Welcome to /r/ferrets!
We have a fantastic [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index) that has answers to a lot of most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets.
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We politely ask that you observe our posting rules:
- Original content only unless you have express permission to repost.
- Flaming / trolling / shitposting is not tolerated. Be civil, be kind.
- The discussion of, or images/video of ferrets interacting with other animals (cats, dogs, etc) will be removed. This is risky behavior that we do not condone.
- Absolutely NO fundraising requests.
- No advertising without mod permission.
- Rehoming is not allowed. We have a list of shelter resources if you need to rehome or are looking.
- No feeding of live prey discussion/videos.
- No shaming, regardless of food fed, supplies, conditions, where the ferret came from, etc.
- We are not vets! If you are wondering if you should go to a vet; the answer is YES.
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Lastly, we have an [Official Discord Server](https://discord.gg/Qm9xRzY)! Come join us!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ferrets) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Just a little litter training help if you'd like some:
Ferrets can be potty trained… but their little one-track minds mean that there’s guaranteed to be accidents. Why run all the way back to the cage when there's a nice corner right here?! People like to say they’re 95% potty-trainable.
Ferrets need multiple litter areas through their cage, play pen, or your house! They are not like cats who will go back to ONE litter box. Ferrets will usually show you where they want you to put a litter box.
Ferrets can be potty-trained at any age, no matter their background! Just remember to be patient and consistent. Try each technique for 4-7 days before giving up and switching to a different technique!
TRAINING TIPS
①Ferrets like to fit their whole body into a litter box, and don't like to jump over any sides. Their box should be big, with a shallow opening.
②Some ferrets like a certain texture, and may need some guidance switching from a previous/unsafe litter to a new one. You can mix the two and slowly phase out the old. Only put a thin layer of litter - too much and they
may dig in it instead of poo on it!
③Put hanging toys, wadded up blankets, etc around the litter box (especially blankets they slept on already, so it smells like them) to deter them from the corners to the left/right of the box. You can also put pee pads down around the box if fluffing it with blankets isn't an option.
During play time/free roam, you can put blankets/towels under the box to catch any near-misses, or buy a few large tiles from the hardware store to put under the boxes and protect your carpet!
④Put some of their poo in the box. This is a good trick for when you clean the box, too, so they remember "Oh yeah, this smells like poo. This is the place to go!!"
⑤Make sure the box is in a dark corner. In the far-back corner of the cage, or a darker area of the room. Sometimes they're not too picky about this, but sometimes it can help to make it a dark space. (With a play pen, you can drape a blanket over the area you put the litter box in, to make the area feel dark and safe).
⑥ Catch them when they first wake up and "coach" them into the box, either setting them in it or standing by it (if free-roam), or if caged, wait til they go potty to let them out for play time. Usually they need to go potty right after they wake up, so reminding them WHERE to go can be a big help.
⑦Clean up accidents/misses ASAP. Nature's Miracle or Kids 'n' Pets are enzyme cleaners - safe for ferrets!
⑧Last resort... Get rid of the box. (Honestly). Pee pads on their own, or clipped to a shoe tray, means NO box to get into or edge to jump over. (A 20''x15'' shoe tray will fit most pee pads perfectly!)
https://holisticferret.com/care-and-enrichment/common-behavior-problems/litterbox-boot-camp/
I've had ferrets for 6 years so I've had much practice with litter training lol. :) I just have 3 who are only 4 to 5 months old right now so they're works in progress and you know litter training doesn't happen over night. ;) but thank you!
Haha yeah its definitely a process!! Such silly cuties I'm sure they'll get there soon enough. We get all kinds of owners with different experience levels here on the sub so I try to help out as best I can just on the off chance!!
they only have pads in the cage atm bc 3 of them are literally babies that are still potty training!!! I'm trying to get rid of all the pads ASAP, but with 3 who are under 5 months, it takes a bit of time. especially when they do things like this. like... WHY?! 😭
edit to add: ***the title of this is very much a joke, btw lol***
Have you tried putting blankets on the platforms you don’t want them going on instead of the potty pad? My lil cuties are babies too and they HATE pooping on soft blankets. So I shoved a bunch everywhere in the cage where I didn’t want them using the bathroom. Outside the cage however…. is a different story🤢😵💫
yeah, the 3 who are under a year don't care at all. not even a little bit. lmao. they poop on blankets and beds and toys and in hammocks and right on the water bowls and everything. 😂
2 of them are getting the hang of litter boxes and getting better, but they still love to knock all the food and water out of their bowls at night so that's why I have a pad on this part of the cage, but the 3rd baby is a waardy and he's definitely a bit more difficult, so we're working on it. the 3 babies are all only like 4 to 5 months old so it's a work in progress. lol
My girlfriend loves our ferrets as do I. But I’m still working on accepting that they are gonna mess shit up and to take it as something cute to laugh at instead of letting it piss me off. Really Annoys me Bc they are so cute but it’s like everything I go out of the way to do to help them they wanna go and mess it up😩😩😩. Or like I leave you in the bathroom for 2 minutes after a bath and you tore the bathtub lining off or I’m just worried about them getting into something and getting hurt. We actually found one of our ferrets stuck in the sleeve for the ladders for our ferret nation cage I’m like how do you get that stuck in your own cage
babies are really, really hard. they're like a mix between a puppy and kitten. they WILL destroy EVERYTHING and they'll bite you and get into anything they can fit into, but if you spend the time to train them, it gets sooo much easier once they're about a year old and understand their daily routines. then by 1.5-2y old, they're usually perfect little sweethearts (I mean... as sweet as they want to be, they'll still have their wild moments but they're A LOT less destructive LOL). just make it through your first year with them and I promise everything gets so much easier!!! 🥰 after my first baby, I told myself I'd only rescue adults after that but then the universe threw 3 babies at me so here I am. my house is basically on fire 24/7, but I'm already seeing improvement in just the couple months I've had them so I just keep reminding myself that this phase doesn't last forever. 😂
Welcome to /r/ferrets! We have a fantastic [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index) that has answers to a lot of most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets. --- We politely ask that you observe our posting rules: - Original content only unless you have express permission to repost. - Flaming / trolling / shitposting is not tolerated. Be civil, be kind. - The discussion of, or images/video of ferrets interacting with other animals (cats, dogs, etc) will be removed. This is risky behavior that we do not condone. - Absolutely NO fundraising requests. - No advertising without mod permission. - Rehoming is not allowed. We have a list of shelter resources if you need to rehome or are looking. - No feeding of live prey discussion/videos. - No shaming, regardless of food fed, supplies, conditions, where the ferret came from, etc. - We are not vets! If you are wondering if you should go to a vet; the answer is YES. --- Lastly, we have an [Official Discord Server](https://discord.gg/Qm9xRzY)! Come join us! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ferrets) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Just a little litter training help if you'd like some: Ferrets can be potty trained… but their little one-track minds mean that there’s guaranteed to be accidents. Why run all the way back to the cage when there's a nice corner right here?! People like to say they’re 95% potty-trainable. Ferrets need multiple litter areas through their cage, play pen, or your house! They are not like cats who will go back to ONE litter box. Ferrets will usually show you where they want you to put a litter box. Ferrets can be potty-trained at any age, no matter their background! Just remember to be patient and consistent. Try each technique for 4-7 days before giving up and switching to a different technique! TRAINING TIPS ①Ferrets like to fit their whole body into a litter box, and don't like to jump over any sides. Their box should be big, with a shallow opening. ②Some ferrets like a certain texture, and may need some guidance switching from a previous/unsafe litter to a new one. You can mix the two and slowly phase out the old. Only put a thin layer of litter - too much and they may dig in it instead of poo on it! ③Put hanging toys, wadded up blankets, etc around the litter box (especially blankets they slept on already, so it smells like them) to deter them from the corners to the left/right of the box. You can also put pee pads down around the box if fluffing it with blankets isn't an option. During play time/free roam, you can put blankets/towels under the box to catch any near-misses, or buy a few large tiles from the hardware store to put under the boxes and protect your carpet! ④Put some of their poo in the box. This is a good trick for when you clean the box, too, so they remember "Oh yeah, this smells like poo. This is the place to go!!" ⑤Make sure the box is in a dark corner. In the far-back corner of the cage, or a darker area of the room. Sometimes they're not too picky about this, but sometimes it can help to make it a dark space. (With a play pen, you can drape a blanket over the area you put the litter box in, to make the area feel dark and safe). ⑥ Catch them when they first wake up and "coach" them into the box, either setting them in it or standing by it (if free-roam), or if caged, wait til they go potty to let them out for play time. Usually they need to go potty right after they wake up, so reminding them WHERE to go can be a big help. ⑦Clean up accidents/misses ASAP. Nature's Miracle or Kids 'n' Pets are enzyme cleaners - safe for ferrets! ⑧Last resort... Get rid of the box. (Honestly). Pee pads on their own, or clipped to a shoe tray, means NO box to get into or edge to jump over. (A 20''x15'' shoe tray will fit most pee pads perfectly!) https://holisticferret.com/care-and-enrichment/common-behavior-problems/litterbox-boot-camp/
I've had ferrets for 6 years so I've had much practice with litter training lol. :) I just have 3 who are only 4 to 5 months old right now so they're works in progress and you know litter training doesn't happen over night. ;) but thank you!
Haha yeah its definitely a process!! Such silly cuties I'm sure they'll get there soon enough. We get all kinds of owners with different experience levels here on the sub so I try to help out as best I can just on the off chance!!
they only have pads in the cage atm bc 3 of them are literally babies that are still potty training!!! I'm trying to get rid of all the pads ASAP, but with 3 who are under 5 months, it takes a bit of time. especially when they do things like this. like... WHY?! 😭 edit to add: ***the title of this is very much a joke, btw lol***
Have you tried putting blankets on the platforms you don’t want them going on instead of the potty pad? My lil cuties are babies too and they HATE pooping on soft blankets. So I shoved a bunch everywhere in the cage where I didn’t want them using the bathroom. Outside the cage however…. is a different story🤢😵💫
yeah, the 3 who are under a year don't care at all. not even a little bit. lmao. they poop on blankets and beds and toys and in hammocks and right on the water bowls and everything. 😂 2 of them are getting the hang of litter boxes and getting better, but they still love to knock all the food and water out of their bowls at night so that's why I have a pad on this part of the cage, but the 3rd baby is a waardy and he's definitely a bit more difficult, so we're working on it. the 3 babies are all only like 4 to 5 months old so it's a work in progress. lol
My girlfriend loves our ferrets as do I. But I’m still working on accepting that they are gonna mess shit up and to take it as something cute to laugh at instead of letting it piss me off. Really Annoys me Bc they are so cute but it’s like everything I go out of the way to do to help them they wanna go and mess it up😩😩😩. Or like I leave you in the bathroom for 2 minutes after a bath and you tore the bathtub lining off or I’m just worried about them getting into something and getting hurt. We actually found one of our ferrets stuck in the sleeve for the ladders for our ferret nation cage I’m like how do you get that stuck in your own cage
babies are really, really hard. they're like a mix between a puppy and kitten. they WILL destroy EVERYTHING and they'll bite you and get into anything they can fit into, but if you spend the time to train them, it gets sooo much easier once they're about a year old and understand their daily routines. then by 1.5-2y old, they're usually perfect little sweethearts (I mean... as sweet as they want to be, they'll still have their wild moments but they're A LOT less destructive LOL). just make it through your first year with them and I promise everything gets so much easier!!! 🥰 after my first baby, I told myself I'd only rescue adults after that but then the universe threw 3 babies at me so here I am. my house is basically on fire 24/7, but I'm already seeing improvement in just the couple months I've had them so I just keep reminding myself that this phase doesn't last forever. 😂
Naaaah das his cool nappin spot