Q: My ferrets poo everywhere in my house, help! How is it possible to have a perfect ferret poo on their door 2 feet from the floor? I mopped their door about 3 weeks ago and while cleaning their room last night poo has returned to the door. How to stop them from pooping all over my home?
I’ve gotten a few stubborn rescues in … who never saw a litter box before me and i’ve had just about 100% success with the right training and enviroment!
It’s possible that your ferret doesn’t like their litter box. When I had my first ferret, I had great difficulty getting her to use the litter box (one of the boxes in the shape of a triangle in the corner).
In the end I decided to get a much bigger litter box: One created for small cats, cut to reshape the frame. We were able to take the entire width of the frame and cut the potty short enough to fit under a shelf in the basement (which is where my ferret liked to poo.) It was great that and she used it a lot better.
You may need to teach them to use the litter box, by keeping some of their excrement and soiled bedding at the back of the litter box, so note their favorite places to poop.
When you spend time with them and look like they are about to back into a corner and go, if you’re fast, you can gently pick them up and put them in the litter box.
If possible, keep putting them in there, and when they roam, they’ll be more like to go to the bathroom. Then give them praise and perhaps even treat them with a reward. Please note that ferrets have learned to pretend to use the litter box to get the treats, so if you do go this route, make sure you see them really using the potty.
Cleaning Poop Accidents
When cleaning waste accidents, clean it really well, because if it smells like their bathroom, they will be more inclined to go there again. Just be careful to use cleaners that are safe for animals. Some people use vinegar, I usually only use soap and wipe the soap scum really well.
And sometimes I supplement with a wipe with alcohol, which evaporates quickly and leaves no traces. Veterinarians use alcohol to sterilize surfaces, and my vet assured me it was safe. Ferrets are usually repulsed by a strong smell, so make sure they don’t touch the liquid, before it evaporates.
Ferrets Mark Their Territory
One thing to remember too about ferrets is that as territories are set or disturbed poop is used to establish new territories. Once all the social orders are worked out and the new ferrets become old, their poop training becomes better. Sometimes this occurs faster than others.
When I was doing a lot of animal rescue (and had new ferrets monthly), their litter box habits were bad, to say the least. When my home became more stable and I wasn’t constantly bringing in new ferrets, things settled down. There were some accidents when someone gets sick, and the balance of power shifted, and there were times when I had to break out the paper towels again.
Unfortunately, Ferret Poop Accidents Still Happen
Okay, so now that my ferrets are older, they’ve stopped pooping everywhere. But when I took my ferrets to the vet yesterday, one of them somehow shot runny seedy poo out of the cage bars. It made a huge mess but fortunately didn’t hit anyone, but not so fortunately during cleanup, Meeko managed to get some on him.
Another time, one of my ferrets hid some poop behind a shelf in the kitchen and I didn’t take notice until it was too late. Now the poo is rock hard, and stuck to the my Brazilian wood floors and the baseboards on the wall. I tried everything I can think of to get it off but it just won’t come up. I finally gave up, and left it as a memorial to my ferret’s craftiness in pooping.
Ah, the joys of ferrenthood!