Ferret Breeding

[olliedakennard 0]

Hi all, i am breeding this year with my sandy jill and my mates polecat hob. I know all the basic's but seeing as there is better knowledge out there i thought i would ask the real hunter.

I have got willing homes for all the ferrets that i might get!!

My questions are as following:

 

1. What type of ferret kits will i get out of this?

2. Would i be better to let the jill have her kits in an outside cage or the smaller warmer one in the garage?

3.What is the best suplement after a couple of weeks after the kits are born for the kits, to give them more nutrients?

4.How many roughly will i get i have heard of people getting from 5 to 12(what is the average)?

5.At what age shall i start working the two i keep?

6.What bedding is best for the jill and her kits?

 

Sorry to keep going on with these questions, but if i am going to breed i want to be well prepared and well set up for when they come. As i want my kits to have the best chances in there lives as i am keeping them for 14 weeksso they are full grown and so they can be handled and worked, when they are sold or given away!

 

All advice is much appreciated whether it be about my questions or not.

Many thanks

ollie

[sue 1]

you could get any colours out of them ,you could even get a albino ,no extra stuff is needed just a good supply of fresh meat,doesnt matter if in or out as long as it warm and dry ,and i use hay for bedding and for working them if they are early kits this coming season

Edited March 2, 2008 by sue

[andy s410c 61]

My top tip for breeding ferts, DONT!! each to their own tho... there must be enough info/discussion on breeding on here have you done a search??

[olliedakennard 0]

My top tip for breeding ferts, DONT!! each to their own tho... there must be enough info/discussion on breeding on here have you done a search??

i am now but they are not very specific.

[FUBAR 0]

My tip would be if you havn't got a deepfreeze to keep rabbit in then get one quick and start filling it soon , you will need them.

[sue 1]

the little buggers will eat you out of house and home,especially if there is 12 in the litter

[Kay 3,709]

Yes i agree with the others, i would think long & hard about breeding, have you homes lined up yet, your going to need tons of food & the handling is of the upmost importance otherwise you will strugle to home any if there really nippy

 

The more kits you have the more you need to feed, if there not getting at least 4 meat meals a day at the 5 week stage you will really struggle with them, seperating into smaller groups does make the feeding /handling easier, so you will need extra cages as a standby to do this if its a big litter

 

Personally i wouldnt breed by choice theres going to be loads of kits going for free later on this year

[olliedakennard 0]

Yes i agree with the others, i would think long & hard about breeding, have you homes lined up yet, your going to need tons of food & the handling is of the upmost importance otherwise you will strugle to home any if there really nippy

 

The more kits you have the more you need to feed, if there not getting at least 4 meat meals a day at the 5 week stage you will really struggle with them, seperating into smaller groups does make the feeding /handling easier, so you will need extra cages as a standby to do this if its a big litter

 

Personally i wouldnt breed by choice theres going to be loads of kits going for free later on this year

 

I have i have thought for a whole year now. And i really want a good go at it. As i said in the post i have homes lined up, I have hundreds of rabbits in the freezer what is the best way to give ot to them minced or sliced or whole, I have overall 5 cages made and ready for ferrets. I have loads of time to handle them and i have a brother and a lot of mates who love coming round and handling the ferrets, only one at a time with me assisting them as i would not at any stage put my ferrets under any danger ever.

[olliedakennard 0]

Sue why would they eat me out of house and home, its not that costy, i am thinking of using baby food for a substitute and i ahve just bought a 40 kg bag of ferret food and loads of rabbits that i have shot and ferreted. Many thanks more tips needed though. many thanks ollie

[Kay 3,709]

Well if you had the time & resources to set up a breeding unit including 100's off rabbits , why did you need nets & carry boxes

[Kay 3,709]

Dry foods no good , you will have hungry bitey ferrets, meats a must & for gods sake dont feed baby food

[olliedakennard 0]

Well if you had the time & resources to set up a breeding unit including 100's off rabbits , why did you need nets & carry boxes

 

Because my dad gets the rabbits and the cages are made out of old pallets by my mate.

ollie

[olliedakennard 0]

I will only feed them baby food if there are too many kits for the jill to look after at about 1-2 weeks old probably wont though as my jill had been succecfully bred before. Many thanks ollie

[sue 1]

baby food is for babies ,you should get some more reading done before you breed . please think hard before you breed

 

read complete ferrets by james mccay

[Kay 3,709]

Ollie takes Sue's advice about reading up , theres not normally any need to intervein , if you go messing in the nest at the early stages the jill could kill the whole litter

 

They do not need human baby food chuck away the bloody american book or stop taking advice from there forums, its not what to do, they will begin to attempt to eat RAW RABBIT at around 3 weeks old , its not nessecary to use anything else