Working to rats

[Gypsydog94 4,607]

Anyone regularly worked ferrets to rats? If so how did it effect the ferrets mentality? Did it turn them really aggressive? Many health issues?

[terryd 8,499]

Used to when I was younger. They got a bit more fired up when actually working because there was a bit more at steak but other than that fine. Never did a huge amount of though

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

Ferreted more rats than I ever did rabbits  .If you had a Jill that stuck to it you had a good un .Saw a fair amount of abscesses from rat bites and lost a few working places I maybe should have left alone namely farm drains and under concrete .The advent of the micro collar by deben changed the losses drastically .Entering a good ferret into a decent rat Warren would usually tigger action straight away .Miss that part of my life tbh .

Good crack if dogs are steady .

[vfr400boy 3,448]

8 hours ago, foxdropper said:

Ferreted more rats than I ever did rabbits  .If you had a Jill that stuck to it you had a good un .Saw a fair amount of abscesses from rat bites and lost a few working places I maybe should have left alone namely farm drains and under concrete .The advent of the micro collar by deben changed the losses drastically .Entering a good ferret into a decent rat Warren would usually tigger action straight away .Miss that part of my life tbh .

Good crack if dogs are steady .

I had a silver jill that loved ratting remember one day she come out the hole attached to the rat like a cartoon ball of ferret n rat n my mates lurchers head was going up n down like a nodding donkey then bang he grabbed the rat n not the jill only lasted a few seconds but felt like for ever 

[Gypsydog94 4,607]

10 hours ago, foxdropper said:

Ferreted more rats than I ever did rabbits  .If you had a Jill that stuck to it you had a good un .Saw a fair amount of abscesses from rat bites and lost a few working places I maybe should have left alone namely farm drains and under concrete .The advent of the micro collar by deben changed the losses drastically .Entering a good ferret into a decent rat Warren would usually tigger action straight away .Miss that part of my life tbh .

Good crack if dogs are steady .

Does sound a lot more interesting then a smoker and not so noisy. My lurcher would be fine and I got a terrier pup that should be easy enough to break. 

[C.green 3,231]

Not done too much this year but i do normally do alot of it and enjoy it. Got a bitch ferret she produved best ratter ive seen hopefully get some more young out of her this year. Nice to see terriers broken to ferrets not many are now

[WHWT 1,867]

Done loads in the past really like it would like do more but when your out with loads terriers lurchers etc the smoker and spade seem to be the thing. Like FD says bit more fired when actually at the rats but never made mine any more nippy. Nearly always worked jills in their sets but used few hobs in scrap, under sheds etc.  

 

 

Even these two big strong rabbiting hobs took some stick off the long taills.

PUD

[Gypsydog94 4,607]

2 hours ago, WHWT said:

Done loads in the past really like it would like do more but when your out with loads terriers lurchers etc the smoker and spade seem to be the thing. Like FD says bit more fired when actually at the rats but never made mine any more nippy. Nearly always worked jills in their sets but used few hobs in scrap, under sheds etc.  

 

 

Even these two big strong rabbiting hobs took some stick off the long taills.

PUD

That’s the only issue but easy enough to work on my own as my mates only go out couple times a month 

[Gypsydog94 4,607]

Thought I would take a quick look

[Luckee legs 471]

I did a fair bit of ratting with ferrets in late 1970s. Jill's only. Some were mad keen, some reluctant. I found they typically all became less enthusiastic within a short time and on one occasion i remember seeing 2 Jill's making strenuous efforts to avoid engaging with rats in a pile of feed sacks. Apart from one Jill that lost an eye and became very nervous It didn't stop them being good on rabbits. At its best with a big infestation in more open ground the action was incredible.

 

[Gypsydog94 4,607]

Next question what age do you enter to rats? 

[WHWT 1,867]

If their young ferrets like born this year I like to give them rabbits till after the new year mind that if the older ones are still ratting if that makes sense, like has been said some seem to stick to ratting other seem less keen after few times just what I have found.

PUD 

[green dragon 701]

Angora ferret | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire | Pets4Homes

WWW.PETS4HOMES.CO.UK

---

We have made a very hard decision to put Nile up for rehoming we was only going to keep one of elvis...

400 corona tax 

Edited March 2, 2021 by green dragon

[green dragon 701]

.

Edited March 2, 2021 by green dragon

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

Angora ferret wtf