All You Need To Know About Raising Baby Ferrets

Should you decide to purchase a ferret you have to bear in mind that you have acquired a pet for life with a long term commitment. To kick off you are looking to spend around two hundred dollars in order to get started with everything that you need for the ferret to make sure that it lives a healthy and happy live. Female ferrets are known as Jill, while the male is referred to as Hob with their baby offspring called Kits.

A normal-sized litter usually is made up of 7 or 8 kits. Baby ferrets are blind, pink-skinned and mostly hairless at birth, and unbelievably tiny. Kits spend most of their time suckling, sleeping and growing. In about 20 days, the kit's colours will be evident and their eyes will begin to open. Ferrets mature extremely quickly and in four months, the juvenile kit will look almost exactly the same as it will in four years.

Neutering and Descenting

Baby kits normally arrive at the store when they are approximately 7 weeks old and by then, they have had their first vaccination and most have already been descented and neutered. To some extent, the trait of discharging distinctive odours is probably true of all members of the mustelid (weasel and mink) family. For this reason, the anal glands are usually removed during castration or spaying - usually when the kits are 6 to 7 weeks old. The incisions from these procedures are so tiny that they are rarely visible by the time the kits are sold.

Vaccinations and Distemper

Around eight weeks of age, baby ferrets are going to need a distemper inoculation, around eleven to twelve weeks of age the ferret is going to need a booster and then at fourteen to sixteen weeks of age the ferret is going to need its final booster. Once you have completed all of these, you are going to need to have your ferret vaccinated yearly. The annual rabies shot is going to need to be given to the ferret around twelve to thirteen weeks of age.

You should consider these shots a necessity, not a luxury. You are also going to need to make sure that you have all of the necessities for the baby ferret. You are going to need to litter box and your ferret is going to need to be nip trained. Bear in mind that these nips are going to hurt you, biting is just a ferret's nature, because they have rough skin and they are used to rough play.

Toys and Cages

You will need to buy a cage where your ferret is able to quietly sleep. The three main considerations for a ferret cage are roominess, safety and ease of cleaning. The cage should have a large door, offering easy access to a ferret sleeping in its nest box. A large, multilevel cage can be an excellent option for older pet ferrets if it is sturdy enough, with safe spacing for all doors and platforms.

Ferrets love to play and they will need some toys to keep them busy. Commercial cat toys that are sturdy enough to withstand ferrets' needle-sharp teeth and small, sturdy balls are fine if the kits are supervised during play. Some baby toys and rattles made for human babies can also be fun for baby ferrets.

Most of the time, a ferret is going to sleep around eighteen to twenty hours a day but when it comes out to play, its like a cat on steroids, there's no stopping it. These little fury bundles of joy are exciting and full of life, all they ask is that you take care of them by properly learning about raising baby ferrets.

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Feeding your Ferret

When you acquire them, they have already been weaned and they now need adult nourishment. Since their teeth are not yet sharp enough to chew anything, it is best to soak the food in warm water for 5 to 10 minutes before this is given. You must never give them cat food because studies have shown that this causes health problems.

Kits need more fat and protein than kittens. This is because they have a very short intestinal system and a rapid intestinal transit time which means it takes some time for the food to pass through the stomach and into the intestines. When you are looking for the right food product to buy, look at the label and see to it that this contains 35% protein and 20% of fat.

The baby ferrets need a balance of meat and poultry products as this will decrease the risk later of urinary tract obstructions later on in life. They must also be given water on a regular basis either in a dish or bottle. As the baby ferrets grow older, you can give them occasional snacks such as bananas, crackers and raisins but only in small amounts.

Learn more about these loving pets.

You shouldn't acquire a pet unless you are going to commit to full responsibility of caring for them and owning them for life.

About the Author:

Vijai Sharma: http://ferretsforlife.com

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