Ferret Grooming

It is important that you actively maintain and groom for ferret to ensure a long, happy and health life. Keeping the animal properly groomed will eliminate a range of health problems. Here is the list:

• Nails/Claws - These grow pretty fast and will be the most common issue needing attention. You will most likely need to trim them at least fortnightly. The longer the nail gets, the further the quick (The red/blood interior of the nail) grows along the nail. You can only trim the nail to just before the quick. If you nick the quick it will bleed and you may get bitten because it hurts. I have been instructed to mix a bit of corn flour into a past and dab that if needed. Don't use any human antiseptic creams as the ferret will like it off. There are some good instructional trimming videos on youtube that I suggest you watch

• Skin, Coat & Ears - I put these three together as its easiest to cover all three during the monthly bath. Bathing a ferret more that once a month can lead to overproduction of their natural skin oils. The result will be  causing few different health problems with the skin and coat. Not to mention your ferret will get smellier. For starters the bather water wants to be a bit more on the warm side of tepid as ferrets have a different sense of cold. You should slowly and gently lower your ferret into the water caressing and reassuring at the same time. Gently start cupping water in you hands and wetting their fur, Dont ever stick their head under the water!! This will traumatize the Fuzzy. Gently wash them with FERRET ONLY SHAMPOO human shampoo is way too harsh. Same for dog shampoo. The places in particular to wash are the base of their tail. They can be prone to getting black heads there. Cleaning the ferrets ears should be done with a soft cloth. and gently wipe it past the ear. don't go digging shoving the cloth into its ears or you can easily hurt them. Never Ever use a cue-tip/cotton bud in their ears. It'll easily rupture the eardrum. Wash the ferrets face with just you hand dipped in water. I used to have a box of rags I used for Ferret Self drying. I would pop in the ferret after a bath and they would roll about until dry. Left to their own a ferret will go rolling in all sorts of stuff including their bedding.
  

• Teeth - Teeth you mostly monitor for plaque build up then you see your dentist. Giving a ferret dry biscuits & bones (Chicken wings) will do most of the work