Hello from Ontario!

[Little Wise Owl]

I'm Shannon from Canadia-land. I've been keeping mostly snakes and some lizards for about 5 years now.

I'm currently in college for Animal Care/Vet Assistant and have taken deep interest in domestic/exotic animal nutrition. Especially fresh, natural, holistic diets.

I also care for ferrets, dogs, and cats.

Here are some photos of myself and my animals.
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_0261.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/Polecat.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_0032.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_1225.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_2174.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_0890.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_0958.jpg

Yours truly,
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_0992.jpg

[infernalis]

http://www.thamfriends.com/mat.jpg

[Sapphyr]

Absolutely gorgeous snakes you've got there~ Loving your beardie and crestie as well <3 And your ferret is adorable c: Reminds me of my sable ferret, Panda~ Looks exactly alike :D I've actually got 4. 2 sables, an albino, and a silver.

Anywho, welcome to the forums, I'm sure you'll enjoy your time here :>

PS: You're pretty~ c:

[Little Wise Owl]

Thank you. :)

I only have two ferrets. The female pictured with the mouse is Alessa and this is my Sable Point male, Maynard when he was a kit.
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_1270.jpg

And now
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h281/Shaylah_Rawr/IMG_1112.jpg

[Sapphyr]

They sure do grow up, huh? <3 Always love the males since they're just big, lovable oafs~ I started out with my albino and silver. Albino is a female named Phoebe, silver is a male named Flande(female french name my friend picked... we made the typical beginner's mistake of thinking his genital bump was a belly button LOL). Have had them for maybe... 3 - 4 years now, still love 'em to death. Just this past year we added Sid and Panda, the two Sables. They were up for adoption at the Lexington Humane Society and well... ferrets are addicting~ So goofy and just a blast to watch them play with another -and- to play with. Mine absolutely dook like mad when I wave a blanket in the air or an article of clothing~

I say I love the males, but if you took the two pairs of brother/sisters, I couldn't tell you which out of the two pairs are my favorites. Males have that big old belly and lax behavior that sometimes results in funny situations(like Flan will slink around on the floor, just lay his front on the floor and slide along), but females have a petite cuteness~

At any rate, do yours love wiggling sheets of fabric and stuff? What are some funny stories you've had with them? c:

[Little Wise Owl]

Just the other day I was holding a towel and I yanked it up, not thinking and then there was a ferret in the air at like... eye level. She landed safely but man, I laughed. I guess she decided to bite it when I wasn't paying attention.

They like to stick their heads in the vacuum hose (when it's on) too despite not liking it, they keep doing it over and over... lol

Maynard's also very lazy... He'll fall and slide from his hammock at the top of the cage down to his litter box. WALKING IS FOR FOOLS, I guess. It's amusing to see an animal basically melting over ledges and kerplunking on the floor below just because they're too lazy to walk.

[Sapphyr]

HA! xD Oh I know how that goes. My boys are too lazy to walk to the litter, as well. Just kinda slip over the edge and I'm just over at my desk grinning like a Cheshire cat. They're so funny <3

And I'm guessing that's a definite yes for fabrics xD I've never seen mine jump -that- high, but they've jumped about knee level, before, trying to catch a fleeing piece of fabric. You ever tried dragging a towel or something on the floor? Mine love to chase the moving towel and will occasionally hitch a ride on it xD

Never had the vacuum hose issue, though, but it sounds like quite an amusing stunt~ Reminds me of how hedgehogs will intentionally stick toilet paper rolls on their head and then spend hours trying to get it off. They call it 'tubing', common behavior in hedgehogs.

[Corni_snake]

:) hello there Little Wise Owl, shannon

Love the picture that you have put up! _._ reading both your discussions now i want a ferret......flippin eck?! lol

How are the ferrets witht he snakes and lizards o.o :S

p.s :) AND WELCOME

[Sapphyr]

:) hello there Little Wise Owl, shannon

Love the picture that you have put up! _._ reading both your discussions now i want a ferret......flippin eck?! lol

How are the ferrets witht he snakes and lizards o.o :S

p.s :) AND WELCOME

NEVER EVER let your ferrets get -anywhere- near your reptile buds. I learned this the hard way. Went to school, left the ferrets out in my room, came back to my blizzard leopard gecko, Tryphosa, dead. Back then I just had the two, but one or both got into Tryphosa's cage and bit her in the head, probably killed her instantly.

Lizards and other reptiles are natural prey to a ferret in the wild(yes, even some snakes). Granted, domesticated ferrets are so domesticated that they can no longer survive in the wild, should you have a pet ferret and release it, but that doesn't mean the instinct is no longer there. Ferrets are very determined, cunning, and will try their best to fiddle their way into anything that's been attempted to be blocked from them, or even things unattended.

I've had them knock over several drinks in my absence, destroying quite a few keyboards, tore the keys from my keyboards, chewed holes in gallon containers of fresh spring water(something about plastic drives Phoebe mad), chewed up entire plastic bowls, plates, tupperware, etc., still managed to get into the dog food supply despite moving it into my closet(squeezed under the door, got in the closet, thus hoarding food under my bed and causing a bug problem), got on several tabletops despite trying to create a big enough gap between accessible surfaces and removing anything they could cling and climb(mainly fabrics).

They're lovely pets, but you have to -really- check places and try and think of any possible way that could get up onto up there, into that, etc. because I guarantee that whatever you do think, they will try. When they want something, they're very determined and will try and try again 'til they get tired of it, get distracted(sometimes this doesn't work, they'll get distracted and go right back to it. Relocating them away from whatever it is they're trying to get to may not work, either. Mine just run straight back to whatever it was and keep going for it.), or just get too lazy to do anymore.

Pretty much, they're like a kitten and a puppy mixed into one, and neither mix too well with any reptile, but they're still great pets, nonetheless. You've just got to be careful and, of course, responsible. I've said things about chewing, but they don't chew like rodents, nor are they rodents. Their teeth are designed very similarly to a cat's jaw(of course, just a smidge different), so they really don't fit the category to compare to a rodent's gnawing. It's more of like.. a puppy teething, and no, not teething on -you-, mainly objects. I've never been bitten by any of my ferrets. Phoebe -really- loves to chew on plastic. If there's plastic anywhere in the room, she's going to hunt it down like a heat seeking missile and there's no stopping her. It's like an uncontrollable urge to chew on plastic, don't really understand it but she -loooooves- it. She also loves rubber, but you've really got to be careful with both, seeing as how both are really bad to ingest, as are most foreign objects.

[Corni_snake]

ahhhhh! Im glad you mentioned that. I was looking into care sheets online, and they ""seem" expensive to keep as well. Vet bills, neutering (i had no idea that jills can be in season spring-summer ever year) and well the replacement cost for what ever they destroy.

I'll still consider it, but will definitely wait i think =] look into my options abit more.

THanks for that!

sorry to hear about the little leopard gecko =[ poor thing

[whoaxmary]

Hello and welcome. Love your pictures~
We're neighboors. ;p
And wow, sounds like ferrets are quiet the interesting pets. ;o
Sorry to hear about your gecko though. ;/ That's no good.

[Little Wise Owl]

:) hello there Little Wise Owl, shannon

Love the picture that you have put up! _._ reading both your discussions now i want a ferret......flippin eck?! lol

How are the ferrets witht he snakes and lizards o.o :S

p.s :) AND WELCOME


The ferrets are unaware of the reptiles though I'm sure the reptiles are aware of them.

They're never out together, just like how my cats or dogs are never in the same room. I've had more trouble with my cat trying to kill the reptiles than I had with the ferrets. They're pretty oblivious. lol

I don't doubt that if the ferrets did come in contact with my snakes that they'd kill them immediately though. Just like my cats would as well as our dogs. The snakes just look like tasty treats to our other animals. lol

Long story short, don't let ferrets mix with ANY small animal. The only other animal they can get along with are the cats and sometimes the dogs.



Sapphyr: I'm sorry to hear about the gecko ): that's really unfortunate. Ferrets are pretty nasty little hunters when it comes to killing. Their teeth are razor sharp and almost exactly like a cat's. Just in a smaller package. Luckily mine have never attempted to bite me hard. lol

[presspirate]

Hello and Welcome aboard! Thanks for sharing the great pics!

[mld]

Welcome to the site! Great looking animals you have.

[danarchy911]

what an adorable collection you have!

[Sapphyr]

My ferrets love to play with my pitbull~ She knows to be careful and not hurt them since they're small in comparison, but they have fun jumping at her and chasing her, and the cats, around the room.

Yours seem to not be so interested in other things, Owlie ;c Mine get into anything and everything they can, very curious about what this or that is.

And Corni, they aren't really all that expensive. Most ferrets are neutered/spayed before being sent off to pet stores. It's even a law in some states. Most ferrets are supplied by a large breeder in New York, thus will normally have a small tattoo on one of their ears(all of mine share this tattoo, it looks like two dots) and are normally neutered/spayed. The only thing expensive is their food. It's $20 a bag here but it normally lasts a month, anyways, so no big deal.

The only thing I don't like about them, besides their determination to investigate things, is that they crap A LOT. Have to clean out their cages 2 - 3 times a week, or more, to avoid a large poo build up, and, of course, keep an eye on areas in the room they wander. They, for the most part, go in corners.

[Jendee]

awww love the ferrest!!! welcome to the forum! ;)

[Little Wise Owl]

Oh trust me, my ferrets get into EVERYTHING. If I'm cleaning, they need to be in the garbage bag... even if it's filled with their poopy litter. They need to throw my old nintendo games across the room right after I'd organized them... They also like to hide my cellphone at the far corner behind my bed where I can't reach.

[Jendee]

aww i thought i posted in here but it didn't show up sooo again!!
Cute ferrets!! I love ferrets! welcome to the forum Im sure you will love it here..good job posting pics in your introduction thread..we demand them lol :)

[marvelfreak]

Hello and welcome cool animals and sweet pictures.

[Sapphyr]

Oh trust me, my ferrets get into EVERYTHING. If I'm cleaning, they need to be in the garbage bag... even if it's filled with their poopy litter. They need to throw my old nintendo games across the room right after I'd organized them... They also like to hide my cellphone at the far corner behind my bed where I can't reach.

Ha! Exactly the same, 'cept the cellphone bit. Instead, they hide my glasses under my bed. I get so frustrated when they're trying to check out the poopy garbage bag and I'm like,"Agh! No, that's smelly, yours, and you don't need to be -in- it!" Silly ferries~ Mine really need a bath right about now. Starting to get that strong ferret smell to 'em.

[Little Wise Owl]

I kind of miss that ferret musk... My ferrets' musky smell is a little vague since they're on a natural diet.

[Sapphyr]

I kind of miss that ferret musk... My ferrets' musky smell is a little vague since they're on a natural diet.

I feed mine Marshall's diet, but only bathe 'em once every 4 - 6 weeks. Don't want to dry out their skin or strip essential oils from their coat. Panda kinda smells like... smoked ham right now. I find it weird but oh well. She's actually on the 'Duck Soup' diet right now, though. We house the males with the females and we think poor Panda was getting shoved from food, so she got really underweight. Moved her to her own cage and we've had her on the Duck Soup for about a week or two, she's really bounced back. I think she's ready to be put back with the others, but I'm probably going to be feeding them separately from now on, and also on a schedule.

[Little Wise Owl]

I can't bring myself to feed ferrets any of the "ferret" foods. There are VERY few brands I deem suitable for ferrets. I think the only one I will feed is EVO's Ferret Food.

I had ferrets many years ago and they were fed ferret food and thinking back and comparing them to my ferrets now... Whew, BIG difference. High protein, absolutely LOW carb foods made such a huge difference. The ferrets poop much less, eat less, their coats are soft as soft could be (my previous ferrets had... wirey... rough coats).

It's honestly something you wouldn't notice until you saw the change.

[Sapphyr]

I can't bring myself to feed ferrets any of the "ferret" foods. There are VERY few brands I deem suitable for ferrets. I think the only one I will feed is EVO's Ferret Food.

I had ferrets many years ago and they were fed ferret food and thinking back and comparing them to my ferrets now... Whew, BIG difference. High protein, absolutely LOW carb foods made such a huge difference. The ferrets poop much less, eat less, their coats are soft as soft could be (my previous ferrets had... wirey... rough coats).

It's honestly something you wouldn't notice until you saw the change.

Really? I thought Marshall's was one of the top ferret 'pellet' formulas around. What would you recommend, then?

[Little Wise Owl]

You'd be very surprised. It's quite grain heavy. Corn and grains (carbs) are highly suspected contributors to Insulinoma (the common neoplastic disease which many ferrets fall ill to).

I personally recommend raw/whole prey diets. 80% meat, 10%bone, 10%organs (5% of that being liver) and anything from mice, rats, quail, rabbit, chicks (anything you can get from a reptiles feed supplier, really) There are also commercial raw diets available with 95% meat.

If researching and getting into raw isn't your cup of tea you can try these brands:

Innova EVO's ferret and cat/kitten formulas:
EVO Ferret Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1502)
EVO Cat & Kitten Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1500)

I wouldn't feed this brand myself (it's not grain free) BUT it's a better brand.
8-in-1 ULTIMATE Ferret Food (http://www.ferret.com/item/8-in-1-ultimate-ferret-diet-crunchy/650148%20CRU/) (NOT "Ultra" that formula has corn in it)

Go! Natural Chicken, Turkey and Duck cat food (http://moredooks.herobo.com/food.php?food=Go!%20Natural%20Chicken%20Turkey%20a nd%20Duck)

Please check out this chart. It's up to date and lists all ferret/cat foods from best to worst:
Ferret Food Chart (http://moredooks.herobo.com/search.php?chart=ferret)

[Little Wise Owl]

If by chance you are interested in raw, natural diets you can check out this forum: Holistic Ferret Forum - Home (http://holisticferret60.proboards.com/index.cgi?)

This is where I learned how to feed raw to my ferrets when they were kits.

[Sapphyr]

You'd be very surprised. It's quite grain heavy. Corn and grains (carbs) are highly suspected contributors to Insulinoma (the common neoplastic disease which many ferrets fall ill to).

I personally recommend raw/whole prey diets. 80% meat, 10%bone, 10%organs (5% of that being liver) and anything from mice, rats, quail, rabbit, chicks (anything you can get from a reptiles feed supplier, really)

If researching and getting into raw isn't your cup of tea you can try these brands:

Innova EVO's ferret and cat/kitten formulas:
EVO Ferret Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1502)
EVO Cat & Kitten Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1500)

I wouldn't feed this brand myself (it's not grain free) BUT it's a better brand.
8-in-1 ULTIMATE Ferret Food (http://www.ferret.com/item/8-in-1-ultimate-ferret-diet-crunchy/650148%20CRU/) (NOT "Ultra" that formula has corn in it)

Go! Natural Chicken, Turkey and Duck cat food (http://moredooks.herobo.com/food.php?food=Go%21%20Natural%20Chicken%20Turkey%2 0and%20Duck)

Please check out this chart. It's up to date and lists all ferret/cat foods from best to worst:
Ferret Food Chart (http://moredooks.herobo.com/search.php?chart=ferret)

Well not to sound morbid or anything, but I personally think it'd be interesting to watch them consume whole prey items. I just think getting them to switch to this will be difficult.

What size mouse/rat would a full grown ferret eat? Would there be a size difference for adult males and females(since females are smaller)? I'm sure they're fed daily, but how much per day and how many suitably sized mice/rats per day?

[Little Wise Owl]

Not morbid at all! :D (although it would be to me if it was live... I'm very against feeding live rodents to ANY pets)

These are my ferrets eating two mice :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soW2F_24OYU

Ferrets could eat something as big as a rabbit (a medium rabbit could probably feed 4 ferrets for an entire day and a half) I feed my ferrets 2-4 frozen adult mice a day (they get 1-2 mice each) if they're not fed anything else. Sometimes I'll throw in 1 large rat for the day and maybe some chicken hearts on the side.

There's no real specific size to give... You learn what your ferrets like and how much they like to eat as you go.

As for switching... It can be hard, I hear. My ferrets were tiny kits when I started them so it was super easy for me. If you want more info on switching, I DEFINITELY recommend checking out the Holistic Ferret Forum. The moderators will personally help you by providing step-by-step methods to switching picky ferrets.

Then again, you could have ferrets that are eager to switch. Never know until you try. :)

[Little Wise Owl]

Haha, I just realized... I came onto a reptile forum and am now having a conversation about ferrets.

[Sapphyr]

Oh I'm the same way. I'd never leave a live prey item with any of my animals, and would still be edgy about leaving them with each other under supervision. I don't worry about crickets and my lizards too much, though. They do a really good job of eating the amount given.

We've got an Incredipets down the street that supplies EVO products, so until I have a job, I'll be feeding them EVO. I think it's roughly the same price as Marshall's, just alot healthier for them. When I get a job I'll probably feed 'em a bunny once to twice a week, the rest of the week on EVO. I'm assuming, after killing the rabbit(probably will have to purchase it alive... really hoping I won't have to, though), you leave it in there for 30 minutes - an hour and try to preserve it in the freezer, thaw, and present the corpse to them later so they get their fill or what?


And it's fine, we also talk about our fuzzy buddies on here, too.~ Just more so scaley friends than our fuzzbabies.

Edit: Aww, I just saw that video~ They're so eager to get their micies c: And so cute nomming them too~

Also, I heard you can take mice/rats, put them in a pillow case, and slam them against a wall as another way of killing them if you don't have carbon to kill them with. Could this also work for rabbits and be a quick death if you slam them against the wall hard enough? I know I've seen rabbits with a blood line across their neck before feeding in some videos, makes me think they slit the throat, but I'd really hate to take a knife to a bunny's throat and I know freezer death is a painful, long process before dying.

[Little Wise Owl]

I just leave raw food items in the cage all day. Usually from frozen so it doesn't rot. It's generally always gone by the next day.

They like to nibble.

[Sapphyr]

I just leave raw food items in the cage all day. Usually from frozen so they don't rot. It's generally always gone by the next day.

They like to nibble.

So just leave the whole carcass in there for a whole day? And what if mine weren't frozen previous to serving them, should I be concerned about letting it sit for a day then or is the stench of rot the only real concern?

I'm thinking I may just refuse to buy live ones since, the more I think about it, the worse I feel about killing the poor things. I don't think I have it in me to take the life of something else ;c

[percey39]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Great pics of your collection!

[Little Wise Owl]

So just leave the whole carcass in there for a whole day? And what if mine weren't frozen previous to serving them, should I be concerned about letting it sit for a day then or is the stench of rot the only real concern?

I'm thinking I may just refuse to buy live ones since, the more I think about it, the worse I feel about killing the poor things. I don't think I have it in me to take the life of something else ;c

I'd recommend frozen just so they won't rot and stink up the house. My ferrets have eaten day old meat and have yet to be sick but it's not something I practice on a daily basis.

I'd start them on something small like mice and rats first just so they get used to eating raw meat, fur, bones and organs. I remember my little boy ferret GAGGING at the organs of a large male rat. lmao I think the stinkiness of the male rat was too much for him. lol

[Sapphyr]

I'd recommend frozen just so they won't rot and stink up the house. My ferrets have eaten day old meat and have yet to be sick but it's not something I practice on a daily basis.

I'd start them on something small like mice and rats first just so they get used to eating raw meat, fur, bones and organs. I remember my little boy ferret GAGGING at the organs of a large male rat. lmao I think the stinkiness of the male rat was too much for him. lol

Ha! Poor boy D;

I don't know of anyone that sells frozen rabbits around here or pre-killed. don't know anyone that sells feeders except for people at expos, but they sell live at expos and most of the feeders I see are mice/rats. Next time I go to pick up fuzzies, I may buy an extra box of fuzzies or the next size or two up to get them accommodated, but right now I can't afford to feed them raw on a regular basis and keep up with all my other animals. Right now they'll be primarily EVO diet, until I get my job.

[mld]

If researching and getting into raw isn't your cup of tea you can try these brands:

Innova EVO's ferret and cat/kitten formulas:
EVO Ferret Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1502)
EVO Cat & Kitten Food (http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1500)
[/URL]

I use the EVO brand for my cat and dog, it grain free! Never had any problems since switching. They digest more easily.

[Little Wise Owl]

Sounds great. :)

[emilie]

yay for ontario!!!! :) awesome eh?

[Little Wise Owl]

Definitely! Thank you :)

[totheend]

yay for ontario!!!! :) awesome eh?

I second that :D :D