Hissing Ferret

Dear Ferretlady:

Whenever my ferret bites me when I'm playing with her, she hisses at me after she bites.  And whenever I pick her up by the scruff of the neck and tell her no, she hisses at me after I put her back on the ground.  Whats the hissing for and doesn't she like me anymore!? :(

Tim

Dear Tim:

Ferrets hiss when frightened or angry. Has someone been abusing your ferret? Like hitting her, dropping her on the floor from a standing position or hurting her in any other way? If so, the ferret is associating all human beings with pain, so you are not being singled out.

If your ferret is being abused, find out who is abusing her and put a stop to it. If you cannot stop the abuser, you may have no other choice but to give the ferret to a home where people will treat her better.

If your ferret is not being abused, it might just be that she is an overly sensitive ferret, and somehow has learned to fear humans.

Do you spend a little time every day playing with her? If she's been neglected, she may have learned to distrust humans.

Here's how to get her used to you again...

Choose a small room in your house -- perhaps a small bathroom or a small hallway where you can close all the doors and create a little playroom area. This is where you can interact with your ferret gently. If you use a bathroom, keep the toilet lid closed and get everything up off the floor that might be harmful (cleaning liquids, etc.). If you choose too large an area, your ferret may go off and amuse herself and not interact with you.

Once you've found a small room that you can use, sit on the floor and put your ferret down next to you, along with some toys (balls, a piece of cloth, etc.). If she is hissing, just leave her alone and talk to her in soft, comforting tones. Let her come to you. Stay seated at all times, or as much as possible. Wiggle a piece of cloth or a small towel or washrag in front of her and maybe she will get excited and try to grab it from you. You can play "tug-of-war" with her like this. You could also roll a ball around and let her go get it. Once she takes it to the other side of the room, go pick it up and roll it to the other side of the room so she can chase it.

Note: You might want to put a small litter box in one corner in case she needs to relieve herself while you're playing. If she starts to go on the floor, don't yell at her or hit her, just gently pick her up - even if she hisses at you when you pick her up - as soon as she starts to pee or poop and put her in the litter box. Do this consistently every time she starts to go outside the litter box and she will learn that the litter box is where to go. This won't prevent all accidents, but it will help.

You need to spend time with her every day like this, maybe a half hour a day, until she gets used to you and learns that you will not hurt her. After several days of just softly talking to her and playing ball with her, try to pick her up while you are still sitting on the floor. If she hisses, leave her alone and continue to talk to her and play with her without picking her up. If she doesn't hiss, hold her gently and talk to her, then put her back down after a few moments. She will learn that you are not going to hold her forever so she won't feel trapped.

Eventually, she should stop hissing when you come around or try to pick her up.

Let me know how it goes!

Best of luck,
The FerretLady



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