LIFE SPAN: 5-10 years
SIZE: 1-3 pounds
COST: $100-$200
DIET: premium kitten food (NOT cat food) or ferret diet
HOUSING: cage inside or outside

Ferrets are fun and exciting pets. When they get excited they do what is known as the "Weasel War Dance". They hop all around making little hissing noises. They don't look where they are going when they do this, so if they are on a couch they might bounce right off!

Ferrets can get along with dogs or cats if they are introduced carefully. If you have small animals or birds, though, they should be watched carefully because some ferrets still have very strong hunting instincts. In others, though, these instincts seem to have disappeared. In California it is illegal to possess ferrets because it is feared they will escape and eat the wildlife.

A health concern with ferrets is their high risk of cancer of the adrenal glands, or Adrenal Disease. The first sign of this is loss of hair starting on the hindquarters and spreading down the tail and up the body. The cancer causes the adrenal glands to over-produce hormones, which in turn eventually causes kidney failure. This condition requires removal of the affected gland(s). Ferrets commonly lived 8 to 10 years before they became popular as pets and people began inbreeding them. This excessive inbreeding is thought to have increased the risk of cancer. Now the average life span is closer to 4 to 6 years.

Ferrets are still classified as exotic pets, although they have been domesticated since the Middle Ages. They were known as "the poor man's hound" because peasants, who could not afford to feed a dog, used the ferrets to hunt rabbits.

Home Tips Dogs Cats Guinea Pigs Hamsters Mice Rabbits Ferrets