Polecatty

I would stretch it over a piece of wire and let it dry- it'll retain more scent. Once it's dry you can split the skin and let them go for it. I wouldn't bother tanning it. Tanning is smelly, time consuming and complicated. Rabbit skins are quite thin and delicate, so you can expect it to be in parts very quickly, tanned or not.

The cages shown in the images are the standard fox cages used on fur farms, albeit seemingly cleaner. I must be mad. The smell of fox doesn't worry me at all!

Having had a small child make one of my animal's coats impossibly sticky with toffee coated hands I would not hesitate to do a hand inspection if I felt it necessary. It wasn't at a show, but it was completely disgusting and it took a long time to clean that sticky, sugary mess out of my sugar-intolerant animal's fur. And I would rather give them a reason for being turned down for a pat...not just a 'no'. I would rather give them a solid reason and not let them make up their own through speculation- 'That animal is savage', 'that owner is unfriendly' etc.

Jagd Terrier.

Depends on the crossbred dogs, really. I am largely around crossbred hunting dogs and they are as fit, healthy and functional as you could wish. Randomly bred dogs being peddled in petshops? Totally different matter.

How small is your little one? Amazing the dimorphism between the jills and hobs. Also amazing how a tiny jill can sass and boss the boys around, lol. He definitely wouldn't do that, though on occasion he will take a rabbit to bed with him so he doesn't have to go to the effort of getting up to have something to eat. Some just don't catch on, do they? I had a very nice poley jill like that- she just never 'clicked'. Wouldn't go deep into the warren and often lurked just behind the nets. She was retired after a few years of trying and became just a pet. There will be a litter in the works in two years time if they prove to work to my satisfaction. If you are interested then I will surely keep you in mind and let you know how it works out. The longnet is very handy and I found mine on ebay, but they seem to appear only occasionally. I have a 50 yrd 6z traditional set up and I'm very happy with it. It will span most of the blackberry patches we encounter and is great for those places where pursenets aren't an option. These guys make good quality longnets and have a decent reputation, probably where I'll get my next one from: http://www.thenetloft.net/main/long.html Lmao! Can just see you strung up on the fence, lol. I had a hectic outing last season. We had just finished working a large patch of blackberry with the long net and although we had gotten a decent number out I knew there were some still in there, but hid up well in the thick stuff whilst the ferrets were toiling underground. I figured it would be more time efficient to move onto a small open warren further up the hill than to keep on after the few elusive rabbits still ramaining in the blackberry, so I collected the weasels up and off we went. I decided to leave the longnet set where it wasn't going to be used for the next warrens [which were within sight of the longnetted warren] and it takes a while to pack up properly. Best to pick it up on the way back. The next warren was a 15-20 holer and on very clear open ground- perfect for purse nets. Netted up, slipped the big albino hob in and the action started immediately. Rabbits going everywhere! And as if it wasn't hectic enough, I chanced a quick glance down the hill only to see the longnet shaking- the bunnies we had given up on had decided to make a break for it, only to be pulled up on their way out. Quickly reset the nets and bolted down the hill to retrieve the rabbits before they could chew out of the longnet, and then quickly back up again to sort out the ones that had just hit the purse nets. This happened several times and I was quite puffed. I was very thankful that I had the big white weasel. He's bombproof and I knew I could rely on him to work/ oversee the purse- netted warren whilst I sorted out the bonus bunnies at the bottom of the hill. ;) And that is how one person and one ferret worked two warrens at once. A rather exciting ferreting trip and one that filled the freezer nicely. Still, not as funny as you being coursed around the paddock by your jill. Raz- I will pass the compliment on - not that he needs to have an even bigger ego than he does already. Asal- I'm very fond of the paler coloured polecats/sandies. Here's a jill I used to have, just passed this July at the age of 9. Your dark eyed white sounds very nice- do you have any pics? And a bucket of kits that a friend of mine bred last year, I have a jill from this litter so she is in there somewhere.

This may sound counter productive...but run away from the dog. Turns the tables of the 'keep away' game right around and you become the chased, not the chaser. Then you can let the dog 'catch' you.

Thanks for that, nearly spilled tea on my keyboard. ;) Ever been extracting a bunny from a net only to have another one come charging out close behind? Gets hairy fast, lol.

Very like polecats you have there I particularly like the look of the fellow with his tongue out...funny creatures. The sandy coloured ferret in the middle of the last photo is a nice looking one also. This is my main weasel...he's a hot shot and he knows it, and yes I do like that he is easy to see. And success- this one was going nowhere!

Another pic...here you can see a rabbit hitting the end of the net with one of my hobs close behind

Yes good husbandry will usually keep footrot at bay, but the mites also live in the soil and can be picked up when out ferreting- usually because of foxes hanging around the rabbit warrens. The first jill I ever got had terrible footrot and I was stuffed around by a vet who insisted it was completely normal! Unbelievable. We did get it sorted eventually [another vet took one look, prescribed Ivermectin and that was it] but her claws were never quite right. If their eyes were open and they were moving around it is unlikely they would have been rejected by the jill, and even if she stopped feeding them they should have been capable of starting on solids by that stage. I'm inclined to think either an illness or genetic issue, but as to the specifics it is very hard to say without knowing more. Would the whole litter die off at once and did they exhibit any signs of 'fading' or failure to thrive prior to death? Very strange. Hope your jills produce more good workers for you . Do you breed poleys or albinos?

Poor ferret! Very very lucky that you managed to save her. Footrot/sarcoptic mange is a horrible disease...very painful but so easily treated. Two doses of Ivermectin will clear it right up. I've never heard of using diesel oil but have heard of people using it to treat mites on chooks, so I guess that's a similar idea.

What are the males called, and are the babies 'kittens' or something else? Males are called hobs and babies are called kits.

My dad taught me when I was 14. There are some ferret shows but they have never been to my liking...fat ferrets being judged on the colour of their coats. I do my own judging out in the field on a good cold day when the bunnies are bolting hard and fast.

I feel ashamed to say, I never even thought of this. I'd never thought about this either. It makes me look at vegetarianism with a new perspective. Amusingly enough, farmers who have crops to protect are often very keen to have ferreters 'tend' to their properties. Even female ferreters! There is no such thing as a bloodless diet. For life to exist other lives must end....doesn't matter if a person is a vegan, vegetarian or omnivore! Staranais, I don't think Dory was suggesting that people shouldn't be vegan or vegetarian, that is a valid personal choice after all. Perhaps just suggesting that Moselle's diet isn't as 'guiltless' as she likes to believe. :D It is certainly true that billions of animals die due to pest control being carried out to protect crops. Won't somebody please think of the locusts?

I've heard that the females commonly get a type of fatal aplastic anaemia due to bone marrow suppression from estrogen if they come on heat & aren't allowed to breed? Don't know much about it though since we don't keep ferrets as pets over here. :D \ yep lucky the thought police havent decided to make it law yet u cant breed a female ferret three seasons running eh? If left in season the jills do run a very high risk of developing Pyometra and/or Aplastic Anaemia. Unfortunately a lot of people use that as an excuse to breed willy-nilly without giving much thought to their breedings year after year, despite there being a lot of alternatives. Breeding to a vasectomised hob will bring them out of heat without a litter- a very good solution for people who have a lot of jills. No need to be breeding 10+ litters every year as I have heard of some folk doing! There is a hormone injection that can be given to bring a jill out of heat. It is best given two weeks after the ferret comes into season. Depending on the jill it may need to repeated twice. I have used this before with good results. And Suprelorin Implants. These will sterilise a jill for two years before returning her to full fertility. A wonderful way of ensuring a ferret can be properly tested before breeding. Ferret contraception is a fascinating topic.

Sure is. I have always just handled my ferrets a lot and have never had issues with them biting. No need for a well socialised ferret to bite and every bite I have ever had came from a ferret that I didn't know, usually while they were in a state of distress. Odour can be decreased by feeding a high quality diet and by cleaning their bedding out frequently, and desexing will reduce the odour considerably. They will always smell ferrety though. I have never had any of mine descented as it has no impact on their overall body odour and as they can't use their anal glands to spray like a skunk I have never felt the need to have it done. I promise I'm not trying to hijack your thread Nekhbet. I just do love the weasels. XD

Asal, I have always called that behaviour 'wardancing', haha. They do it when they're excited and really stir themselves and each other into a frenzy...and yes they do run into things/leap off things without looking but they are tough little creatures and it has never given them any trouble. I am more concerned when the whippet does zoomies at breakneck speed. XD

Lucky! None of my intact lads have ever tolerated one another but none have them have been related, either. I imagine that raising them together would help considerably.

How does that work considering the positioning of the adrenals? Really interesting and sorry to bombard you. Haha no apologies needed. As far as I understand it, once the testes/ovaries are removed the Adrenal glands then act as receivers for the sex hormones produced in the Pituitary gland. This activity agitates the Adrenal glands and can cause lesions and the development of tumours which may in turn secrete hormones and interfere with the surrounding internal anatomy. I thiiiink that's about right.

The only difference that desexing makes is that multiple males can be worked at once [very few intact males will tolerate another intact male] and they won't give the lady-weasels any grief. So it can make the males a little easier to manage around other ferrets. From a health perspective I am now keeping my ferrets intact. There was some interesting research released that suggests that desexing causes Adrenal issues, and having had a few desexed ferrets with this problem I have decided to keep them intact to see if it will make a difference.

Oh god, you monster! A shame about the duck, but the most humane thing you could have done in the circumstances. More curious questions for Moselle- what about Transpeople? Would it be more acceptable for a MtF or a FtM to kill an animal? What about Gender-neutral people? Raz- Most welcome. ;) I used to have an old terrier who was very good with the ferrets, but then she also used to suffer my pet rats. It would depend on their prey drive, haha. I thought the answer was obvious ;) No it isn't at all, hence why I asked.

Oh that's sad. I'm such a suck when it comes to putting things to sleep. I must admit to sneaking some injured wildlife onto the gas so I can give them the needle whilst they're asleep. My boss just laughs at me I remember when I was little, finding a Cicada that emerged from its shell deformed. I knew it wouldn't survive so put it under the leg of a chair and squashed it - all the while bawling my eyes out. We're so evil Cicada euthanasia is a man's job, Stormie!

Oh god, you monster! A shame about the duck, but the most humane thing you could have done in the circumstances. More curious questions for Moselle- what about Transpeople? Would it be more acceptable for a MtF or a FtM to kill an animal? What about Gender-neutral people? Raz- Most welcome. I used to have an old terrier who was very good with the ferrets, but then she also used to suffer my pet rats. It would depend on their prey drive, haha.

On the odd occasion that a ferret kills a rabbit they do need to be dug out. That's when the electronic tracking system comes in very handy! Not many ferrets will drag a dead rabbit out, and most will move on and keep hunting. I prefer the females as they can slip past nets without messing them up and don't catch as many rabbits underground as the big powerful males. That being said I have had some really good males that were worth their weight in gold. Moselle- yes, sometimes they will manage to nab a slow rabbit, or one that doesn't want to bolt. My big fellow will dispatch one in 30 seconds if he makes a catch, so still less time spent suffering than your supermarket meat. I'm still not sure why dispatching animals is a man's job [and truely, I am curious. Is it because you think they can do a better job, or that the animal would prefer to be killed by a man?] or why catching/killing your own makes you selfish?