Bun doesn’t go out much, but whenever I take him out for an outing, it’s always about dirt.  Like any ferret I’ve met, he loves to dig.  In this case, he dug backwards and around in circles.

Pig, Fighter Against Roaches

Pig’s specialty in life is play fighting with humans.  She’s a fierce, brave fighter who’s not afraid to stand up to humans when the situation calls for it.  Very much in touch with her wildest instincts, Pig also has a hunger for catching Palmetto Bugs.  Down here in Florida that’s what they call big, nasty creepy nocturnal roaches.

Many a night we’d lie awake listening to scuffling noises in the corner, followed by the sounds of little ferret feet tearing exitedly across the floor.  In the morning, we’d find only roach legs and a gutted roach body.  Where were the insides? We feared the answer.

Then one day a confused roach ventured out during daylight hours and we got to see Pig in action.  Yes, she would hunt the roaches, kill them, and for a gruesome finale: eat their insides which consisted mainly of cloudy white goop.

This was horrifying to us, but after some consideration we were extremely proud of our Warrior Ferret.  It was actually the most badass thing we’ve seen a ferret do, in real life.  (Check out youtube for some truly grisly badass things ferrets do…just type in “ferret eating mice” or “ferret meets red squirrel”).

Pig has learned that the sound of rolled up newspaper or a shoe hitting the ground hard means a human has discovered a roach.  When she hears that sound, she comes running from even the remotest corner of the apartment, and even if she’s deep asleep inside a drawer.  She tries to get in on the killing and steal the body out from under us.  Our battle against the palmetto bugs then takes on a secondary aspect:  keeping Pig from eating the nasty thing.  She will grab and run, though, and sometimes she will win.  That’s because she has her own personal Roach War.

Taking Notes

An opportunist is someone or something that seeks out new environments and situations in case there’s a good chance of something good happening.  Ferrets are opportunists, which means they constantly have their eyes and (espicially) their ears open.  They take notes and store the info in their small brains for later use.

The main way I’ve observed my ferrets making use of their stored data is in remembering sounds.  The sound of the spoon scraping against the bowl is the sound of an upcoming snack of leftovers.  The sound of the closet door opening is possibility of entering the forbidden area.  The sound of the fridge opening is yet another chance to explore this mysterious place with so many wonderful smells.

What makes your pet ferret such a great pet is his attunement to your activities.  Ferrets will adjust their sleeping patterns so they’re awake when you are.  They’ll greet you every morning if they’ve observed that good treats are given out first thing of the day.  They’ll watch you intently to get your attention if the food bowl is low, or if the water needs changing.  Or sometimes they’re watching you for signs of a good play session about to begin.

This is bun, watching me.  He’s taking notes inside his head and will later use it against me!

When Pig was young, she was so big and aggressive we actually thought for a day or two the pet store was mistaken and she was really a male ferret.  Pig bounded everywhere she went and loved to play fight.  She also thumped her tail, which we read was a male behavior.  What she lacked in concentration and booksmarts, she made up for in pure warrior strength.

What’s this about tail thumping, you say?  I’d never seen it until Pig came along.  We have long mailing tubes which ferrets just love to scurry into when play fighting.  Pig will sit inside a tube when being chased by humans, and vibrate her tail back and forth.  It makes a thumping sound, and according to what we read, this is male behavior.  Pig is our little Amazon Warrior Ferret!

Pig isn’t afraid of anything, even though she now lives with two adults and two male ferrets who are of course twice as large as she is.  She attacks them all, full on, nothing held back.  She is unrelentless and thorough in her mission to sublimate every member of the household.  When Pig, Warrior Ferret gets worked up, everyone watch out!