4 ms·

Learned from this that Ferrets are a domesticated species (like dogs and cats). I'd only heard of them in the context of Monty Python and affinity for trouser l

Learned from this that Ferrets are a domesticated species (like dogs and cats). I'd only heard of them in the context of Monty Python and affinity for trouser legs and assumed they were a wild animal. Also, they're _big_ : we have a kind of Weasel (Ermine) in Montana and I've seen then drag an adult rabbit carcas over long distances. Ferrets look to be around twice their size.

EdwardDiego 4y ago
In NZ the ferrets tend to specialise in rabbits, the stoats and weasels go for rats, mice, and birds. Although I did once see two stoats coursing a brushtail possum to death, it was nasty AF. But yeah, apparently stoats and weasels can't be domesticated like ferrets.
- pvaldes 4y ago
  We probably could, but we definitely don't want it. They have a different sense of time and are just too much energetic to be bearable. Would be like having a children with the most severe case of ADHD jumping over you each five seconds non-stop after drinking ten coffes and doing cocaine. Just watching a stoat to play is exhausting.
cmrdporcupine 4y ago
My younger brother had a pet ferret growing up. It wasn't that big. But it had no fear. Our large dog (rhodesian ridgeback X black lab cross) was scared of it. They'd "play" but the dog always backed off. They only have two modes: sleep and play/hunt. Ours learned to play with us without puncturing our skin, but its play still involving biting and tugging incessantly. Once a squirrel had gotten into a wall cavity. The ferret knew and paced outside of the wall for days, every waking hour, just obsessed. It smelled pretty bad. The scent gland had been removed but it still had a musky odor that got through the whole house. One day it escaped the confines of the house and got over to one of the neighbours. It got into their garage and killed an entire litter of little kittens. We think an owl caught it not long after. Their status as pets is a bit dubious IMHO. They'd also be a real problem anywhere near where people keep poultry or rabbits. They're notorious serial killers. Weasels get into chicken coops and slaughter whole flocks seemingly for fun, killing like crazy but actually eating very little.
- jacquesm 4y ago
  > killing like crazy but actually eating very little. That could easily apply to humans.
  - sph 4y ago
    I personally eat any animal that I kill on purpose. I should mention that I haven't killed any yet, apart from unlucky insects, but if I were to shoot a deer I'll eat it too.
    - moron4hire 4y ago
      I have yet to eat any of the mice I have killed. Wild house mice smell like death even when they are still alive.
      - nomel 4y ago
        And, can easily be death, thanks to hantavirus: https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/index.html
    - catlifeonmars 4y ago
      Technically, insects are animals too :)
- surfpel 4y ago
  > killing like crazy but actually eating very little For a domesticated species it sounds like that is the main function. That is, it would make sense that humans domesticated multiple species (cats, dogs, ferrets, minks, etc..)[1] to be adept at killing just for killing sake, probably with different niches. Dogs for defense, and all of them able to offer pest control for various sizes of pests. This is pure speculation on my part however. Any experts care to weigh in? 1 - (dogs and minks killing lots of rats) https://youtu.be/SM4C3_nMN_g https://youtu.be/SM4C3_nMN_g
  - 4y ago
vrc 4y ago
The black footed ferret is native to the US, wild, and endangered. The domestic ferret is thought to be from the European polecat
pxc 4y ago
> Also, they're _big_ : we have a kind of Weasel (Ermine) in Montana and I've seen then drag an adult rabbit carcas over long distances. Ferrets look to be around twice their size. Most pet ferrets come from one inbred line produced by one monopolist who breeds ferrets for research (testing drugs and chemicals on animals) and for sale in pet stores. Those ferrets are pretty small (2-4 lbs), in part because they're virtually all pediatric neuters, and never go through puberty. There are also very small numbers of ferrets available from small breeders in some states. They tend to be a bit larger, and additionally those breeders also sometimes sell hybrids (ferrets crossed with wild polecats), who are quite a bit bigger. Anyway I think of domesticated ferrets as pretty small! And I guess they're much smaller than whatever wild/feral relatives they're sometimes crossed with in the hopes of improving health or genetic diversity.
gadders 4y ago
They're not that big, at least in the UK. They're about the size of your forearm.

EdwardDiego 4y ago

In NZ the ferrets tend to specialise in rabbits, the stoats and weasels go for rats, mice, and birds. Although I did once see two stoats coursing a brushtail possum to death, it was nasty AF. But yeah, apparently stoats and weasels can't be domesticated like ferrets.

pvaldes 4y ago
We probably could, but we definitely don't want it. They have a different sense of time and are just too much energetic to be bearable. Would be like having a children with the most severe case of ADHD jumping over you each five seconds non-stop after drinking ten coffes and doing cocaine. Just watching a stoat to play is exhausting.

cmrdporcupine 4y ago

My younger brother had a pet ferret growing up. It wasn't that big. But it had no fear. Our large dog (rhodesian ridgeback X black lab cross) was scared of it. They'd "play" but the dog always backed off. They only have two modes: sleep and play/hunt. Ours learned to play with us without puncturing our skin, but its play still involving biting and tugging incessantly. Once a squirrel had gotten into a wall cavity. The ferret knew and paced outside of the wall for days, every waking hour, just obsessed. It smelled pretty bad. The scent gland had been removed but it still had a musky odor that got through the whole house. One day it escaped the confines of the house and got over to one of the neighbours. It got into their garage and killed an entire litter of little kittens. We think an owl caught it not long after. Their status as pets is a bit dubious IMHO. They'd also be a real problem anywhere near where people keep poultry or rabbits. They're notorious serial killers. Weasels get into chicken coops and slaughter whole flocks seemingly for fun, killing like crazy but actually eating very little.

jacquesm 4y ago
> killing like crazy but actually eating very little. That could easily apply to humans.
- sph 4y ago
  I personally eat any animal that I kill on purpose. I should mention that I haven't killed any yet, apart from unlucky insects, but if I were to shoot a deer I'll eat it too.
  - moron4hire 4y ago
    I have yet to eat any of the mice I have killed. Wild house mice smell like death even when they are still alive.
    - nomel 4y ago
      And, can easily be death, thanks to hantavirus: https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/index.html
  - catlifeonmars 4y ago
    Technically, insects are animals too :)
surfpel 4y ago
> killing like crazy but actually eating very little For a domesticated species it sounds like that is the main function. That is, it would make sense that humans domesticated multiple species (cats, dogs, ferrets, minks, etc..)[1] to be adept at killing just for killing sake, probably with different niches. Dogs for defense, and all of them able to offer pest control for various sizes of pests. This is pure speculation on my part however. Any experts care to weigh in? 1 - (dogs and minks killing lots of rats) https://youtu.be/SM4C3_nMN_g https://youtu.be/SM4C3_nMN_g
- 4y ago

vrc 4y ago

The black footed ferret is native to the US, wild, and endangered. The domestic ferret is thought to be from the European polecat

pxc 4y ago

> Also, they're _big_ : we have a kind of Weasel (Ermine) in Montana and I've seen then drag an adult rabbit carcas over long distances. Ferrets look to be around twice their size. Most pet ferrets come from one inbred line produced by one monopolist who breeds ferrets for research (testing drugs and chemicals on animals) and for sale in pet stores. Those ferrets are pretty small (2-4 lbs), in part because they're virtually all pediatric neuters, and never go through puberty. There are also very small numbers of ferrets available from small breeders in some states. They tend to be a bit larger, and additionally those breeders also sometimes sell hybrids (ferrets crossed with wild polecats), who are quite a bit bigger. Anyway I think of domesticated ferrets as pretty small! And I guess they're much smaller than whatever wild/feral relatives they're sometimes crossed with in the hopes of improving health or genetic diversity.

gadders 4y ago

They're not that big, at least in the UK. They're about the size of your forearm.