Squeaky Weasels - Squeak training your ferret

What?
Squeak training is squeaking a specific toy (such as a squeaky dog toy) to call your ferret to you.


Why?
Training your ferret to come to a loud squeak is not only more reliable than teaching them to come to their name, but it is also faster and easier. Furthermore, squeaks are loud and easy for ferrets to hear through whatever they may be sleeping in. Different pitches of squeaky toys can also be used for ferrets that are hard of hearing - you’ll often be able to find at least one squeak that they will be able to hear well enough.


How?
Its simple.

step 1: Take a squeaky toy with a distinct squeaky sound (not the one that your dog loves to drive you cray squeaking) - there are many different sounding squeaky toys available at your local pet store, super market and dollar store.

step 2: Pick your ferret up or sit on the ground with him, take his favourite treat (I find that an oil such as Salmon Oil or similar which he will not be tempted to hide immediately works best) and begin squeaking the toy while feeding him the treat. This will create a positive association with the sound. What you are trying to do is imprint the idea that the sound of this particular toy means a treat.

step 3: Put the ferret down (let him finish wiping off his face and chin), take a few steps back and begin squeaking the toy again. The ferret should look for the source of the sound and the treat that comes with it. Don’t make him wait long and remember to treat him.
** some ferrets have shorter attention spans than others. If your ferret seems bored and does not respond to step three, give it a rest. A few hours later, when your ferret is up and about again, begin squeaking the toy when he is nearby and treat him. It may take a few days for some ferrets to associate the sound of the toy with treats, but remember: not everybody learns at the same pace and practice makes progress!

step 4: Repeat steps 2 and three until the ferret associates the sound with treats and looks up at you expectantly when he hears the sound. Once you reach this stage, you can begin to create more and more distance between yourself and your ferret, allowing him to come to you (wherever you are) for a treat. If your ferret gets bored or is not succeeding, don’t give up - you may be going to quickly. A bored or unresponsive ferret may mean that you are going to quickly. Slow it down and increase your distance more gradually.

Step 5: Constant positive reinforcement is a must. Do not squeak for your ferrets every night so that you can put them to bed. Though it is a great way to round up the little guys, squeaking and then caging discourages the response that you have been trying to get. This is not to say that you should never squeak for your pet and then cage him, simply make sure that you squeak and treat for positive events (such as a trip outside) or just to encourage the behaviour such as for a treat or a new toy.

Does the squeak and treat technique really work?
Yes!
With patience and positive reinforcement, squeak and treat works extremely well on most ferrets. It can also be a lifesaver if the ferret gets out or you need to round the ferrets up in an emergency situation. Almost all of my ferrets are squeak trained with the exception of my little girl who is hard of hearing - she often cannot locate the source of the squeak though it DOES succeed in getting her out to where she can be found!

Fostering good relationships - when the ferret is the mean one

I've noticed, when looking for information about fostering relationships between ferrets and cats or ferrets and dogs, that the assumption seems to be that the ferret is the innocent one, and the other animals are the aggressors; it is excellent information, but what is the other animals LIKE the ferret and the new ferret is the aggressor?


I recently had such a situation and found little information on how to deal with the issue in any ferret book, so I posted the question on my facebook page to see if other people had had similar situations, and, if so, how they had overcome them. Sure enough, the online ferret community came through! Here is some advise that I was given...

FIRST - try to figure out whether the ferret is acting aggressively or simply afraid. If you have just gotten the ferret this is more difficult to determine as you are not yet familiar with his or her body language. Here are some tips to try and determine whether what you are seeing is fear or aggression: FEAR will cause the ferret to back away from the dog or cat and lunge only when the animal comes to near, AGGRESSION will cause the ferret to lunge at the dog or cat without backing away. To make matters more complicated, some ferrets will be fearful of the dog or cat immediately and then begin to act aggressively towards it as it begins to feel more comfortable in the home.

SECOND - keep in mind that if the ferret is aggressive, he or she will likely never be friends with your dog or cat and will likely feel the need to snap at or chase them on occasion; it is possible, however, to get them to co-exist at least part of the time. If the ferret is fearful, it is your duty to teach the ferret that he or she has nothing to fear from the other animals; bear in mind that if you do not teach the ferret that the dog and or cat is not something to be afraid of, you will ruin any chance of a friendly relationship between the animals.

THIRD - use treats, not discipline. Find a treat that your ferret loves and feed it to your ferret when the other animal is around. This technique works best when the other animal receives treats at the same time. Begin at a distance in an area that the ferret feels safe (such as a cage) and gradually move the animals closer together over a period of weeks. If you have a relapse of aggression or fear with the ferret lunging or trying to nip at the other animal, take a break, move them a bit further apart again and continue the treating. Discipline, especially is form of nose snapping or bum tapping is a real no no as it will teach your ferret that the other animal is a bad thing that causes people to attack him or her. Time outs, if used correctly, can be effective, but only when used in conjunction with treats. If, for example, the ferret decides during play time to run over to the dog and (aggressively) bite or chase the dog, then a brief time out is in order. The time out should be followed up with treating both animals together.

BE PATIENT! Fostering positive relationships is a long process. If your have a set back, don't get discouraged, take it as a sign that you are moving too fast and slow it down. It is better to take months introducing the animals and have them get along or, at the very least co-exist than to constantly have to separate your pets and worry constantly about them severely injuring each other.

GOOD LUCK! Hopefully this information has been of some use; if you have any more questions, don't hesitate to e-mail us!