QUESTION:
I have a silver sable 2yr old jill, Iya. I've had her since she was a baby, so she grew up around my other two males (3yrs old). She doesn't bother them she'll play with them but Iya attacks the cats and the dog chasing them through the house relentlessly biting them, jumping off furniture on them. She does this every chance she gets. She is very aggressive toward my fiancee's step mother's ferrets, attacking them is one of the only times she makes noise and becomes down right violent. Its like she even picks out the people in the house she attacks, she'll run behind hiding and watching them till she can get close enough to bite, then runs. She does this to my dad all day long. I could be holding her she'll bite my arm go back to what she was doing like she never touched me, but if I don't yell loud enough she'll bite harder. I've read that deaf ferrets may bite like that but I don't think she's deaf When I say "NO, Iya" she stops and looks then runs. I don't think its the gland problem either cause she has all her fur and she's been like this every since I've had her. Do you have any idea what might be wrong with her and what i can do to correct this?

ANSWER:

Having her 2 years I seriously doubt you can correct that behaviour now, she has been allowed to bite for so long. For everyone's peace of mind, it would be better for you to cage her and only let her have exercise in a room where she cannot bother any of your other animals and especially your father! Have you made sure she is not blind? If she is, confining her would be better for her as she would feel more secure. Ferrets do not bite relentlessly when they have adrenal disease, but they often bite when they have Insulinoma, mostly because they feel terrible when their sugar drops. You can get her 'blood glucose' checked at the vet, to make sure that her sugar is okay.

Biting can be a family trait and it should have been corrected when she was a baby, now she thinks it is normal and a game when playing with the animals. It would be better that you give her lots of attention, feed her some chicken baby food off your finger, so she knows they are the source of something good. Keep her in her own space and do not allow her to interact with anyone else. I personally would hate the idea of being attacked by a ferret!!!