Since our little furballs are carnivores, their teeth are very sharp. And they know how to use them very well. Ferrets are known for biting and you have to work with your ferret to get rid of that habit. What is the reason for their biting habits? There are many things that can trigger them, but none of them is the official reason.
So, the reasons ferrets bite are defense, playfulness, communication, and many more. For example, ferrets have very thick skin and they are biting each other when playing, meaning that they will bite you as well. They won’t feel that bite like an injury, but for you, that bite is not so little. Just imagine your ferret running to you and nipping your feet. That is a common situation with bare feet and ferrets.
Some ferrets won’t bite at all, but there are ferrets that love to use their teeth very often. There are solutions to your nipping little ferret, but you have to be persistent in your plan and don’t give up. How to make them stop? With lots of love and attention. And a few tricks.
For example, have you seen those YouTube videos with children eating lemon and making funny faces? Of course you have. They are making those faces because lemon is not so delicious. Try that same trick on your ferret. Put lemon juice all over your hands and try to hold your ferret. When he tries to bite you he will taste the lemon and back away. Repeat this a few times and your ferret will connect your hands (actually human hands) with that horrible taste in his mouth and stop biting it. It seems rather simple, but you’ll have to repeat it for a couple of weeks. The same thing works with vinegar.
If you don’t want to use this tactic, there are many other tactics, like the one where you imitate a ferret mom. When your little kit tries to bite you hold him up by that extra skin on the back of the neck. While he is hanging there look him in the eyes and say loud and clear: NO! If you are using this trick, it would be good to use the same method in other things ferrets mustn’t do (example biting toes, furniture, etc)
You can even use something your ferret doesn’t like, like water for example. If your ferret hates bath time, meaning hates water, you can use that against him. Like Superman and kryptonite. Put water in the bottle that sprays water and when your ferret bites you spray water on him, he will be surprised. Eventually, he will stop doing the thing that makes him wet.
Remember, these tricks can’t be used on every ferret because some ferrets like the taste of lemon or like water in general. It is essential that you work with your ferret because that is the way to make a bond between you and your ferret.
