There’s a pretty wide range of reasons why a ferret would bite their owner. That sounds a little scary, as a sentence, doesn’t it? However, most of these reasons aren’t a major concern, providing you are a responsible pet owner, with a patient disposition.
Let’s have a look at why some ferrets bite, so that you can better understand what’s happening, with a view to stopping it. And don’t worry, with the right care and attention you can stop this behavior.
The Youthful Biter
Youthful over-enthusiasm is the number one reason for ferrets biting. Young ferrets, particularly if they are siblings, will tend towards rough playfulness with lots of nipping and biting. This isn’t something to worry about, unless it gets particularly heated.
What does need to be sorted out, early on is their determination to include their owners in the play, by biting you the way they’d bite a fellow ferret.
There are many ways to stop a ferret from biting, but the main thing to ensure, is that you don’t use any aggression towards your pet. At most, you should drag them lightly across the floor to discourage bad behavior. This is something a mother ferret would do.
But really, you need to be gentle and considerate in stopping biting, as they’re just trying to include you in their games. It’s up to you to let them know that there’s acceptable play and not so acceptable play.
The Signaler
If a ferret is in discomfort or pain they will sometimes have trouble letting you know. So, instead of having a chat about the pain they’re in they’ll bite their owner. It’s a very direct way of getting attention, for sure. If your ferret isn’t young and they start biting all of a sudden, you may want to pay close attention to them and consider any signs of ill health.
The biting could also be down to a change of circumstances. Watch out, in particular, for the introduction of new pets, including other ferrets. They can get nervous around visitors or changes to their cages too. If in doubt, it’s likely that your ferret’s trying to tell you something if they start biting out of the blue.
The Persuader
If biting your owner got you what you wanted, wouldn’t you make a habit of it? If a biting ferret is rewarded with treats or attention, in the hope of stopping the biting, then there’s no way the ferret will understand this correctly. They see biting, followed by reward and see this as the best way to get what they’re after. So, over time, they’ll see biting as a way to persuade you to co-operate.
If you let this kind of pattern build up, for any length of time, it’s going to be quite a difficult cycle to break, though it’s not impossible.
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