How do make my ferret stop biting?

Oh, you'd know if she was being aggressive. If she's not drawing blood every time, she's likely playing or testing. Yes, if you train her properly she will stop. You can't just expect it to stop if you do nothing, they're a bit like dogs in this sense, you MUST teach them not to bite and give them things to teethe on, they MUST be socialized or they can get extremely nasty.

First off...I don't know what your mother was thinking. It's people like her that get pets on whims that make these animals hard to handle, you ruin it or make it much harder for someone who can teach them when you buy something you know nothing about and then take it back when you can't figure out what to do. They either end up dead because they're not handleable or cannot bond with the new owner, or stuck in shelters.

Ahh, rant over! People like that are a pet peeve of mine. Now that you have the ferret, take responsibility for it please and do the right thing: Learn, or find it a new home -now- not in two weeks. They're a lot of work and can be costly, so decide within a day or so, not weeks of ruining it's attitude by not knowing what to do later. You're doing great now by asking questions and showing you're willing to learn...for now.

Get the book "Ferrets for Dummies" and research online, on youtube, from people who own ferrets, whatever you can learn, learn it and do so starting right now.

I do hope you know this ferret will need the rest of her shots if you haven't gotten them done already. Otherwise she's at a very high risk for distemper.

I also hope you know they require a special high protein diet(preferably one with 40+% protein and 20+% fat, higher protein and fat is better), they cannot handle rabbit food or anything with veggies or grains in it, they're pure carnivores. Do NOT give them cat, kitten or dog food either, either put her on a raw diet or get a high quality ferret kibble that has no peas, no corn, and no wheat if you can find one(Wysong EPigen 90 is the best out there for COMMERCIAL food, but is still not the best diet...a raw diet or mixing in raw meat will be best with this). Otherwise you can kiss her health goodbye. A proper diet often helps keep biting down too. Raw meat, yum. It takes work to get them on a raw diet if they weren't raised on it, as all of them SHOULD be in my opinion, but as youngsters it should be easier.

If she still looks like a baby, she's likely between eight and twelve weeks old, most common age to be purchased at pet shops. Some are older, around four or five months or so, those are difficult and usually bite extremely hard...

Now what she's doing is teething...like puppies, they must be taught not to bite. Give her things to chew on, and when she chews on YOU, scruff her like a kitten and hold her up and tell her firmly, but not mean or yell, "No bite!" Wait until she yawns and release her. It's HIGHLY likely she will tantrum when you put her down, let her tantrum all she wants...however, if she bites you again, scruff her and tell her "No bite" again, wait until she submits with a yawn, and put her in the bathtub(without water) and leave her there until she settles down a bit, walk away. Ferrets hate to be ignored. Do NOT use her cage for these "Time outs" unless you want to make her hate them and get cage stress.

Now keep in mind, ferrets are stubborn and very active when awake. You must have patience and do NOT let things slip. Never let her escape from a reprimand or after she does something bad, not even once if you can help it. It can take days or it can take weeks/months to get them to stop biting. ESPECIALLY babies...they teethe when young and mouth things, it's how they explore the world and play...but you need to teach her biting will not be tolerated. Her curious play nips may turn into nasty bites when she's older if you don't start teaching her and keep up with it.

Here...this lady is as nutty and silly as a ferret herself...but she knows what she's talking about. Follow her advice. This video tells you a few ways to help tame up your little terror and stop the biting. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBB5HEuFRUo