Post by LunarFlame on Jan 11, 2006 15:45:45 GMT -5
[glow=pink,2,300]Toy's Your Ferrets Will Love![/glow]
Ferrets are very inquisitive animals and need a constant supply of stimulation in order to keep them from getting bored. Giving ferrets a variety of toys and games to keep them busy can provide hours of fun and entertainment, as well as a distraction from other objects that they shouldn’t be going after.
Usually, ferrets will pick their own toys, things you’ve never thought of before, like scooching around in the tub with the bath stopper
They often like the cheapest toys best as well, so don’t spend a fortune on individual toys!Whatever toys you provide your ferret with, always ensure that they are safe beforehand. Avoid toys made of soft rubber or latex, as a ferret can easily chew and swallow pieces of these materials. Avoid things with small parts, or toys that could easily break or fall apart. With existing toys, always dispose of ones that have become worn and possible unsafe.
Here are a few lists of good toys to try out with your ferret!
Some good store-bought toys that many people find that their ferrets like include:[/u]
•Jingly balls (usually sold for cats).
•Cat teasers.
•Toy mice of all kinds.
•Ferret Kongs.
•Tunnels and tubes.
•Any plush toys that a ferret can sink its teeth in to
•Most other cat toys.
•Tennis balls or other plush balls.
•Any crinkly toys.
•Any rattling toys.
•Hard baby toys.
•Play tents.
•Cat scratching houses
•Cat Crinkel sacks/bags.
WARNING:[/b] Some pet toys may have small pieces on them that a ferret could ingest. Ingesting such pieces could cause fatal blockages. Inspect each toy before giving it to your ferret, and remove any small pieces that could pose a threat to your fuzzy!
Some household items also provide stimulation for many ferrets:[/u]
•Paper towel tubes - cut or torn down one side
•Plastic/paper bags (Only under very close supervision!!).
•An old par of pants for the ferts to run through.
•Plastic bottles (empty).
•Boxes.
Make your own toys!
Making your own toys for your ferrets can be a very rewarding experience. It’s always fulfilling to see a fuzzy play with something that you personally made for them!
•The Dig Box: As some owners discover, ferrets LOVE to dig. Instead of digging up your favorite mat, or the carpet, a dig box can be a great alternative! In brief, a dig box is a large box (can be plastic, cardboard, etc), filled with a ferret-safe material. The most popular materials for dig boxes include NON-instant rice, shredded paper, plastic eggs, or STARTCH packing peanuts. I have also used clean sand as a big hit with my ferrets! Ferrets can hop in and have a ball snorkeling and digging through the dig box! This is a favorite of many ferrets and ferret owners alike!
WARNING:[/color] If using rice or packing peanuts, it is important to make sure that the rice is non-instant, and that the packing peanuts are made of starch. Both Instant rice and Styrofoam peanuts can cause fatal blockages if ingested!
•Jingly pillows: These toys are usually a hit! They can easily be made by sewing scraps of fabric together, into any size you like, and then adding stuffing, and a few jingly bells inside, to make a cute little jingly pillow. My girl loves to toss them around and shake them. She loves it when I throw it to her, and usually goes into a war dancing frenzy. Even stuffed pillows without jingly bells can excite a hyper fuzzy!
• Make your own tubes: Tubes can be made out of cardboard, old dryer tubing, PVC pipe, and even fabric!
•Box castles: Ferrets love boxes. Even more fun is taking a bunch of boxes, attatching them together and making holes in them and adding tubes or ramps to them. You could even attatch dig boxes too.
-Written by Rachel (LunarFlame)
Please do not re-distribute without permission
!! mine do not like store bought toys for some reason? except for the tunnel we got em. they prefer goin under rugs, carboard boxes, supervised plastic bags and any kind of pant legs! lol
