How old should a ferret be before putting it to work?

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How old should a ferret be before putting it to work?

It's important to let a young ferret build up its strength through play and exercise.

By Edward Cook

Sunday, 30 November 2008

Is there an ideal age for a working ferret and how old does a ferret need to be before it starts working?

Ferrets
EDWARD COOK says:
Young ferrets soon learn how to catch and kill rabbits and although this is part of ferreting I would rather limit the digging I have to do.

For this reason I do not introduce a ferret to work until its second season by which time it’s around 14 to 18 months old and a little calmer.

A good ferret is one that bolts rabbits and which will lay up on those that refuse to budge.

I own a line of ferrets that friends refer to as the ’Carlsberg strain’ (probably the best ferrets in the world) but all this breeding won’t be seen once a ferret’s entered to ground.

The true test is whether everything has been bolted, killed or dug to – and the ferrets that can achieve this will have been started in their second season.

There are rare occasions when I do have to work a ferret in its first season but I leave it as late as possible when the kit has become a little less excitable.

Ferrets will work from just a few months of age but I would rather let a ferret build up its strength through play and exercise because this way it will not take a pasting from a rabbit’s bucking back legs.

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Comments

murphy

Wed, 25th May 2011 12:31:13

I like ferrets but im a golden carrot

Dom Seaton

Fri, 10th Sep 2010 08:41:53

i have reacently brought a ferret for working she is a young ferret and when ever she comes out the hole she goes mad she runs around makeing noeses and when ever you go to pick her up she trys bite i would just link a bit of advise about her and weather i should keep her or let her go to some one else pleas write back

basher

Sat, 21st Aug 2010 19:57:07

i have a 8 week old jill how long with it be till it come in sesson and will it be ok to take it out ferrting in the next say 2-3 mouths ??

richard

Thu, 12th Aug 2010 14:24:30

i bought a 5 months old large albino male ferret,netted 7 rabbit holes in a warren,put the ferret down with no training/experience,he came up each of those holes within 7 mins then went back down and came up them all again,obviously the burrow was empty so i removed all the nets,the ferret came outside then started jumping in the air snarling/biting fresh air very angry looking,i got him in the box,within the hour he started constantly nipping n trying to bite,i took him back to the seller who got him out,within 5 mins he locked his teeth into the sellers thumb,the seller swaped him and gave me another large male,this one is very friendly/does not nip/bite

Cluggy

Sat, 21st Nov 2009 08:10:17

A think its more likely to be hair your dog found pall. rabbits bring there young up underground in burrows. dnt be saying too much about the deer bit either, caught at that game an ur in for a while.

John

Mon, 24th Aug 2009 11:54:58

Has anyone got a good working hob ferret for sale in Hampshire.

john

Wed, 15th Jul 2009 16:10:48

how to build up ferrets strengh

daniel smithson

Wed, 17th Jun 2009 21:10:46

i have a weeton terrier cross saluki cross lurcher..it is 3/4 weeton terrier but it is big like a lurcher and fast she has had some runs on a deer but not got it yet. the oter day i was up the fields with it and it was smelling around a rabbit hole what had rocks over...so we lifted it of and found a nest of rabbits what was farly big and we got 3 of them out..but i am only 13 and my mate is 12. we have had plenty of rabbits with the dogs and the gun and snares.i have only been hunting for about a year..but is that useull for a dog that type for getting rabbits out of there holes.