Working Homes ?

[Green Island Hunter 28]

even ferts bred from workers, dont always turn out to be good workers themselves, most kitts dont show any true potential until their second season, so sometimes your left with a good, well handled fert, that just dos'ent reach the mark to keep within your team, in these case's I always look into re homing as a pet, I have nothing against a humaine cull at birth, but not 2yrs down the line, last year I re homed a hob ferret to a family friend, since having him she has had him castrated and chipped, alot more than some ferreters do for their ferts, plus he has the run of her whole house, regularly keeps us informed of his life via facebook.

I do however vet "pet" homes very thoughly before allowing a fert to go there,

 

surely, also those of us that keep ferts for ferreting, also class them as pets, or am I the only one,

 

I have 13 ferts, and yes I have favorites that I use when ferreting, so therefore some get taken out more than others, the one's left in the cages could therefore be classed as pets, or should I cull them

 

what you do with your ferts, is your buisness. after 2 seasons, if any of my ferrets are not doing the job, they get put down humanely, just a thing i have done since young and have a very good stain from doing this.

i learnt my ferreting ect from my father who was working ferrets pre mxy days around essex, right up to norfolk.

selective breeding over the years, has given me ferrets that on their first outings, cop on straight away and work well.

At one time, you could get a ferret off someone for work and it would allways do the job, not muck about, they are getting harder to find in my experince, if i decide to out cross, due, i think to the pet ferret trade and folks getting softer over the years lol.

[Kay 3,709]

I think it depends greatly on your definition of '' pet'' if you mean dress them up in silly outfits & cart them around in these silly animal prams then yes i agree with you no animal should have to suffer that kind of treatment

 

In reality the husbandry of a ferret is absolutely no different regardless of the reason you keep it .. unless you know differently of course

[Green Island Hunter 28]

well to me a ferret has allways been a worker, end of. a pet ferret to me is one that does not bolt rabbits, just runs about a house ect.

[runforyourlife 361]

It all depends, say you have 2 jills which have 10plus kits each. well trying toget them all to go to working homes could be quite difficult...

 

If you were selling pups at 200quid each, and an elderly woman came along for a pet, would you tell her she cant have one because they are of working strain...

 

If i had gone to the effort of breeding a litter of pups it would be for their hunting ability etc and so therefore i would want to see how they faired at what they were bred for and also i don't think it would be wise letting an old lady take away an 8 week old running dog for a house pet. . . .. . .

 

 

What kind of statement is that! On e of my dogs brother is down the road from us! The elderly couple made the 90mile journey to buy one, as they liked mine that much.. They have a 2 acre garden, and a massive pad. It is a very happy dog indeed!

 

Greyhounds are f****d off all the time, and many end up at elderly ladies houses, and become great pets...THE ULTIMATE RUNNING DOG!!

 

 

am elderly lady my friend would have a lot more wisdom than you and i! Especially my mum, who is 70 and very capable of looking after running dog!

[mackay 3,328]

To me agood home is a good home and I would happily give ferrets to a good pet home, I've seen pet ferrets in all their glory, plenty of freedom, handling, socialising etc and then I've seen ferrets in so called experienced working homes that would make you shake your head in despair at the conditions they're being kept in. <BR><BR>To the guy that mentioned not giving an old biddy a working/running dog the same applies.

[Kay 3,709]

well to me a ferret has allways been a worker, end of. a pet ferret to me is one that does not bolt rabbits, just runs about a house ect.

 

i dont know what category my ferrets fit into then there kept outside . there fed flesh . there not neutered. they dont come in the house . but there not worked

[The one 8,463]

If were no careful we will end up like the parson jack russell club they seperated from the jack russell club pushed there there application to the Kennel club and what they ending up with mostly show dog's ,Thats how i see us ending up if we are not carefull only thing is we will have a bigger working gene pool to start with .

[Ideation 8,216]

It all depends, say you have 2 jills which have 10plus kits each. well trying toget them all to go to working homes could be quite difficult...

 

If you were selling pups at 200quid each, and an elderly woman came along for a pet, would you tell her she cant have one because they are of working strain...

 

If i had gone to the effort of breeding a litter of pups it would be for their hunting ability etc and so therefore i would want to see how they faired at what they were bred for and also i don't think it would be wise letting an old lady take away an 8 week old running dog for a house pet. . . .. . .

 

 

What kind of statement is that! On e of my dogs brother is down the road from us! The elderly couple made the 90mile journey to buy one, as they liked mine that much.. They have a 2 acre garden, and a massive pad. It is a very happy dog indeed!

 

Greyhounds are f****d off all the time, and many end up at elderly ladies houses, and become great pets...THE ULTIMATE RUNNING DOG!!

 

 

am elderly lady my friend would have a lot more wisdom than you and i! Especially my mum, who is 70 and very capable of looking after running dog!

 

I can except that there will be exceptions and good on your mum. I accept that many elderly ladies would have a lot more wisdom that you or i on many fronts - In general however the energy, prey drive and general need of excercise, and training to make it in any way biddable - may not make what i would class as an ideal dog for an elderly lady. And by elderly lady you had me thinking of white haired old dears with their walking stick. . . . . of course there will be exceptions. My other point was that i would very very rarely breed a litter of pups . . . . . for many reasons. . . . and if i did so it would be because i thought i had a truly special worker and would but that dog with the other best worker i could find regardless of cost of effort. As a result i would be really keen to place (not sell) the pups in homes that i could monitor their progress and watch them grow and enter the life they were intended for. . . . . . I wouldnt have a litter and then advertise it for sale etc etc. And yes i fully endorse anyone taking x racers and they do make great pets . . . .

 

The pup thing is no hard and fast rule - i'm not saying what you or any one else should do with their pups or judging what you have done in the past - it's just my thoughts toward what my own actions would be and we are each different.

 

As for the ferrets - mine are all pets and at the same time workers that i expect high standards from. When i breed, which is rare and only to keep what i need back, i tend to make sure i have working homes lined up and if i can't put them in homes then i just run them on here - i'm never short of space. And as stubby says, sometimes they dont make it to the standard required and some of those MAY end up placed with friends or family as pets, but if not they will stay here, live a pleasant life in the court and get the odd run through the warrens in my garden to bolt one or two for tea (rather than the full days rabbit control). I have yet to cull a healthy animal.

[Green Island Hunter 28]

i finding this a bit strange, being on a hunting site and in the ferreting section, with so many pet ferret owners?

each to their own, but is their not a site, for pet ferret owners?

the statement made by the one, is spot on.

[The one 8,463]

i finding this a bit strange, being on a hunting site and in the ferreting section, with so many pet ferret owners?

each to their own, but is their not a site, for pet ferret owners?

the statement made by the one, is spot on.

 

Thats what i dont understand why they come on here theres plenty pet sites out there

[stubby 175]

as stated, culling at the correct time and for the right reasons, I dont have a problem with, but is it the same across the board, or only ferrets, those being a low value animal,

ie, a working terrier from good parentage, should it be culled if a working home cannot be found, rather than placing it with a pet family, with the understanding that you can use its breeding, should anything ever happen to your own line.

 

Im not saying thats what I do, as I expect "pet" ferts to be spayed or snipped

I suppose were always get a mixed answer to the question posted, but its good to hear everyone opinions

[The one 8,463]

But what do they get out of Having A Working Animal as a pet and no using it ?? A classic example is the border collie half of them in pet homes go stir crazy being cooped up and no working they have to be rehomed .

 

Why no stick to budgies ,rabbits etc

[Green Island Hunter 28]

Exactly. I find, after a day out with the ferrets, they seems calm and quiet, settle down to a good nap, till the next day, when their ready to go again, its what they live for.

my ferrets are handled every day, live in a nice pen, where they dig holes ect. just in case some of you think working ferrets are not happy.

i also work them the odd time during the summer, early in the mornings, when i get called on certain areas.

[scothunter 12,609]

as long as you have a good working stock of ferts that you can breed from why would you care what happened to the excess stock of kits.

a ferret will do its job some better than others but that can be said about any working animal or human when it comes it.

apart from one i have always gave to working homes but i wouldnt have a prob giving to someone who wasnt as long as it was cared for properly.

saves me hanging on to excess kits or killing them.

 

a fert is a fert and they all will work so personally this talk of breeding out the instinct to work imo is a lot of shite.

all dogs started their lifes as workers ,take the dalmation for instance it was breed as a coach dog,maybe we should cull the breed cz we drive around in cars now.

oh and i dont think there are as many pet owners on this site as some of you think.and even if theee was who gives a shit.

[Kay 3,709]

But what do they get out of Having A Working Animal as a pet and no using it ?? A classic example is the border collie half of them in pet homes go stir crazy being cooped up and no working they have to be rehomed .

 

Why no stick to budgies ,rabbits etc

 

 

Well i find it slightly hypocritical for someone to crib about folk's keeping ferrets as pets/companions call it what you like if you dont work yours every day of the week ... if you dont work them all year every day what do you do with them when there not working... do they get humanly culled incase your seen as a soft touch