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Although ferrets are nocturnal by nature, they will adjust their activity schedule to yours without much fuss. The home cage should be a minimum size of 24”x24” x18” high for up to two ferrets. The cage can be multilevel, but avoid steep ramps because ferrets are not natural climbers and could fall and injure themselves. Aquariums are not suitable cages for ferrets because of inadequate air circulation. Make sure the cage is made of a material that will be easy to clean and deodorize and is indestructible to the ferret digging in the corners. The cage floor can be solid, but should waterproof and easy to clean or made of wire mesh with squares no larger than 1/4” to prevent foot injuries.
Ferrets should be allowed in a supervised, ferret-proofed exercise area a minimum of two
hours a day. This exercise period can be all at once or divided up into two or three play periods. Ferrets in the wild would spend a good deal of time in burrows underground, eating, sleeping and hunting. Think like a ferret, get down on your hands and knees and protect your pet from areas that might be attractive to him/her to dig or burrow into. Make sure you block off all escape routes and remove toxic substances such as plants, household cleaners, insecticides and rodenticides. Protect the carpeting from digging with heavy plastic carpet protectors. Keep your pet from burrowing into the bottom of your furniture or mattresses by covering these areas with a solid piece of thin plywood or Plexiglas. The burrowing is not only damaging to the furniture, but the ferret can eat the foam rubber inside and develop a fatal intestinal obstruction. Recliner chairs should be removed because ferrets like to climb into the chairs to sleep and then when the chair is moved, the ferret can be crushed.
Sleeping Area – In the wild, ferrets would sleep in a dark, warm, dry nest underground. We need to simulate this same environment by providing sleeping material in which a ferret can feel safe. A sleeping area can be as simple as a soft towel, old shirt or cut off trouser leg or blouse sleeve. There are now a wide variety of sleeping paraphernalia for ferrets sold at pet stores such as cloth tubes, tents and hammocks. Occasionally a ferret will chew on cloth, but this is usually baby behavior and most ferrets grow out of it. If your pet does chew on cloth, remove the item from the cage and use a small cardboard or wooden box with clean straw or hay for a sleeping area. After the ferret matures try the cloth sleeping materials again.
Litter Box – Ferrets can be litter box trained about 85% of the time. A small, low-sided box should be placed in the toilet area your pet has already used in the cage or exercise area. Do not use clay or clumping kitty litter in the box because ferrets like to burrow and play in the clean litter and the dust from the clay is damaging to the fur. Use a thin layer of pelleted litter, which is not only cleaner but also more absorbent. It is also non-toxic if swallowed and compostable in the garden. Ferrets back up to a vertical surface to defecate and urinate, so make sure the litter material does not come to the top of the box or all the waste material will drop over the side! Ferrets do not cover up their waste so it will be necessary to change the litter material several times a week to minimize stool odor. If the ferret is allowed to exercise over a large area of the house it will be necessary to place litter boxes in several locations. When ferrets need to “go” they will not travel far to take care of the situation!
Toys – Never give your pet ferret any latex or foam rubber toys!!! Ferrets like to chew on and then swallow these products and the result can be a fatal intestinal obstruction. Make sure to remove any access to foam or latex rubber items in your home such as stereo speakers, headphones, rubber soled shoes, pipe insulation, rubber bands and rubber dog, cat or baby toys. As mentioned under Cages and Exercise, prevent access to the underside of furniture and mattresses because these are also sources of foam rubber.
More appropriate toys are those that simulate the ferrets need for burrows or their
attraction to hunting. Appropriate tunnel-type toys would include large cardboard mailing tubes, dryer hose, paper bags and PVC pipe. Toys that simulate moving prey include ping pong balls, small metal cans, golf balls, and small cloth baby toys or cloth cat toys on springs that hang. Do not use any cloth toys if your ferret shows an interest in chewing them. but this is usually baby behavior and cloth is not a problem for adults. Remove buttons and eyes from any cloth baby toys.
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