Keeping Kits Clean and Dry

[lorelei0922 2]

Hi .. i'm having trouble keeping the kits clean and dry in the shed. They are 6 weeks tomarrow and in with an older litter of 9 week old kits and 1 mum jill

 

Its 10 x 4 foot with two bedding boxes and a cat climbing gym in one end and the food water and poo corner at the other end...

 

The floor is concrete and i'm loath to put down woodchip as i've had problems with ingesting it in the past (the ferrets not me!!) .. Saw dust etc is asking for growing kits to have respitory problems ... and i'm Stumped!!

 

Mum keeps dragging them to a dark corner under the cat gym that is against a sleeper that makes up the wall... the kits climb up there and mess! then the whole lot of them roll around in the muck and look just plain nasty and wet. Mum is using the same toilet area at the other end as she always has and the older kits are slowly catching on.. but still missing now and then... they all seem to think the area JUST in front of the nest boxes is a great spot for a toilet.. meaning they all have to walk through.. and crawl through in the smaller kits cases to get to bed..

 

i'm tearing my hair out having to pull everyone out each day and do a TOTAL clean.. because then it takes at least an hour or more to dry before i can put them back.. or they not only get mucky but the floor is wet as well

 

any ideas? I just want to have clean tidy... HEALTHY kits to rehome in the coming month...

 

Thanks

Edited June 27, 2008 by lorelei0922

[Malt 379]

Get rid of the cat gym and put it back at a later date?

[Kay 3,709]

Is the floor wet all over & constantly ? i would put shaving down or you may find they get foot rot

[skycat 6,173]

Use shavings in the areas they mess in and cover the rest with a thick layer of straw. the shavings will soak up the liquid mess and as the ferrets burrow around in the straw they'll dry off their feet and any other messy bits of themselves: plus its a great way for them to have fun: making straw tunnels!

 

I would never keep ferrets just on a hard surface: sore urine soaked feet and coats could lead to all sorts of health problems. Think wild animal and you realise that stoats and other mustelids spend a lot of time dragging themselves through grass: that's how they stay clean. Our ferrets can't do that so we owe it to them to give them a substitute to roll/burrow in/crawl through.

 

Just clean out the poo corners every day and clean out the whole lot once a week and wash the floor, and disinfect with a ferret safe product before putting down clean shavings and straw.

[stubby 175]

I cant see a problem with wood shavings, have always used it, and never had any problems, and it does a bloody good job of keeping urine/poo neat and tidy so to speak, I know you'll say it sticks to the fresh rabbit, but if you watch ferts eating, they shake their heads whilst eating, to get the woodchip off, when you think they can eat fur,skin,bone,meat, the odd shaving aint going to hurt them,

 

go with woodchip

[sue 1]

I cant see a problem with wood shavings, have always used it, and never had any problems, and it does a bloody good job of keeping urine/poo neat and tidy so to speak, I know you'll say it sticks to the fresh rabbit, but if you watch ferts eating, they shake their heads whilst eating, to get the woodchip off, when you think they can eat fur,skin,bone,meat, the odd shaving aint going to hurt them,

 

go with woodchip

 

 

well said stubby

 

and another thing when there is several growing kits ,there is a lot of poo so it usually means you do spend alot of time cleaning up after them

[The one 8,456]

I cant see a problem with wood shavings, have always used it, and never had any problems, and it does a bloody good job of keeping urine/poo neat and tidy so to speak, I know you'll say it sticks to the fresh rabbit, but if you watch ferts eating, they shake their heads whilst eating, to get the woodchip off, when you think they can eat fur,skin,bone,meat, the odd shaving aint going to hurt them,

 

go with woodchip

 

Iv'e always used shaving and never had a problem just clean out the scat corner daily and a total clean out once a week

[will.f11 24]

cheers for the kit lorelie! Im still thinking of a name

[droid 11]

How about 'Lucky'?

[Guest jojoamojo]

the only thing that i find absorbs all the pee is wood pellet cat litter, its brilliant stuff, expensive but if its only while the kits are growing up it wont be too bad in poo cornerr

[stubby 175]

and there's another product aimed at "the pet owner"

[The one 8,456]

For all the time your going to have kitts a bale of shavings is six and a half quid

[sue 1]

all you need to do is chuck some wood shavings in the poop corner and keep changing it ,its not rocket science

[will.f11 24]

I use cat litter. Just the granule stuff.

Mine are great with it and it never leaves the shit corner

[Lilyferret 0]

and there's another product aimed at "the pet owner"

Well yes, cat litter is. But better the cats use a tray in the house rather than in someone elses garden