I clean my ferrets cage once a week, wash their blankets and hammocks once a week, clean their lotter box daily, deep clean their littler box every other day and that keeps the smell down.
@@midnightbliss2353 I have 3 ferrets and I just use tide I have been for 3 years and it works great and with hammocks I usually hand wash them so they dont fall apart.
my ferrets were using their cage as a bathroom just like hers. Originally we did not want to put their blankets near their litter box but then one cold night we decided to blanket their hole.cage and we realized it had solved our problem. We have seven ferrets. It worked for ours and may work for you. We also clean ours out everyday , twice. And the secret to that is to have spare litter boxes and switch them out before work or lunch break. Sorry for the long post! I couldn't help but share a problem we had for almost three years!
Just to add to what you said, sometimes you get a stubborn one like the new one we got last July she would still poop on the blanket in a corner of the cage. I fixed that problem by simply adding a bed with clips in that spot so she couldn't move it out of the way. Now she goes downstairs like my other 2 to potty, such an easy fix :)
Abby Mcglaughlin That was actually clever of you. Sorry for commenting on such an old post but I'm getting ferrets one day for the first time and I will remember your idea if mine do that so thanks for sharing.
@@sumrsolo Ferrets are natural corner poopers... they don't have a preference if it's a top level a bottom level, blanketed or not blanketed... they care the most if its a nice corner without obstruction that they can back into... that's all a ferret cares about... (notice in the video when she says they poop on the bottom and sleep on the top, before she cleans the top 6:45 , you can see someone pooped on the blankets in the corner of the top level... a ferret just wants a corner) when you have a cage, your #1 priority is to have SOMETHING in EVERY corner... a bed, a water bowl, a food bowl, a litter tray... guess what, if you have 8 corners, and six of them have ramps, beds, food and water bowls taking up the corners and two corners have litter trays... your ferrets will only poop in litter trays. Works every time.
I only have one ferret and I just make sure to spend several hours with her per day so she doesn't get lonely. Played with her for two and a half straight hours today first, and then a few more hours later on. Four hours straight the other day. I lost track of time. xD Mine is six months, but I've already got her pretty well litter trained and she never goes outside the litter box (she even seems to know that when I go to open her cage, I prefer she go potty first if she can. It's almost routine for her to just go and then walk out of the cage once I open the door), so I'm not AS concerned about cleaning the cage every single day. I've done spot cleaning every day, shovel the litter in the litter box a couple times a day, wipe down the entire litter box with a safe cleaner every couple of days, clean her bowls every day and make sure she always has food in them. I'm giving her her first bath this weekend. :D She doesn't make a lot of mess, but if she starts to, I'll clean more often. If anyone thinks this isn't enough cleaning, please let me know. She seems totally okay so far, but I'm new to this, so I'm open to learning. I got her because of some health issues I have (depression and anxiety, plus chronic pain), and she's already helped me so so much. Unfortunately, I've discovered that I seem to be a bit allergic to her and if the symptoms get worse to a certain point, I'll need to give her to someone else who can take care of her. I love her, but I can't spend as much time with her if I'm allergic and I want her to have the best life possible. If I can't give that to her, then I'll have to find someone else who can.
I think your cleaning is more than enough, my little carpet sharks are my anti-depressants cause they just make me laugh and smile a lot! I am glad you are so knowledgeable and want to do the best for your baby. Some people just get ferrets because they're selfish and just want one and don't care about their needs. I am glad you take into consideration her living situation. Best of luck to you!
As a good tip, ferrets (on week days) should be getting 4 hours minimum with a preferred 5-6 hours free roaming time. And on weekends 10-12 hours is amazing for them. Obviously it depends on your lifestyle and availability to do these things. But in general, the longer they are out (or have the option to go out) the better!
Personally, I think cleaning out the entire cage on a daily basis is a bit excessive. Considering it takes between half an hour - an hour and requires new fresh hammocks and blankets every day.. thats a little bit too much haha. If you have the time and its a lifestyle for you, i guess it wouldn't be too much of a problem. i think as long as you're cleaning out the litter and water/food bowls, cleaning up food messes once or twice a day, you should be fine. and giving the ferret a nice wash once a month or so. i'm sure in the wild, Ferrets didnt have their beds made and replaced every day (if at all) haha! It's always great to take extra care, though. great video, very informative!
monkeylove2102 I clean my ferrets out TWICE a week Sunday and Thursday, and there fine, no smell or anything. I change the water, food and litter everyday to keep the smell down. I think my air purifier also help to keep the smell down alot.
+monkeylove2102 I understand that its a bit excessive but they do have room mates so it might just make it smell less to them but i did it about once or twice a week
Alekah if you consider cleaning a cage for a half hour "hard work". I honestly wonder what you do for a living. I do all my ferret chores in the morning. Only takes an hour out of my day. Then they play and roam until nap time. I don't have to walk them 3 to 4 times a day, like a dog. Some people don't even bathe their dogs and their dogs stink of garbage and rain water. My ferrets are bathed once a month and stay clean and fresh smelling like tea tree. And then I do a mild rinse off before the month is over and spray them with a bit of tea tree spray and they are always happy shiny and smelly free fuzzbutts. I buy their food in bulk at the local pet store for about 5$ and it lasts a good 3 weeks or so. Dogs and cats are def more maintenance and yes I've owned a dog and I had 3 cats. Ferrets are so easy, and all they want to do is play and explore and have belly rubs. Oh plus side. No obnoxious barking or meowing. And who wouldn't love a pet that naps more than it's human.
Alekah well I don't mean to sound rude at all okay but if you don't have the time in a day to clean the cage the you don't have the time to play with the ferret so if you don't have that sort of time then I suggest rethinking getting a ferret ok I'm sorry if I sounded rude .
I was in high school when I got my first ferret. And I spent a year before looking up as much information as I could and watching all your videos. My first ferret passed away before she was a year old. Her spleen ruptured. I had a 3 year old male that some people gave to me. (They were not good ferret owners. He was small and they were feeding him dog food. I helped him get better ) he passed away in 2011. He was 7. I miss having one so much. So for Christmas. My aunt is giving me money. And I'm going to get a big cage and get another one. I work at a pet store and I'm going to take him/her to work all the time so it can get out. (I'm not getting one from a pet store though)
I have a corner poop scooper... got mine from Amazon... Zilla Reptile Terrarium Bedding Substrate Litter Cleaner Corner Scoop... it's really a necessity with corner-pooping ferrets!
This was incredibly helpful, especially since we planned to just clean the entire cage once a week. We clean the litter everyday, but now I think I will start doing what you did in the video. My mom spoils our new ferrets. She already bought so many toys and things for them, it's kinda funny. She's never spoiled any animal of ours this much. XD
For litter training I recommend using carefresh bedding so if they have an accident its easy to clean and always clean their "accidents" right after they happen. Also always have a little bit of poop in their litter box. Then if you see them trying to poop somewhere else quickly move them to their litter box. This wont work for all ferrets but after a month my babies were pooping in their litter boxes and not everywhere. Also they make guards for ferret/critter nation cages, for bottom and top levels. They cost around $40 together but are so worth it. Nothing goes out of the cage and I highly think its worth it after a huge mishap with poop between bars and on the wall and floor. I hope I helped anyone struggling!
Another good cleaner which I cannot recall the name of, is a vanilla household cleaner but all it contains is ethanol (which kills anything nasty) and vanilla extract (natural of course) so once the alcohol is gone it leaves a faint smell of vanilla but its all natural and very safe to use.
you are like my favorite person, when i first got my ferret i was so scared for her cause ive never had one before nor knew anyone who knew anything about them, but when i found your videos it helped me improve my ferrets quality of life and our bond, keep doing what you do! :D
I have four ferrets and they are never caged. We do have a 4' tall cage they go in on their own and sleep. We line the bottom of the cage in puppy pads (used to train puppies) All you have to do is fold them like a diaper. Our oldest ferret never goes in there, his hips are bad. When we put him in, he would poop where ever he wanted. Also, at the time his poop was "shooty" and would be on the walls. And with them being free roam, we have two corners on the floor that we line with the puppy pads.
Mine actually used to go all over the bottom of the cage but if you get a litter box that takes up to 1/2-3/4 the size of the bottom, they should go in there especially if you have food and water in a different area on the bottom :)
(aside from daily wiping and litter box cleaning) Once every couple of weeks, I will take our similar cage's plastic trays and scrub them with a scrub brush and some mild dish soap and vinegar in our shower.(gets more than paper towels can and gets their oils completely off!) Once in a great while, we will take the whole cage (as tall as me!) outside and hose it down with the water hose! You'd be surprised on what their oils get onto! I make our ferret bedding so we can wash them every week! I think people make the mistake of thinking the ferrets need a bath too often, when it's really just their cage! We have 4 boy ferrets and only one is a jerk about pooping outside of the litter box. :)
Thank you so so much!!!!! I absolutely just love ferrets with all my heart and have been hoping to get one and your videos have been so helpful and I think I'm ready to get one! Thank you once again and I love your ferrets by the way!
hey partyferret !! im so glad that i found your channel i got soo many informations that i didnt know before and you have such a beautiful ferrets !! im a fan from slovenia !!
Cleaner tip: take vinegar fill up a jar with it (not all the way but most of the way) and stuff as many orange peels into it as you can. wait 2 weeks and you have a good smelling all natural cleaner!!! feel free to dilute it with water if you wish.
I found a new litter that works really great where it breaks down immediately after bathroom time and has no odor. I would order Marshall's ferret litter and am ready change and safe on the $25 shipping fee also!!
So what if I had only had one ferret and it was litter trained really well. Could I just spit clean the cage like I would a hamsters so fix/change the fleece clean the litter box and play with them everyday would that be enough and then once or twice a week I would wipe it all down?
Ferret-World there this litter that is made of wheat and barley clumps. My old ferrets didn't eat them as they smell like nothing, also it allows you to not go through a bag of litter in a month it will take about 4-6 months to go through a bag if you use well. As when the pee or poo goes in the litter it soaks it up and coats it in wheat and barley so there is NO smell, then you just scoop out the clumps and leave the rest in and top up with as much litter as you threw out.
I used vinegar water to clean my geckos terrarium, so when I got my ferret I figured it would be safe. I did a little research and was happy to see that it was so I wouldn’t have to buy a cleaner😂
Wood stove pellets ive found do not work as well as the ferret brand litter or paper bedding because they break down into a saw dust & it tends to go everywhere... Just a tip!
I purchased Bass Equipment S.S. 3" pans for each of my 6 combined levels of my Double Critter Nation and S.S. urine guards for just under $450. Totally worth it and reduces floor messes and bar chewing for rodents. I'm so happy I made the investment
i clean my ferrets cages everyday,one because there stinky and to keep them healthy.and they don't get faucet watch they get bottled purified water cold.I don't trust our water here especially for my fur babies.and once a week they get all there blankets and toys washed. thank you stef.always look forward to your info.because I have 2 fur babies and want to get this right for them.
if you let your ferret out in the house, would they go back to their cage to go to make their needs? or would they accidentally poo or wee on the floor?
having my ferret the most things ive had to buy (Spend the most of my money on) is toilet paper, trashbags, bleach and vinegar, and TONS of litter boxes. I go to walmart just because theyve got the 48 packs. I only use bleach in their cage when its TERRIBLY messy and I know they wont be in the cage for a few hours and when im changing everything out. I usually use vinegar and water on a regular basis.
I have critter nation cage for mine but its a double not a double ferret nation because it’s basically the same and Ive had the critter nation since 2018
Im thinking of getting ferrets and looking for a roomy cage and in my budget is quite hard and i was wondering what cage you have and how much was it? I loved your vidoes and they were very usefull.thanks.
where in the heck do you find that recycled paper pellet litter??? If i need to order online, I will, I just need a brand name :) I'm in southern missouri and there is definitely a lacking on natural ANYthing. hence why I disinfect my entire house with vinegar and water! Love love love your videos. you have absolutely educated both me and my children on what it truly entails to care for a ferret. Thank you!
This is terrible news :/ the pets stores in multiple surrounding towns in southern missouri, including springfield, definitely use kitty litter in their stores as well for them. I'll be ordering online from now on, I suppose. Thanks for the response!
where do you buy the cage and can you make a video of the things that we need that must be in the cage???? thanks love your videos bb the best of your videos is that one when you go to the beach but the outher ones are very very good too bb from juls
Also to people getting a ferret and trying to convince parents. Ferrets smell horrible. And having ferrets is a HUGE HUGE HUGE commitment. Theyre not like hamsters or anything they need lots of attention and cleaning and caring for. Theyre like children. They smell but if you clean their boxes daily and change their blankets out you cant smell them very much at all. But if you dont youll be able to smell these guys even if theyre on the 3rd floor and your in the basement of your house.
If you don't want harmful chemicals in their system, would you think it would be okay to have them play with bubbles? Just the standard one you find at toys stores and the like?
I clean our ferrets cage 2 times a day. I have 5 ferret nation cages that is all connected. I wash the panels and litter boxes in the tub area and wipe them down with designated rags for each. ours are quite litter trained so they don't have to many accidents. i take a bucket of water mixed with vinegar and wipe down the cage wire before i put the panels back in and then wipe down the panels. i change there sleeping bedding every 2 weeks. give them fresh food and water too ^^
Demi Liz we had 5 ferrets now only have 3 but we change the cages design up from time to time. its also good for when ferrets decide they want there own rooms XD
hey stef, i just adopted two little ruby eyed albino boys "Stanley and Loki" im concerned about their poop. You said to keep an eye on it in this video. What concerns me is that i did change their food upon adopting them. i know its a new food but their poop is kind of green. Should i be concerned?
My two ferrets, Daxter and Riddick, like to use one side of their small cage as the bathroom, not just the litter box. The litter i use is the same fore bedding, could that be the reason? The people that had them before me didnt have litter, just bedding. Will that change things? especially when I buy them a bigger cage?
My ferret is hard to train he is adorable and i love him so much but he is so so stubborn !! he wont use his litter box he will slide out his litter box and go in the exact same corner it was in ive heard thta ferrets dont like those types of litter boxes so do i need to go get a new one or is there a way to make do with the one i have?
Youre lucky. My DCN cage alone cost at least $550 with the Bass Equipment S.S. pans and urine guards! The Bass Equipment cage guards are the best though! They keep the floor so much cleaner
So i just adopted a third ferret, and no matter what i do i can NOT get him to use his litter box. I have the double ferret nation cage (similar to this one) with blankets. Is the kaytee starter ferret cage too small for three for a temporary period of time, so i can have shavings on the bottom instead of blankets? The blankets are just so messy to clean
How would you describe your ferrets poop? My ferrets poops are sometimes the length of a pinky or half the size of a pinky. Sometimes they are green because of the ferret lax I give em. (I hate that stuff). Mostly their stools are brown.
