# Hob behaviour



## MiloYuki (Oct 8, 2017)

Hi everyone!
I'm a new ferret owner, rescued 2 brothers about 6 months old 3 weeks ago. They are the same age but the bigger hob was neutered and the little one (Yuki) wasn't as the vets were waiting for him to get a big bigger before the procedure.
They are both lovely boys but fight a lot, specially when out of the cage. I know that ferrets play fight quite rough but this is a step further, definitely a dominance thing. The hob that has been neutered (Milo) has been poofing a lot too.
I was wondering 2 things:
1- How quickly do hobs calm down after being neutered?
2- Would the constant poofing stop after Yuki gets neutered as it might just be a dominance issue?

I know we will only find out once it's done, but I just wanted to hear other ferret owner experiences. We live in a 2 bed flat and the smell/fighting is killing us.

Thank you!


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Hi, it sounds like a dominance thing going from what I’ve read and yes if you get the smaller one done, shouldn’t need to grow before he can be done if he’s the same age as the other since he likely is just a smaller hob. And after about 3 weeks after the other one has been neutered, they should both stop the dominance thing altogether meaning no more ferret fear farts!


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## Taishi (Sep 15, 2017)

Hmm, problem is though some ferrets just can't get along no matter what, I'd say keep a close eye on them and just wait and see what happens, worse case scenario is they may have to be seperated but as Frol said they should calm down generally.

As for the smell: try getting some oder eaters, ie fraigrent candles or something. Whatever you choose though do NOT get anything that has essential oils as this is toxic to ferrets. FeBreeze is normally a safe product for animals but always read the label and check what's in them to be sure. I personally use some gel based ones, they seem to do the trick and do not bother my ferret. However a decent level of maintenance is key, you've still gotta scoop the poop I'm afraid. Try litter training them and getting a pooper scooper to deal with the mess a bit easier. You could also consider investing in an air purifier and for such a small apartment I'd say that would be ideal. Failing that you could always consider getting them decented but honestly it's not total prevention as they still have the smell glands in their head and poop will always smell no matter what. Anyway, hope that helps, best of luck,


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

Taishi said:


> ... Failing that you could always consider getting them decented but honestly it's not total prevention as they still have the smell glands in their head ...,


This process is illegal in the UK (& I think many other places) unless there is a medical necessity - my Irix had it done due to continual infections in his anal glands. It was not a simple operation & not cheap. He did smell different afterwards, but as mentioned there was still some smell.

In your case, I suspect castration will help a lot. If his testes have descended, they can be removed, even if they are small. That said, it won't do him any harm to wait a bit if you can cope with the fighting & poofing in the meantime.

Perhaps they would get on better with at least some time apart, including some individual play time? I am in a one bedroom flat, & have a spare cage for when one needs time alone, such as illness etc. More recently, my partner modified their home-made cage so the two levels can be separated - the ramp is now on a hinge with a catch, to cover the hole between levels, so the unwell ferret is still in their usual cage, but only has access to half of it, while the others have the rest.

Sometimes excessive poofing can be a sign of full/blocked or infected anal glands, so that's something to get checked next time you're at the vet, though if it happens during fighting it's probably not!

(Once you've seen them emptied at the vets a few times, it is possible to do it yourself at home. I find it is less traumatic for them to do it myself - after a good lick of ferretone they have forgotten the brief discomfort. I use a single disposable glove & some tissue. Hold ferret on his/her back on my lap, on a washable blanket with left hand, & use gloved right hand to squeeze glands into tissue. Peel glove off over the tissue & knot to enclose the smell! It's a bit stinky, but a fan & open window get rid of the worst fairly quickly.)


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## Taishi (Sep 15, 2017)

Babyshoes said:


> This process is illegal in the UK (& I think many other places) unless there is a medical necessity - my Irix had it done due to continual infections in his anal glands. It was not a simple operation & not cheap. He did smell different afterwards, but as mentioned there was still some smell.


Oh ok I did not know that as it has been suggested many times. Though if it is how were you able to get it done?


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

Taishi said:


> Oh ok I did not know that as it has been suggested many times. Though if it is how were you able to get it done?


I was able to have it done as it was for medical reasons. It's not legal to do for non medical purposes. It it common in America though, it's legal there.


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## Taishi (Sep 15, 2017)

Babyshoes said:


> I was able to have it done as it was for medical reasons. It's not legal to do for non medical purposes. It it common in America though, it's legal there.


ok fair enough and yeah I'd assume so else it wouldn't be mentioned so often when researching ferrets.


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## MiloYuki (Oct 8, 2017)

Thanks everyone for your replies.

Update: This week we had Yuki neutered and he has already seemed to calm down a bit, they don't fight as much outside the cage. We also got a bigger cage (ferret nation) and that one you can separate them by closing the first floor, which is what we do when they get to 'fighty'.

We do all of the normal things to keep them clean (ie. scoop the poop 2x a day, change the cover every couple of days, etc.) also have bought an air purifier, but the smell seems to linger. Having said that, I do quite like their body smell now - musky.

Decenting is illegal in the UK so not an option.

Also, my husband is a photographer and just started the cutest instagram account for them - check it out @war_dance_twins in monochrome. We do love these little buggers.


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## Taishi (Sep 15, 2017)

Wow, good on ya both, seems like they're in good care!


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