# Ferret washing question



## Kay.K (Aug 6, 2018)

Hi everyone!

I've got a young ferret and she keeps ending up smelling very strongly of pee! I've never caught her lounging in her litter box or anything so I have no idea why that may be. Theories welcome.

Anyway it's my understanding you shouldn't wash a ferret more than once every month or two with shampoo. Is it okay to rinse them just with water more frequently than that? A little rinse would do her wonders right now. I also have some of those small pet hygiene wipes but I have no idea how often it's cool to use those.

Any help appreciated!


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

A rinse should be fine when necessary. I've not used the wipes, but they are probably OK to use a few times a month if really necessary.

I had a very chunky boy once, he was very obese when he arrived from the rescue, and his tummy used to drag in his pee. Does your girl have a big tummy, or does she squat in a weird way that gets pee on her body? Is she maybe peeing outside of her litter box, somewhere that's out of your line of sight like under furniture, then standing or lying in it? 

How often are you changing her bedding? It may be that she runs into her bed to wipe off after peeing (mine prefer the carpet - that little bum scoot is cute until you realise what they're doing!), or maybe her paws are getting wet in the litter box & she's tracking it into her bedding that way. Any smells on the bedding will end up on the ferret, so it might be worth washing her blankets a lot more often until you figure out what's going on. 

Is it definitely pee? If you're not very familiar with ferret smells, their normal body odours can be a little confusing.


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## madelinekosse (Nov 13, 2018)

Tegan has the same issue; I believe it is because of 'splashback' from the litterbox. She pees against the back of her plastic litterbox and sometimes it splashes back onto her. We have had no problems giving her bum a rinse in the sink or with the showerhead when this happens.


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## Albinodollysmum (Oct 20, 2020)

I have noticed with my females compared to males they tend to pee on there feet as they are going to the bathroom then she cleans her feet on her bedding i spoke to someone about this and they suggested a way for them to clean of there feet after leaving the tray and her smell has reduced so much since then , they suggest a old rag or cloth or face cloth places just under her box and poking out she will walk on that after leaving there for drying her feet of before moving elsewhere , i even took it a step ahead and made sure it was swapped daily cleaned fully and put back a little wet not just that she also likes to roll on the part thats wet so maybe give that a try


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## Patchwork Petcare (Oct 2, 2020)

I wouldn't recommend washing them more than once a year with an oat bath because their skin is so sensitive, especially to shampoo, and washing can also make them smell much worse as it causes their glands produce extra oils. For cleaning her coat, a warm damp washcloth works great, just brush with that lightly all over (great for bonding too, as a bonus).
As others said, maybe wash her blankets etc more often to see if that helps. You could also try puppy pads instead of/as well as a litter tray to see if this stops it from getting on her as much.


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## Squirrel Small paws (Aug 16, 2021)

I never wash my ferrets...
are you sure it's pee or is it that they are releasing there sent glands..?
I have 2 girls that every now and them seem to stink , like they've been sitting in there pee for a week, it's something they do and I just increase the saw dust levels so they burrow through it that normally reduces the smell considerably almost at once.
I also use lavender sented sawdust as they are indoor ferrets, it cuts down on the smell as well as the flies.
Cheers
P.


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