I think all of our pets are really close to our hearts. We love the company of them whenever we feel exhausted and tired. Also, cuddling with our pets sometimes gives us the most divine feeling of love and affection. And no wonder that this happens when you have a ferret in your home.
Ferrets are playful in nature, smart, and very entertaining to watch and cuddle. They are super friendly and love to stay on the lap of their owners. From children to older members of your family, everyone will want to have the ferret on their lap to enjoy the ferret’s playful nature. So it’s possible that they can injure the ferret easily by holding it roughly. Also, children are not always cautious about holding it in a way; the ferret feels comfortable.
In this case, all the ferret owners should know how to hold a ferret so that anyone cant do any physical harm to their lovely ferret. That’s why in this article, we will illustrate the way of holding ferrets and some other issues that a ferret owner must know about their pet.
So let’s jump in.
The perfect way to hold a ferret–
There are many ways you can hold a ferret in different circumstances. But before going into the details, let’s know the most common way of holding a ferret in all situations.
- You must securely put your one hand in the front lower part of the ferret’s body. Put your hands gently as the ferret has a flexible spine.
- While lifting the ferret, put your other hand on the backside of the ferret to make them stable in your hand.
- Hold your ferret close to your chest so that the ferret feels comfortable and stable.
- While holding the ferret close to your body, place the lower part of the ferret’s body on your hand, and use the other hand to rub his upper body simultaneously so that the ferret doesn’t struggle and create an incredible bond with you.
Avoid holding your ferret by their legs and neck.
There is another way of holding your ferret when you need to calm him down. And we call it “SCRUFFING.” This is a technique to hold your ferret when he misbehaves or struggles if anyone tries to hold him. And this is a very effective technique followed by ferret owners to calm their ferret down and give them the comfort of their mind.
So let’s know how to do that.
- Using your thumb and two fingers, make a firm grip on the loose skin at the back of the neck. While grasping the skin, make sure you are not hurting the ferret’s neck.
- But do not hold your ferret like that for too long. Instead, keep your other hand on the hindquarters to ensure a comfortable holding.
This process of holding is mainly followed when you need to groom the ferret or make him disciplined.
How to Calm the Ferret Down?
According to Wikipedia, a ferret sleeps almost 14-16 hours a day. And they stay most hyperactive in the dawn and dusk. In that time, they become restless and hyper sometimes. At that time, ferret owners used to struggle with their ferret to calm them down. But not anymore. Now we will discuss briefly the ways you can calm your ferret down.
- Firstly, you must figure out the reason for your ferret’s anger. When you find out the reason, it’s just one fell swoop to calm the ferret down.
- Sometimes rubbing your pet ferret’s belly or back is all you need to do to calm the ferret down.
- Give them a toy or anything to play with.
- Ferrets sleep more than 14 hours a day. But when they wake up, make sure you go for a walk with them. Sometimes a bit of a walk with you can make your ferrets mind calm and fresh.
Do Ferrets Like To Be Held?
Ferrets are very friendly in nature. They are such a social creature that behaves best in human company. They never bother staying in the lap of their owners. You can cuddle with these little creatures whenever you want. You can hold them, play with them, and also make them your exercise partner. But a ferret doesn’t want to be held all the time.
They sleep mostly half of the day. And whenever they wake up, they want to roam around the house or do some ferret exercise. You must allow your pet ferret to play for at least one or two hours a day. Ferret is a kind of pet that can survive without anyone at home, just with some fresh water and food inside his living area. It’s also possible if you want your ferret to be caged in a proper ferret-proof environment.
So it won’t be hard for us to say that ferrets do love to be held, but not all the time.
How to Play With a Ferret?
Playing with your ferret can help you to create an incredible bond with the fuzzy. Humans are the best companion a ferret can ever have. And playing with your ferret will ensure their mental and physical stability. A healthy ferret is a happy ferret. But most ferret owners struggle to find a way to play with their pet ferret. So let’s discuss it a bit.
- You can make him play with toys. Ferret loves toys. Filling their living area with different types and shapes of toys can easily trigger your ferret to play. Sometimes you must join him to make the ferret more enthusiastic about playing. Who doesn’t love a companion while playing? There are ways you can play with your ferret with toys.
- You can hide the favorite toys of your ferret and make him find them.
- You can play tug of war with a rope or towel. But make sure you are not using anything made out of rubber.
- You can play fetch with colorful ping pong balls. Drop two balls and see what your ferret does.
- Treat him in the form of play. Sometimes you can tease your ferret with a treat he would love to have. Suppose your ferret loves having biscuits. So what you can do is- you can tie the treat with a rope or strings and keep swinging back and forth. And let the ferret try to get the treat. In this way, you can quickly build a rapport with him, and the treat will definitely make him happy.
- Keep an area of your home for the ferret to play. You can make your ferret chase you, or you can play hide and seek with him. But for that, keep an area for your ferret to run and play. Keep nothing that comes in the way. Clean the floor. And let the ferret play and explore.
What Ferret Love?
There are things that can make a ferret a happy pet all the time. Many ferret owners complain about the less exciting of their ferrets. But why do their ferrets feel low? Are they bored? Whatever it is, you can make it alright. And to do so, you have to do everything a ferret loves. Such as:
Cleanliness: Ferrets don’t like anything dirty. From their bedsheets to water pots, everything needs to be clean and new. Try to change their bedsheets more often. Give him food in a clean bowl. Make his living area dirt-free. A clean ferret’s surroundings will eliminate the boredom and will make the ferret more energetic than ever.
Fresh food and water: For the good health of your ferret, you must provide him the perfect nutrition. Ferrets love having fresh food and clean water. And treating your ferret with new food every day will make him happy all day.
Keep the living area clean: Ferrets don’t feel comfortable in a dirty living area. So if you want to make your ferret stay happy and lively, make sure you are keeping his living area clean.
Human Companion: Ferrets are very self-dependent pets. Unlike other pets, they don’t need to be kept an eye always. You can leave your pet ferret at home with some fresh food and clean water. They will definitely survive on their own without your help. But if you want your pet ferret to make a bond with you that will make them happy as well, you must accompany them at least once in a day. Your affection can make your pet ferret’s mental health more stable.
Final Words:
Ferret is not the kind of pet that you will find in everybody’s home. That’s why you can’t expect everyone to know the proper way to hold a ferret. And in this article, I tried to show the most common and easy way you can hold a ferret, ensuring utmost convenience to the ferret’s flexible spine.
So lift your ferret with confidence for the last-minute cuddle following the steps mentioned above.