Ferret Behavior? Could use some advice.?

Question

My husband's mother recently bought a 20 week old Canadian Ferret. It plays very rough, and has actually chewed holes in her 11 year old Ferret's back. This ferret will play for hours without stopping. Will not eat or drink and is getting thin, so she started to syringe feed it.

When it does pass out and she puts it into his cage, he will wake right up and make this loud chirping noise as if he is crying, and will go on for literally hours. She can't keep him in the same cage as her other ferrets or leave them unattended for fear that he will hurt another again. The loud chirping is what she is most concerned about though. She can't even leave the room without him doing this. Does anyone have any clue as to why? Or what she can do to tone down his behavior? I have had ferrets myself but never had this problem, neither has she and she has 7 of them.

Answer 1

It sounds like your ferret is having a seizure.  When you say pass out, is this just a term for the ferret tiring or did it really pass out?  What are you feeding this ferret in a syringe?  A ferret who passes out may have too low blood sugar or a heart problem and they have a chirping sound like a gulping for air sound and they can also scream.  This is not a good sign and the ferret needs to see a vet.

If the ferret is not eating and losing weight, you should be feeding meat in the form of a soft gruel like baby food chicken or turkey.  Ferrets are carnivores and need that animal protein or they will go down very quickly.  A hyper active ferret who is not eating is a big problem.  Get a jar of baby food and a can of AD Hills cat food. Mix the baby food and AD together. Feed the mixture by syringe (add water if too thick) or by spoon (I like the rubber baby spoons) in this kids mouth every 3 hours until he is stronger and eating.  If this baby was recently weaned and was not eating the hard solid foods well, he may need you to up the soft meat and add water to his kibble until he can eat the dry food.  He has to eat high animal protein to sustain his body weight.  He may be crying because he is lonesome and scared. What was his life like before you got him. Did he live with other young ferrets or was he a single ferret in a home where he had a lot of human attention and is scared to be by himself?  It takes a while for a new ferret to learn to trust you, maybe he is just frightened and wanting you to remain in the room.  If this is the case, make sure his cage is filled with soft cushy beds and when you put him to bed, cover the cage so it is very dark.  Tell him good night and turn off all lights and keep your activity down. Go to bed if you have to until he learns to sooth himself.  

Ferrets in pain will also vocalize. Did he eat something that is causing a blockage in his tummy?

When he recovers from his hunger strike, he is much too aggressive to leave with your other ferrets.  Is this ferret neutered or is he intact? He sounds like an overstimulated intact male ferret.  He needs to learn how to behave with other ferrets, something called socializing before you can leave him to terrorize the existing ferrets.  Once he is eating well and stronger,  you need to monitor his behavior and discipline him like his mother would do if she caught him misbehaving in this manner.  He needs time to run wild before you try to slow him down and when playing with the other ferrets, scruffing with a firm "NO" when he is acting inappropriately.      

Answer 2

Usually the loud squeal/chirp is a fear sound, but I don't know exactly what the sound is you're describing (could be something else).  Most ferrets only grunt (dooking).

At 20 weeks he's 6 months old, has he come from an abusive home?  Was he socialized?  He sounds too rough to have had companions.  If it's possible can he be free-range in the home for a bit, or at least allowed an entire room for several hours, to let him run off some of that frantic energy?  With lots of hidy places -- boxes on their sides, towels inside them-- so he can get his curiosity going and not be so extreme.  When the other ferrets are caged that is, you don't want them to interact until he has manners.

He should be eating too.........did the previous owner feed a particular food that he's now missing?  Is he going through mourning for his former home? Some really do have a hard time adjusting to a new place and new people.  It's very stressful for certain ferrets.

Answer 3

i had ferrets and never had that problem, yours seems to have a problem of some kind, the ferret association could be help full or the vet. you might have to spend some alone time with him to teach him not to bite. one of mine who was 2 months old used to bite me and it does hurt, i flicked his nose every time and he stopped biting. just not to hard you really do not want to hurt him just shock him a little. it worked for me. he was the best ferret, i had him for seven and a half years till he got ill. i loved him very much. yours is very young and maybe a little afraid of his new world. you might have to keep them separated,not all ferrets get along