Critter Nation cage - Issue with Ferret on second level?

[Marcham93]

Hi everyone!

Quick question. I understand that chins and ferrets should not be put together or allowed to play due to the ferret's hunting nature, but is it alright for a ferret to live near a chin (out of sight)?

I have a Critter Nation cage and want to purchase the top add on cage piece and then house the chin on the bottom and ferret on the top separated. I don't see any issues since they are separate and out of sight.

Just double checking. Everything sound okay?

 

[Devi Xiao]

It probably wouldn't be a good idea. Animals have a better sense of smell than we do and we can already detect a ferret's odor. Your ferret's scent may cause your chinchilla stress. It might be OK if the ferret scent was already in the household when the chinchilla arrived, as it would just associate the smell with the place.
Please do not let them play together. It doesn't work out as can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IiuiG-gzW8 .

 

[Marcham93]

My thoughts are that the reduced sent of the ferret due to cleaning and the de-odor spray won't have a huge impact as one would imagine.

My second thought is that the chin has never been in an environment where a ferret odor was threatening, thus the odor would just be another smell. Also, he would realize the smell wasn't threatening after a while.

Just throwing ideas around - my own thoughts on the matter.

 

[melbur10]

This is just me, but I wouldn't even have a ferret in the same room. Maybe I'm just paronoid but I see problems. I had my other chinchillas playing in the room with my chinchilla that they don't get along with, she was in her cage and lost a finger plus a chuck of of her lip. I can only imagine what the result of a ferret on the other side of the bars would be....

 

[Marcham93]

This is just me, but I wouldn't even have a ferret in the same room. Maybe I'm just paronoid but I see problems. I had my other chinchillas playing in the room with my chinchilla that they don't get along with, she was in her cage and lost a finger plus a chuck of of her lip. I can only imagine what the result of a ferret on the other side of the bars would be....

Thanks for your input, Melbur!

 

[Amethyst]

I'm not sure about the floor bars under the pans of the critter nation but I have heard of someone housing a ferret and chin in a ferret nation cage one on top of the other and the ferret managed to pull the plastic pan up and get under it and got at the chinchilla though the floor bars underneath. I don't remember if the chin was killed or just hurt.

 

[Marcham93]

I'm not sure about the floor bars under the pans of the critter nation but I have heard of someone housing a ferret and chin in a ferret nation cage one on top of the other and the ferret managed to pull the plastic pan up and get under it and got at the chinchilla though the floor bars underneath. I don't remember if the chin was killed or just hurt.

Thanks for bringing that up! I will make sure to secure the floor with metal or place a metal barrier between the two.

 

[Devi Xiao]

Honestly, it's never really a good idea to put a predatory animal in the same room as a prey animal. Animals don't usually differentiate between "family pets" and "food."
And I'm not sure about the effects of the de-odorizers and cleaning will have since we have pretty crappy sense of smell. So what smells like no ferret to us is probably still pretty strong to the chin.

 

[TexasToast]

I'm guessing you already have the ferret? Speaking from experience I know that even when ferrets are "de-scented" and altered they still have a very distinct odor easily detectable even to humans. As someone has already mentioned, if the ferret and chin have already been living in the same household and especially in the same vicinity then it's really too late for that anyway as they're already having to deal with it. If you decide to go ahead with this plan then I'd highly suggest using Bass pans to reduce the risk of one or the other being able to access the other half the cage--definitely wouldn't trust the plastic stock pans to ensure their safety. Also, as ferrets require a minimum of 4 hrs out-of-cage time every day, you'd need to have a ferret-proofed area/room for free-ranging totally separate from the cage also housing the chinchillas.

 

[Marcham93]

I actually don't have the ferret yet, but I am eyeing a little guy at the pet shop who is just adorable.

If the ferret lives above the chin, I will make sure that the pan is secured and will definitely pick up a brass equipment pan to add some weight.

They would be in the same room, but when one is out playing - I would be closely monitoring and making sure they stayed from the cage.

This is a difficult decision... Hmm. I feel like it could definitely work, but now I have reservations because of the above comments.

 

[Dreamlite]

I would never keep a predator and a prey animal in the same room. Its just asking for trouble. Conjoined cages is just increasing that risk so much more than is needed. Not to mention the potential health issues that a ferret can pass to a chin. Ferrets are known to escape their cages so to have them side by side like that... if the ferret gets into the chin cage its all over. If the ferret gets out of a separate cage across the room then at least the chin has some protection.

 

[Kansas City Chinchillas]

Glad you are listening to opinions. Ferrets and chins just don't belong in the same household. There are too many things that can accidently happen which end in injury or death of a chin. Even though you plan to monitor the ferret you can't be there all the time.

 

[obcsed]

I have both ferrets and chins. The ferrets are not allowed in the chin rooms. Early on I would let the ferrets come in the room for a short time and that was enough to put the chins on high alert. I would never in a thousand years house the two species in the same room let alone the same cage. I don't care how often you bathe the ferret or use the so called odor control sprays, the room is still going to smell like ferrets because of their feces. Besides it is not a good idea to bathe ferrets anyway. It actually stimulates the oil production and the smell is even stronger the more you bathe. Unless you can keep them totally separate, please rethink the idea and pass on the ferret. Besides, a ferret will eventually cost you a fortune in vet bills.

 

[Marcham93]

Sigh... I guess I will ship back the box of ferret gear. :'(

<runs away crying...>

But seriously, thank you all for the advice!