The choice of the ferret should be based, rather than on aesthetic considerations, of those health- (to choose a healthy subject) and behavioral (must be gentle and not overly fearful). Do not rush to take the first subject that is proposed, But take your time to evaluate and choose.
The ferret should be lively, playful, curious; must agree to be taken in hand without biting, and must not appear overly shy. Place outside the cage must show curious and eager to explore the environment.
The coat should be glossy, There must be no scabs or bald areas; eyes should be clear and careful. Around the eyes and nose should be no scabs or mucus. Paying attention to bites, you can see the inside of the mouth lips moved away after: teeth should be white and regular, should not be crooked, broken or stained, and gums should be pink. Moving your hands on the body should not feel lumps or swellings, or an excessive feeling of thinness. The anus does not have to be dirty with feces.
The stool should be formed, without a trace of blood or mucus. If in a cage containing more ferrets are diarrheal stools, does not matter if you can not identify the affected ferrets: avoided the whole group. Do not take a puppy at low cost, why not choose a puppy "in a bad way", why feel sorry for: should not be rewarded the people who derive profit from the Animal Health, which relies on the good feelings, because it sold a puppy, another will take its place. Do not buy from those who took a ferret, and after a while’ time frees himself for trivial reasons: it is not fair that in addition to give it away, also wants to recover the costs, being able to repeat the same thing without losing anything. If you want to take a ferret less fortunate, from a store or a private, because I'll insist gifts! Is’ right to reward those who raise hand with love and respect for animals, and if you buy a ferret, make sure it is healthy and bred the best! Let us now briefly see where we can find a ferret.
Shops, Fairs, etc.…
Like puppies and cats, is not advisable to purchase in the store even in the case of ferrets: a breeder who raises puppies with love, not give way to the store, without the ability to select the family that will take the new puppy. These in fact, sometimes come instead from improvised litters, sold at the store if they fail to find a home for new born, but more often come from farms overseas. Let us dwell on this phenomenon:
FERRETS MARSHALL (and other farming: Path Valley, New Zealand, etc. ..) :
These ferrets are recognizable by tattoos: Marshall in the case of a tattoo in the ear, 1 dot if they are sterilized, 2 dots if they are sterilized and deghiandolati, in other cases initials or numbers tattooed in the abdomen. The Marshall Farms is the best known: is a big "intensive farming", who made their business of ferrets. For they have the sheds, very reminiscent of the Nazi concentration camps, where they are crammed hundreds of breeding, whose sole function is to make puppies.
The Marshall "has" to have puppies "ready" throughout the year, This is because to alter biorhythms furette, keeping them exposed to light (the heat of furette is linked to exposure to light,and other environmental factors,is seasonal and normally),this to ensure that they are always in heat. The puppies will then removed to his mother at a very early age , neutered early and deghiandolati , to be distributed in stores for the sale still "young and tender". These puppies cross oceans with all the disadvantages that these trips "mass" will: overcrowding, poor hygiene, possible lack of water and food,and often, the death of some pups.
Retailers will "rise" ferret "name brand" with a "pedigree", which is obviously not true. The only thing that Marshall ferrets have more of the atria, have a nice background of trauma and pain.
Above,often found in books veterinary vaccinations are fake Marshall. This can also happen for the sterilization, putting at serious risk the animal,especially girls. Sterilisation does,is practically mandatory in ferrets(This is,it greatly reduces the odor) ,females in particular because, prolonged heat brings furetta to severe anemia due to hyperestrogenism, and following the death. But it is to do ABSOLUTELY sexual maturity occurred ( generally to the 8 medias) , as in any other animal. Sterilize an early animal, is a pointless savagery, aimed only to harm the animal, the ferret in particular, of his being already subject to the adrenal tumors,that seems to be closely linked to early sterilization. Then let us remember that the deghiandolazione, other cruelties on their puppies adopted from the Marshall, practice is not necessary, because the typical odor of the ferret has nothing to do with the perianal glands,which is just a tool of defense in case of danger (so their presence can also save their lives). The removal of this gland can only bring the animal,eventually,rectal prolapse and hemorrhoids.
Marshall also is a company producing laboratory ferrets and dogs, bred for the purpose with a high rate of consanguinity. He later decided to expand the market by selling ferrets as pets, using the same bloodlines certainly not fit for purpose.
Our goal, is to boycott as much as possible these farms. Less sales are, not receive requests, hoping one day to be able to end this kind of business.
Ads, and private breeders
Searching the Internet, is easy to find listings of individuals who sell puppies that have had at home. Although most ferrets are bred as pets, there are still, especially in some areas of Italy, Ferrets used for hunting. Recall that hunting with ferrets is prohibited throughout the peninsula, and ferrets kept for this purpose very often live in poor conditions: are biting because they are never handled, crammed into a cage, or kept in solitary confinement in tiny baskets perpetually in the dark, fed with unsuitable food, and indeed often left hungry, so you avventino on prey during hunting. Are not vaccinated, and then often die of distemper, or sterilized, for which the females at risk of death from anemia during the heats, and reproduced without any criteria, without thinking of inbreeding and therefore the risks of genetic defects. Is’ easy to imagine how absolutely to avoid the purchase of these animals: comprandone a, it probably will save a life similar, but we will play these people, which will continue to keep ferrets in these conditions and to make money on them. No less important, is that bringing home a puppy bred in this way, surely there will be very difficult to relate with it: not being accustomed to the relationship with man, bite in blood, and will require patience, experience and very often a long period of training because it is accustomed to being handled. Probably will be very thin, underfed, not accustomed to healthy eating. All this could put a strain on your ability to rapportavi with the new arrival: you should think before you buy, who find themselves in a difficult situation to manage, with the risk that many times the ferret is abandoned. Although it is not bred to hunt ferrets, before buying a puppy from a private, you should inquire about how he was brought up and see for yourself where he lived, parents, his temperament and general health. Find out first on the management of the ferret, so that you can verify that the individual has a good knowledge of the animal and that has bred the litter with all requirements: must be transferred around the eighth week of age, often have the first vaccine for canine distemper and microchip identification, and their pedigrees must be known and no consanguinity. Check presence being fed properly, they live in a suitable environment, with the right space and in a sanitary condition. Both the mother and the puppies should appear healthy: should not be thin, I did nothing strange, no drains in the eyes, al naso, clean ears. Take them in hand to see if they are educated: should not be frightened or aggressive.
Adoption
The spread of the ferret as a pet, has also led to many misguided purchases, which unfortunately often end with the abandonment: some associations, as Furettomania and Ferret Association of Exotic Animals Section, dealing with these ferrets and try to recover them a new family. If you want a ferret to help less fortunate, contact the reporters' associations, that will give you all the information necessary.
SOURCE: Vet.Marta for Leftovers AAE SOURCE: Lucius and Teresa per Ferret’s life