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Fed Up with Potty Training Ferrets? Don’t throw in the Towel—Read This First!

By E Anthony Gove

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 26Oct2009 Word count: 848 Viewed: 428 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

For starters there are two types of potty training: in cage training and out of cage. We will be discussing, in cage, the easier of the two.

Litter Box, training ferrets— The most important thing to remember is that you’re not alone. We’ve all gone through this. Most kits will use the whole cage as a litter box (except for the litter box). Kits are known for playing and throwing litter everywhere from Tibet to Tulsa. (The ONLY instance that ferrets are similar to cats in when you use a little persuasion, patience and persistence when potty training ferrets so they will use a litter box in their cage) You should never completely clean the litter box when training ferrets to use their litter box. When I was in the military I had an instructor in my tech school that when she wanted to stress a point (wink, wink) she would stomp her foot and say “always, always, always.” So always, always, always place some wet used litter and some pooh (or for you sophisticated chaps--a little fecal matter) on top of the new litter. This will give them an idea where to go to the potty.

Training ferrets that are diggers: supplies & Tools—

You will need: Two litter boxes large and small Two ½ drywall screws Two 1 x 4’s pieces of wood that are four inches narrower then the cage. A 1/8” drill bit A small tube of kitchen and bath caulk Drill A Phillips bit for the drill

Training ferrets that are diggers: staging the cage— Now how does this fit together you ask? First put the smaller litter box into the bigger one with litter in the smaller one only (but do that later). Place the litter box where you want it with the 1x4 underneath drill a whole stopping when you get to the wood. Now put a generous dab of silicone on the hole in the cage floor (This will seal the hole) if you have a metal bottom, if it is mesh skip the silicone and line everything up to screw it together. If there is no base or wheels on it, then this is where the other 1x4 comes in to play and balances the cage floor. You can just place it underneath the other side or silicone it to the bottom, you do not have to screw it. Now you can put the litter in the small box. This process helps to reduce how much litter you waste, it called a scratch pan. If you have an older ferret that is potty trained, it will not tolerate a kit with bad potty habits and actually helps the kit.

For the people that aren’t as handy, you can attach the litter box to the side of the cage with cage straps. This will establish the area as the place to potty and also keep the box from tipping.

Potty training ferrets that are older will be much easier. They will not play in the litter box; they just don’t understand what it is or what they are supposed to do in it. With a little persistence they will be trained much easier.

If they are going in the wrong place, remember that ferrets live by the old saying, “Don’t poop where you eat.” What I mean is clean the cage then place their food bowl where they were using the potty because they seldom potty where they sleep, eat or drink. You can also try leaving your ferret in their cage until they use the litter box; I have heard of people awakening their ferret and putting them in the litter box until they go, if they get out they put them back. When they finally go they praise them, give treats, and let them out to play. But as you know, they are smart critters; they will fake it for the treats.

Frequent litter box changes will help you in potty training ferrets. You will do this because sometimes you get a fickle ferret that is stuck up and will only use their litter box if they have a clean one. Now I don’t mean dump the entire box, just scoop daily and completely change weekly, don’t forget to place a little soiled litter and a little pooh back in the box as a reminder. An important thing to remember is, the more ferrets you have, the more you will need to change the litter in the box. With the male ferrets being larger, sometimes twice as large as females, they will be more apt to dislike corner liter pans and are more apt to ignore the corner pan.

Now you should be potty training ferrets like the pros, but this is just the first step. Next you will still have to teach them to use a litter box outside of the cage. “Outside the cage” potty-training ferrets is a whole separate article. I hope you are comfortable now. There are a lot of other techniques, and with a little research you will find them.

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