Vermin Dropper Posted February 11, 2005 Report Share Posted February 11, 2005 Here are a few pics of my ferret court and the little fellas themselves, Basically it's a 6'x3' shed with a 6'x6'x6' run attached to the front. The shed houses a large nesting box, a ramp, hammock/ cushion, the poo corner it has shredded paper on the floor and their food and water bowls. The run contains various tubes, a pile of logs, a tub of bark chippings, shelves and places to lounge about on, some balls, and at the moment a strung up rabbit. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2005 camera shy aren't they! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2005 Tucking in to the afore mentioned rabbit, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooke103 Posted February 12, 2005 Report Share Posted February 12, 2005 i string up a rabbit like that to in my ferret run it's really funny seeing them jumping onto the rabbit and swinging about. :blink: jake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicky Posted February 12, 2005 Report Share Posted February 12, 2005 A up. Im just building my court. Is 25mm chicken wire OK? Or will they get through?:blink: :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2005 well... I was advised to and always use the stuff in the pics, 10mm x 20mm. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old rooster Posted February 14, 2005 Report Share Posted February 14, 2005 (edited) On the subject of feeding rabbits to ferrets I've always been careful not to give too much offal as it isn't supposed to be too good for ferrets. Anyone else heard this ? As far as wire is concerned, if they can get their head through the rest will follow in seconds. They climb like a sherpa and will jump quite high as well. Edited February 14, 2005 by old rooster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2005 I agree Roost, I feed my ferrets a complete dry food and only give them a gutted rabbit every week or two, and very occasionally I give them a whole squirrel. as for the climbing and jumping they are like Houdini Acrobat Ninjas, the shed is lined with ply and although my run is 6' high it still has a mesh roof and a corrugated plastic roof on top of that to keep the weather out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 You have some tidy looking ferrets there VD. Personally i have never used dried ferret food for the following reasons. Ferrets are carnivors and therefore should be fed as such. The best way to find out how to feed them is to look at how their wild relitives eat. The polecat is the nearst relative to the domestic ferret that we have in this country. Their diet consists in the main of small animals/birds which they eat all of. The polecats need very little roughage and the intestines of these small animals produces enough roughage for the animals dietry needs. So if you take the diet of the wild polecat as the perfect diet for ferrets then you cant go far wrong. It should consist of small animals, mice, rats etc that are available from petshops. Add to that some starlings, jackdaws and dare i say it pigeon all given whole, and you have near enough the perfect diet. A good substitute is day old chicks for when the real thing is not available I am not saying that there is anything wrong with giving them rabbit or even raw chicken now and again but the bulk of their diet should be small animals/birds. Please remember though any food not eaten on the day of feeding should be removed. This is doubly important in summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old rooster Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 Agree with feeding naturally when possible, I tend to use rabbits and debreasted pigeons, not too sure about the day old chicks as they are not something I've seen alive. I use dried food during the summer months to keep flies down, my ferrets are always in tip top condition and I never starve them before going after rabbits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 O R i agree that you should not need to starve a ferret for it to work they should do it for the fun of it. As far as day olds go they are a maitanence food they have some calicium some roughage but little protien we use them as a fill in food for hawks. At £6 per 200 they are a good cheap source of standby food and as they contain an eggsac they tend to put a good coat on the ferrets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 I have always fed my ferrets small animals and birds (including fur and feather). I don't give them rabbit, as I think it might encourage lay-ups. There is no evidence to back up my thoughts on this, but it works for me. Avoid liver and bread and milk, both can cause bone deformity if fed regularly and there is insufficient nourishment in bread and milk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 tiercel, where do you get your day old's from...honeybrook?, have you tried the vitamin impregnated quail on your birds? Regards Coney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old rooster Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 Avoid liver and bread and milk, both can cause bone deformity if fed regularly and there is insufficient nourishment in bread and milk. Spot on, bread and milk will scour the guts out of the poor little ****, they deserve better than that if we expect them to do a days work. Never found feeding rabbit to make them lay up more to be honest. If they get hold of a nest of baby rabbits they will kill them and eat some no matter what you've fed 'em on. I've noticed that the last couple of weeks the rabbits have not bolted well at all compared with early season, I reckon it's because they have young in nests or are in well advanced kindle. We should be able to ferret to the middle of March but weather conditions have been so wierd it's time to pack up now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 well.... I always feed dry food... as it is designed just for ferrets ( not cat food) it gives all the nutrients required to keep the little fellas healthy, and as you say tc they are tidy aren't they, the way it was explained to me is.... every bite gives the right levels of each nutrient needed to stay healthy, so they can't just pick their favourite bits, and studies have shown that ferrets fed on good quality modern dry foods stay healthier for longer than those fed on a raw diet. I do give them the odd gutted rabbit but that is more as a treat than a food stuff, they never really eat it, I like to let them rag on it to encourage playing and keep them keen on the scent etc, If they make a kill they tend to move on, I have never had a lay up yet. so.... fingers crossed, I must be doing something right (or just lucky so far) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 Vermin dropper, a lot of people feed dried cat food. you just need to make sure that it contains animal protien as the main ingredient and not vegatable protien which ferrets have trouble digesting and taking any goodness from. Ive always done a bit of both. i dont feed carcass in summer because of the usual problems so i switch to dry, but in winter i feed both..rooster ive also packed in with the ferrets now,too many young.... switched to taking a few out on the lamp.. regards Coney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vermin Dropper Posted February 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 Coney,... The only thing I can say to you is have a look at the ingredients and nutritional values, actual ferret food (and I mean good quality food) has a far higher protein content and purpose made nutrition content suited for ferrets rather than cat food, thats why they live longer, stay healthier and look and work better when fed on it, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old rooster Posted February 17, 2005 Report Share Posted February 17, 2005 I use James Wellbelove ferret food as it seems well balanced as an alternative to fresh raw meat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney hunter Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 Dry food lasts longer in their cage and my two don’t try to store dry food either. Every now and again I give them an egg with the occasional rabbit or quail. Yesterday they nearly had a robin who got itself in the cage while I had them out in the garden good job I noticed it before I put them back. Happy hunting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 Coney I have not tried the impregnated Quail just the ordinary type they do come from honeybrook but we have a pet shop that keeps them locally. The Quail are £17 a box and the chicks are £30 a thousand or £7 a box. If anyone wants to buy some they are available @ honeybrook farm They should be able to tell you the nearest stockist to your location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 Tiercel, what birds do you have?, ive just got the 1 female harris now, ive tried the impregnated quail this year for the first time, they are expensive but given in a varied diet she loves them and is looking great. i like honeybrook because they dry freeze, and its makes it easier to seperate them when it comes to feeding. regards Coney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 Coney the same as you a last years eyeas. But she hurt her wing before xmas crashing in on a pheasant and had to give her 3 wks off. When i got her fit again, shed been flying another week when she hit it again going after a squirrel. so i put her up in early Jan and she has started moulting now. she was flying at 2lb 13/4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 tree rats can be *******, ive seen a few nasty bites in the past.. fingers crossed ive had no major probs for a while..her usual problem is going for moorhens/coots at about 8 in the morning and getting very wet... mines at avairy wieght at the minute, as she going through moult, but she should be flying at about 2.2lbs this year, with feet you wouldnt believe.... regards Coney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old rooster Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 Sorry if I'm a bit dopey on this...do you fly them at bolted rabbits at all ?. If so do they know to leave the ferrets alone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coney Posted February 18, 2005 Report Share Posted February 18, 2005 (edited) its not a dopey question at all rooster, yes we do fly them at bolted rabbits, usually even on a netted day we take one along, for odd escapee Most do know to keep away from a ferret, like all my animals they spend a lot of time together and will quickly learn to watch the ferret very carefully, as it associates a ferret with a flushed rabbit. i always spend loads of time whilst manning a bird socialising it with people, ferrets and dogs, plus its spends summer afternoons on the garden in full view of hutches and kennels. Harris hawks can also be worked over dogs very much like rough shooting with a bird..The bird learns to follow on from tree to tree or will fly directly from the fist watching the dog working, waiting for something to bolt. It’s a great feeling to work as part of the team when ferrets dogs and birds all know what they are doing. I will try to make a short video at some point and post if anyone's interested, but like you ive done for this season... regards Coney.. p.s.. rooster thanks for the targets... Edited February 18, 2005 by coney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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