Jan-2005 15:23

~!!I lOve LiFe!!~

Ha! I don't know about the rats not biting. I've been bit by rodents, including rats, frankly I fear getting bit by one of them more then a dog!

None the less, yes rats are great pets

If you dont have the $ for ferrets - then i would suggest getting a few rats (same sex of course). i would either get a ferret or a few rats. Rats are very friendly, they never bite. They love being held and love crawling on you, and love sitting on ur shoulder!!!! They are not near as noisy as guinea pigs!!! and rats are ssoo cute too!!!!!!!

~!!I lOve LiFe!!~

Tetrafan: Take a look into ferret rescue, there are lots so different ages and colours that you can adopt, often cheaper then at petstores, and most the time they already have their yearly vacs.
I don't know where you live, but just type a yahoo/google search for "Ferret Rescue" and I'm sure you can find something.
Just remember, ferrets need a BUDDY, you can do 2, but most people say it's best to keep them in trio's, they are just much more active, playfull and happy that way.

www.theferretstore.com
has some wonderfull ferret cages.

I actually have a LARGE 6 foot ferret cage that I'm trying to get rid of, I have NO use for it, I'm in Maryland, but I don't know how far away you are.

thanks for all info i think i will get a ferret i think it will be the right animal for me my mom love ferrets when she was a kid she use have alot because she use to save them from people at butchers they use to eat them at korea
at my lfs they ferrets thgat cost 80$ the beds cost 20 $ and vaccines is free if u get a baby one

Awww ferret picture!!!

I am a former ferret owner, I have owned many in the past. Though I don't know if I ever will again *due to my fiance being insanely allergic to them.*

At any rate, if you have thousands of dollars to spend on EACH ferret every year, are able to afford a sizable cage, afford at LEAST 2 ferrets *housed together preferably*, and can dedicate 1 large room, if not your whole house for them to roam around safely, then do not get a ferret.

1.) They are VERY expensive, from cages, to food to vets.
2.) They are devious little trouble makers.
3.) They are evil.
4.) They stink bad, IF you do not take care of them well enough.
5.) Most can and will bite, VERY hard until you train them not to.
6.) They WILL poop in random places through out your house, some less then others, but at least once is inevitable!
7.) They will get into EVERYTHING, unless it's suspended from the ceiling, high above the floor, they will reach it.
8.) They will steal anything and everything, even things 10X their body size.
9.) They will range from 1.5 pounds - 5 pounds. My last guy ranged from 3.6-4.2 pounds.

So, if you can say yes to all the above, with an open heart to NEVER get angry with your ferret for it's behaviors, then perhaps you can consider getting at least 2.

wut should i get?

Well, whatever you do, don't do both. (ferrets being natural predators of burrowing rodents )

From what I've heard (and experiences with our dog), a ferret would be a lot of work to take care of, almost like having a young child in the house. It's a enormous responsibility.

Now, it is a responsibility to keep any animal, but a guinea pig doesn't require you to guinea-pig-proof your entire house/apartment (though, if you let a guinea pig out on the floor it's advised that you don't have any electrical cords laying around, but just in that room), they are cuddly and cute, you can bond with them pretty well too. And they will have a hard time outsmarting you. Plus there is a considerable economic distinction that may make the decision for you.

><>

i like animals like dogs we cant have dogs around here

what kind of pet do you like? if you like an active playful animal then get a ferret, otherwise get the guinea pig. we used to let ours roam free in the house and he was *everyone's* favorite animal when they came over. the only problem with ferrets is they don't live long enough

---

"That's the trouble with political jokes in this country... they get elected!" -- Dave Lippman

as one of the members here that have ferrets, i can tell you that they do require alot of time.

They're very social animals, and do require alot of human interaction - they love playing, never really getting out of their kitten like attitude.

But, also, they're considered exotics by many vets, and command a higher price when it comes to vet bills. In one visit my girl (who weighs a little over a pound) cost me almost $400 - and that was because of a mild stomach infection.

I've got two, a male and a female (both are neutered), my male at one point weighed almost 4 pounds - and he's still a big boy, not even a year old yet.

They're also quite e to getting two different sorts of cancers later on in life - insulinoma and andrenal disease. Adrenal disease is NOT a pretty disease at all - the animal loses its fur as the cancer progresses. Both cancers are treatable, but do cost alot of money.

Expect with ferrets to cost about $100 for the ferret, plus another $100-200 for vaccinations (both rabies and distemper is necessary - although the reported cases of rabies in ferrets amounts to about 10 in a 6 year period - they still have a stigma in society that they're rabid animals). Canine distemper will kill them if they contract it.

If you really are interested in a ferret (and as I said, they're nowhere in the same league as guinea pigs), i recommend either buying or going to the library and reading "Ferrets for Dummies". A very good and extremely informative book.

I'm sure ferretfanatic will be along soon to offer more advice.

Sorry about your loss.


They do nip, but it's important to teach them from the beginning not to.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

my mom had one when she was a kid she said it bites sometimes and it hurts i had a guinea pig when i was 8 it died last year

It varies a bit but about a couple of pounds - supposedly up to five for big males but I've never met a five pound ferret yet.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

i dont lik chincillas i have alot of time do how big ferrets get?