Severe Biter

[motherof2]

I have a new girl approx 2 years old coming this saturday who is a severe biter. The owner has owned her for 2 years. Someone dropped her off at a pet store so this lady rescued her because the pet store was going to put her down. She thinks that the poor little ferret was abused and has worked with her for 2 years but cannot stop her from biting hard! The ferret does not bite her anymore but will chase her kids and bite them. She does get along with other ferrets with no issues but with people she doesn't seem to get along so well. Any ideas as to how to stop this after she has been biting severly for 2 + years? I have kids too but they are 17 and 15 so they are older. Our Annie was quite the biter too when we first got her but we have stopped her of that. She now gives kisses . Also, the lady that I am getting the ferret from has had 20 years experience with ferrets but fears for her kids so she is placing her with me. She has had her to the vets as well and she came back with a clean bill of health.

[Tressie]

First thing you need to establish is why she's biting.

If she was abused its probably fear biting. I have a ferret I adopted who was going to be euthanized for biting here is her story:

www.smallanimalchannel.com/ferrets-magazine/your-ferret-stories/a-biting-ferret-is-saved-from-deaths-door-0909.aspx

She may only ever come to trust one human. That is pretty well my Donnola. I have warned people who were very experienced with ferrets not to handle her because she bites everyone except for me. They were confident she wouldn't bite them, but did. That is not to say every fear biter is like that. Donnola is also deaf, which is something else I would establish.

When you get her, put her into a quiet, low stimulus environment. Cover over the cage, keep things really low key, until she feels safe, which may be a few days or a few weeks. No visitors or too much handling at first.

Approach her with slow movements and gently ALWAYS - even if she bites. No disciplining or scruffing until she gets used to her new home.

That's for starters.

Observe her carefully. For example, is she afraid of feet? Of hands? Or is she more fearful around meal cooking smells? Does she show more fear around either sex? Donnola is terrified of human males, because that is who abused her.

By watching and paying attention to what triggers the biting you'll know what to avoid doing.

Remain patient and in time she will come to trust. It took 2 years before I could scruff Donnola without her going ballistic. Now I can scruff her no problem. But even to this day, I always approach her with the gentlest movement.

Good luck!

Tressie

[Tressie]

Just to clarify.

You will know she is fearful when she bites! That is, watch to see if she 'attacks' feet, hands, etc. Is she more bitey at certain times than others? Then try to figure out what the trigger might be.

Think of an abused ferret as one suffering from Post-traumatic stress disorder. Certain things will trigger a frightening memory and then she responds by biting. Its a knee-jerk defensive response.

If she was chasing kids and biting them, she must have been quite frightened of them. Kids are noisey, noise is irritating and stressful to a ferret at best of times (unless deaf). They may have swung at her as a protective defensive move, which would have been threatening to her. See the pattern emerging?

Not suggesting the kids were in any way being bad, but just being kids would have been enough for a historically traumatized ferret to react with fear.

Tressie

[motherof2]

Thanks for the info. I will let you know what happens once I get her home and she gets herself acquainted with Max and Annie. Hopefully she adjusts well