My ratings will be on a scale of one to five ferrets with one being poor and five being excellent.
Score considers usefulness, quality, safety, accurate product description and price.
Purpose/Use: To smear on the back of a ferret's neck for introductions, to discourage biting or licking at a spot on the body.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: No
Effectiveness: I bought this to keep a ferret from biting the scruff of one of my other ferret's neck; it didn't slow him down in the least. It is a pain to wash out of their fur afterwards too. It came highly recommended from other ferret owners though, so it may work for others with a less determined ferret. I suspect it would work well for a sick animal to keep them from licking at an injury or medication.
Additional Comments: It may have been due to the age of the product or it may be normal for it, but mine was partially separated/settled and had to be mixed before it could be used. Also the thick consistency made spreading it difficult.
Cons: Hard to apply, not effective, had to be mixed due to product settling/separation
Price: I paid about $13 shipped on Amazon for the 125G jar.
Score:
Rescue Remedy
Purpose/Use: To calm anxiety in animals due to stress such as traveling, loud noises, sickness, separation anxiety. Can be used as a pick me up for a depressed animal.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: Intended for "pets"
Effectiveness: Excellent. I've tried using it on several of my ferrets for things like cage raging and sickness and it calmed them down within minutes. One of my ferrets seems immune to the effect, it didn't help with her anxiety when trimming nails. Your mileage may vary accordingly.
Additional Comments: I don't dilute mine by putting it in their water, I dribble some from the dropper directly into my ferret's mouth. they all enjoy the taste of the RR. Can also be used on humans, there is a stronger alcohol based version for people.
Cons: May be hard to find in stores locally, rather expensive given the small bottle size
Price: I paid about $13 shipped for the 20ml bottle.
Score:
North States Supergate Clear Choice Stairway Gate
Purpose/Use: To keep pets separated from an area, room or stairs.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: Intended for use by "pets".
Effectiveness: My ferrets after about a month have not figured out a way past this gate, which makes it pretty good in my book. It's a very sturdy gate and solid all around. It takes a little work to install if you have molding or have to install it by a stair banister like we did. It has a bit of a learning curve at first learning how to open and close it, it's very stiff but it loosens up over a couple of weeks and becomes easier to operate.
Additional Comments: This item has been discontinued by the manufacturer, North States so if you are going to buy one, do it sooner rather than later before they are all gone everywhere. I purchased mine from Amazon.
Cons: Expensive, difficult to open and close at first
Price: I paid $69.99 shipped ordering mine on Amazon
Score:
Go Pet Club Huge Cat Tree Beige Color
Purpose/Use: An exercise activity and perch.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: This was designed for cats.
Effectiveness: This would be a terrible cat tree for an actual cat as many of the negative reviews online suggest. It has an extremely narrow base foot print which makes it unstable and slightly wobbly if you were to build the entire thing. (Ironically the narrow base attracted me due to not having a lot of space in a particular area to place a tree.) Also since most people own extremely overweight cats, they would not fit very well on the platforms or hammocks.
That said, this is an excellent tree for ferrets. It takes them a little getting used to to climb up the ladders, but once they learned how mine were able to easily navigate to the different levels. If you look at my picture versus the stock photo you will see I only built about 2/3 of the tree as I did not want it higher. I bought this tree to keep my ferrets from falling off of the stairs. I can imagine it would be terribly wobbly if I built the whole 6' of it. The hammocks nicely hold 2-3 ferrets at a time.
Additional Comments: This is clearly a cheap piece of Chinese made crap, the quality is not spectacular, but it's decent for what it is. I do find I have to check it periodically to make sure nothing has jiggled loose and tighten as needed. Also the cat condos are deceiving- they are not solid wood like I was expecting, but fabric that velcros around two cardboard bases. A determined ferret could possibly undo this or wreck it.
Cons: Quality is sub par, condos could do to actually be solid and not fabric, and the whole thing is a bit wobbly depending on how much you build.
Price: I believe I paid about $150 shipped ordering mine on Amazon.
Score:
Vittles Vault
Purpose/Use: For storing food (or litter) in a water and insect proof container
Intended for use on/by ferrets: Marketed for "Pets"
Effectiveness: I have had kibble (which I no longer use) sitting in a set of these for over 6 months now, and it's still dry, insect free and fairly fresh.
Additional Comments: I am not sure if these are technically air tight or not, without reading product information further.
Cons: Expensive
Price: I paid $35.00 shipped ordering mine on Amazon
Score:
Bene-Bac Powder
Purpose/Use: A pro biotic to replace good gut bacteria.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: The bottle does not list ferrets specifically, but it basically says it can be used on all mammals.
Effectiveness: I used some of this per my vet's recommendation for about 3 weeks after a couple of ferrets had bad poo for a while. It seemed to possibly help for short while, but did not do much overall. There are far better pro biotics out there from what I've read.
Additional Comments: I did not realize it at first, but this product contains sugar. I would not use it to treat a ferret therefore.
Cons: Ineffective, unhealthy to use.
Price: I paid $15.00 shipped ordering mine on Amazon
Score:
Kyjen Outward Hound Backpack
Purpose/Use: A backpack to safely and securely carry a pet with you in.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: This was marketed towards small dogs.
Effectiveness: I am able to pop two smaller ferrets at a time in this bag and take a walk in the neighborhood with the ferrets safely. My ferrets seem to really enjoy this and will usually settle down for the whole 20 minute walk and peer out of the mesh. One or two of my ferrets have dug at the mesh a bit, but so far so good, no damage is present anywhere on the bag.
Additional Comments: Some ferrets can open zippers. Mine don't, however if yours do you would need to find some way to secure the zippers together to avoid escape. This bag has a few handy pockets for storing things such as a water bottle, leash or treats. It also has a clip inside you could hook to a collar. Obviously you will want to be cautious when using this in hot weather so that your ferrets don't overheat. It has airflow, but I wouldn't chance it. You would also need to provide them shade somehow.
Cons: Not a whole lot of support in the bottom, so the bag and thus the ferrets sag a bit. A thin piece of wood below the fabric to create a base would have been nice. Better than the Marshall's carrying bags though.
Price: I paid $40.00 shipped ordering mine on Amazon
Score:
Critter Space Pod
Purpose/Use: A hiding spot/hammock for small animals
Intended for use on/by ferrets: Intended for "small pocket pets"
Effectiveness: It's too small for nearly all ferrets, except for the smallest kits.
Additional Comments: I took a chance on buying this. The dimensions listed on the store website made me think a ferret could fit in this, the holes are big enough for whippet and greyhound body builds to crawl inside, but there is just no room for them to lay in it. To add insult to injury, every ferret I have has ignored it. I hang mine from the bars of my Ferret Nation cage, I assume any ferret worth their whiskers would just tumble it about if it was left standing on the floor of the cage. This is probably an excellent item for mice or rats. It does get a point for style- it looks pretty cool in the cage.
Cons: Much too small for a ferret
Price: I paid about $10 for this online.
Score:
Bridgeport Stoneware Bowls
Purpose/Use: Feeding dishes, they go with a raised feeder
Intended for use on/by ferrets: Intended to go in a cat/dog feeder
Effectiveness: I bought the large size originally, figuring I could fit 7 ferrets around it comfortably. It's more like 5. It does the job expected of it well enough.
Additional Comments: It's a very nice bowl, very heavy and hard to tip, the quality is excellent. It works great for either water or food (I put soup and meat chunks in mine.) The one problem with the large is that the rim is very high, it is uncomfortable for a ferret to stretch their neck over it and eat. Mine tend to brace their front paws on it and lean down into the bowl. I picked up some of the extra small ones to use in cages for treats and soup. These have a much lower rim and are not deep enough to be a reliable water bowl. The "small"size works great as a water or food dish. These bowls are dishwasher safe.
Cons: The very high rim on the large size. They are stoneware and could chip or break potentially.
Price: $3.49-$11.49 on sale
Score:
Petco Sphere Ball
Purpose/Use: This is a toy.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: This is listed as a cat toy.
Effectiveness: The ferrets love this toy, it is easily one of their favorites. It jingles loudly, rolls quite well even on carpet and is well nigh indestructible.
Additional Comments: This ball is huge, about 5" diameter.
Cons: None
Price: $3.99
Kyjen Firehouse Dog Toy
Purpose/Use: This is a toy.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: This is listed as a dog toy.
Effectiveness: I purchased the smallest size of this toy to try, the 8" version. It has a squeaker in one end, albeit a very quiet one. It is very durable, withstanding chewing with ease and it has an interesting, rubbery like texture that some ferrets may find very appealing.
Additional Comments: My ferrets ignore this toy in favor of others generally, unless I squeak it and toss it for them to chase after. They do tend to stash it in various places so it is not completely ignored.
Cons: The squeaker could do to be a bit louder. It is also difficult to get a hold of and squeeze.
Price: $6.00-12.00
Score:
Skineez Stuffing Free Dog Toy
Purpose/Use: This is a toy.
Intended for use on/by ferrets: This is listed as a dog toy.
Effectiveness: This toy comes in various designs- fox, raccoon, squirrel etc and in varying sizes from 8" or so long to over 12". My ferrets love all versions of this toy equally. And boy do they love it! There are a lot of wars over where to stash these toys and who gets to play with it at the moment, they'll even start a tug-o-war match with you or another ferret over it.
Additional Comments: This toy is stuffing free, so that if they chew or rip a hole in it there is nothing to swallow. The eyes are bits of felt stitched on and don't seem to come off. There is a blockage hazard if you have a heavy chewer who pulls the fur out and eats it I discovered, luckily he passed it easily with some oil. But I made sure to check all of them now for wear and tear regularly and toss any that look questionable. There are also squeakers in this toy.
Cons: Like any plush toy, this item will eventually wear out and need replacing. Always regularly check your ferrets toys for safety hazards.
Price: $5.00-7.00
Score:
Last Updated: 1/3/2013
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