Ferret animal. Ferret lifestyle and habitat. Ferret - a dangerous animal or a friend? Is a ferret dangerous?

The typical representative of the mustelid family is the ferret. They perfectly complement the fauna of the European part of our Motherland, living on forest edges, in the steppes and near large reservoirs. AT recent times they are often brought up in houses, because a domestic ferret is a playful and active companion for any member of the family. However, it is the wild individuals of the ferret family that are of no less interest - predators, aggressive and courageous, who definitely will not let themselves be offended.

Appearance

The wild polecat is mostly brownish-black in color, with darker tail, paws, and muzzle. White wool goes on the forehead, chin and ears. Also, lighter hair appears on the sides and on the belly of the beast. Sometimes you can find other variations of what a ferret looks like - with completely red hair or albinos - these are called furo.

Shiny fur is not thick, but long - on the back it can reach up to 5-6 cm. Fur becomes more fluffy after a period of molting - late autumn, and before that it is not so easily soiled and lighter.

The shape of the head is oval, flattened on the sides. The head has a smooth line of transition to the neck, flexible and long. Ears are low and with a wide base sticking out on the head. The eyes are small but shiny, most often brown eyes are found in polecats.

Ferrets have a very slender build. In length, the animals grow from 30 to 50 cm. The paws are short (the hind ones are only 6-8 cm on average), but very strong and ideally developed for frequent digging of the earth. The limbs have five fingers with very sharp claws, so if you manage to catch a ferret, then he will definitely be able to fend for himself.

Varieties

steppe

The largest of all ferret species. They grow up to 56 cm, and their weight can exceed 2 kg. They are also called light because of the specific undercoat that shows through under the sparse brown hair. On the limbs and tail, the color is dark, while the muzzle is painted with a mask.

It is not difficult to say how many years the steppe ferret lives - their age rarely exceeds 10-12 years.

Forest

The color of the forest ferret is not distinguished by a bright contrast in the color of the body and legs - the black-brown color of the body is complemented by the black color of the limbs and tail. In size, they are inferior to their steppe counterparts - 38-48 cm in length, and weight from 500 g to 1.5 kg.

Approximately 14 years - that's how long forest ferrets live, which is much more than the life expectancy of their domesticated relatives.

Blackfoot (American)

The smallest individuals in the classification - their length rarely reaches 40 cm. Their coat is white at the base, and the tips are dark. Altogether, this gives a picture of a beautiful yellow-brown color. A specific mask flaunts on the muzzle.

The species is listed in the Red Book, and the life expectancy of black-footed ferrets does not exceed 6-9 years.

habitats

The distribution of populations of animals received in the following geographical areas:

1. Steppe ferrets in Eastern Europe(Hungary, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine), Central Asia, in Russia (from Ural mountains before Far East) and in the eastern regions of China.
2. The forest ferret can be found almost everywhere in Eurasia, especially to the west of the Ural Mountains.
3. central part North America, namely to the east of the Rocky Mountains - these are the places where black-footed ferrets live.

Habits and lifestyle

The wild ferret is a predatory animal, which is expressed in its distinguishing features- aggressiveness and courage. They will not be afraid of confrontation with a larger opponent. Fearlessly take the fight for them - in the order of things.

In addition, ferrets are also characterized by ruthlessness towards the victim - attacking a bird's nest, the beast will satisfy its hunger, and then kill each inhabitant. And all this is said about a ferret - an animal that can be called very cute from the outside.

Ferrets do not form packs, but keep contact with their closest relatives. At the same time, one alpha male dominates in these relationships, which is more clearly expressed as in regular time as well as during mating. But each of the individuals has its own territory for living, which they mark by making a regular round.

The activity of the animal falls on the dark time of the day. During the day, the animal sleeps, having first dug a mink for itself. The mink can be permanent - with a small hole and a camera, or temporary - if the movement at dawn caught the animal away from home. In this case, these small predators do not shy away from using other people's holes - hare or badger. And when it's worth bad weather, a ferret can spend several days in a mink without getting out.

Food

Ferrets are exclusively nocturnal animals. Only a very strong hunger can force them to interrupt their daytime sleep and go hunting during daylight hours.

The following representatives of the animal world become prey, namely what ferrets eat in nature:

• what the ferret eats in the first place is medium-sized rodents: rats, hamsters, mice, gophers, moles and ground squirrels, hares and rabbits;
• lizards or small amphibious reptiles;
• they easily ruin found clutches of eggs, and sometimes attack birds.

Animals do not eat plant foods due to the peculiarities of digestion. However, nutrients from, say, fruits, a ferret can get by eating small herbivores. It is also worth noting that in difficult situations If it is impossible to find anything that ferrets usually eat, they are able to eat the carcasses of already dead animals.

reproduction

The mating period varies depending on the type of ferret: steppe ferrets start rutting from the end of February, and forest ferrets start from April. Moreover, the rutting period may be delayed until the end of the calendar summer.

Ferrets become mature enough to continue the genus at 10-12 months of their life. It is not customary for ferrets to arrange mating games, and the mating itself looks quite cruel: the male in every possible way suppresses the resistance of the female, bites her scruff and withers.

The females bear offspring for almost a month and a half, while in the litter they have 4-12 cubs. Newborn ferrets are very helpless and are born blind, but development occurs quickly - after two months of life, the mother begins to feed them with meat.

Enemies

AT winter time The main danger for the ferret is represented by wolves and foxes. Also unpleasant is the meeting with wild cats, birds of prey(eagles, golden eagles or night owls), as well as large snakes.

Among the creatures dangerous for ferrets, one can also mention a person. His influence, namely the destruction of nature reserves, the construction of roads and housing wilderness, may be causing disruption of the ferret ecosystem and destruction of their habitats.

Ferret domestication

These animals are amenable to domestication - they are very playful, they quickly get used to the owner (especially females). They can be accustomed to the tray without any problems, but if the animal likes another place to relieve itself, then another container will need to be added there.

It should be borne in mind that, due to natural influence, they will not get along with birds, small rodents or reptiles. However with cats or not hunting dogs they are able not only to coexist, but also to be friends.

Curiosity is another important quality these animals. So, it is worth preparing for the fact that the animal will regularly and carefully study all possible nooks and crannies in the house, climb into trash cans (and sometimes fall asleep there), and also dig up the ground in flower pots.

There is another point that you can pay attention to - their life expectancy. How long do ferrets live at home, mainly depends on proper care and content, but on average it is 5-9 years.

Video

Interesting facts about ferrets you will find in our video.

The black ferret, otherwise common ferret, belongs to the mustelid genus. Many are familiar with this animal, some even start it at home. But not everyone knows what an animal is, where it lives, what it eats, whether it is a predator, what are its habits in the wild.

In winter, hunger and frost force wild ferrets to move closer to human habitation.

Where do black ferrets live? The population is distributed on the European continent, captures the entire Western Europe, found in Ireland and the UK. In Russia, the range stretches from the western borders to the Urals. Only in the Caucasus, at the mouth of the Volga and in the north of Karelia and Far North he does not dwell.

The species of black ferrets is also called the forest one, since for housing animals choose an area with small woodlands, groves that replace fields and meadows. There is an animal on the edges and glades with sparse vegetation. Prefers to live near swamps, lakes and floodplains.

In winter, hunger and frost force wild ferrets to move closer to human habitation, they are placed in barns, stockyards, stables. With the onset of spring, they again go into the forest.

People in rural areas have a negative attitude towards the animal, wild ferrets often attack chicken coops, destroying chickens and chickens.

Forest species are valuable fur animals, but they are not hunted, since the population is small.

What does a ferret look like

The size of the animal is not too large; in terms of exterior, it differs little from the representatives of its family. But when making a description for a ferret, it is worth dwelling on some features of the appearance:

• Color. In a wild ferret, the main color is brown-black, paws, back, tail and muzzle are painted dark. White color extends to the forehead, edges of the ears and chin. On the belly and sides, the coat is much lighter. In winter, after molting, the animal is colored darker than in summer. There are color variations of the black look: completely red ferrets and albinos - furo.
• Fur. In a ferret, it is not too thick, but shiny and long, up to 6 cm on the back. In the summer it has a nondescript color, after the autumn molt it almost completely becomes black and fluffy.
• Head. Oval, slightly flattened on the sides, smoothly merges into a flexible long neck.
• Ears. Low, with a wide base.
• Eyes. Brown, small and shiny.
• Body. A slender body 30-48 cm long makes the ferret very nimble, allowing it to crawl into narrow holes.
• Paws. The black polecat's legs are short and thick, the hind limbs are only 6-8 cm in height in large males, which makes the animal look squat, but this does not in the least prevent it from being agile and fast. Strong limbs with five fingers, very sharp claws and small membranes enable the animal to dig the ground.
• Tail. It makes up a quarter of the entire length of the animal, about 8 - 16 cm.
• The weight. It varies from season to season, in autumn the ferret gains body weight in order to stock up on fat for the winter, males sometimes weigh up to 2 kg during this period, females are 2 times less.

The species of black ferrets is also called forest, as animals choose an area with small forests for housing.

The ferret moves by jumping, swims well. It does not climb trees, but when it is in danger, it hides in hollows located close to the ground.

Food

Who are black ferrets - is it a predator or is it not? The ferret is definitely a predator, therefore, what ferrets eat in the wild is determined by the needs of the species. What is included in his diet?

• Mostly these are small rodents, the animal with amazing agility catches mice and rats, digs voles and moles from the ground.
• For larger individuals, gaping hares serve as food, sometimes it attacks a young muskrat.
• With pleasure it eats frogs and lizards, and copes with small snakes, regardless of whether they are harmless or poisonous.
• The animal successfully catches birds, destroys nests located on the ground or in bushes, destroying chicks and feasting on eggs.
• He loves to dig in the ground to get tasty worms, eats caterpillars, butterflies, grasshoppers and other insects.
• Fish in his diet occupies an insignificant part, since it is more difficult to catch it.
• He rarely eats fruits, berries and grass, his stomach is not adapted for digesting plant fibers.
• Replenishes the lack of fiber and useful substances ferret, eating the contents of the stomach of herbivores.

The ferret is clearly a predator, therefore, nutrition in the wild is determined by the needs of the species.

From the onset of spring until the end of autumn, the ferret does not lack food. In the fall, it begins to eat intensively in order to store more fat. With the advent of frost, it becomes difficult to get food, the animal is a predator and a born hunter, it digs in the snow, and then not only mice, but also hazel grouses and black grouse, which burrowed into the snow for the night, become its prey. When there is absolutely nothing to eat, the animal will not disdain both carrion and food waste near human habitation.

In ferrets, forage competition is not very developed. Males are larger, so they are not afraid to attack larger animals than mice, this prey is left for small individuals.

Many owners of poultry houses are familiar with the picture of a devastated chicken coop: severed heads, sucked blood and chewed off paws. This is how the ferret works, doing its “wet” deeds. In appearance, this animal is quite cute, but behind a cute and innocent muzzle it hides dangerous predator. He considers it a matter of honor to destroy any bird that catches his eye in the area. It is very important to take all appropriate measures at the first sign of its appearance in order to prevent a series of further misfortunes. How to get rid of a ferret in a chicken coop - there are many ways, from setting homemade traps to hunting traps, each of which is quite effective.

Perhaps every second farmer engaged in breeding poultry, encountered the problem of night robberies. The signature of this small predator is to attack until the last bird is killed. Therefore, if a ferret has visited the poultry house at least once, he will never forget the way to it.

Intoxicated by the abundance of prey, he can strangle even geese. Since he cannot carry such a large trophy into the forest, he leaves the half-eaten carcasses in the chicken coop.

With a fairly small size of the body, which reaches a maximum of 45 cm in length, it can easily kill a huge number of domestic birds in one go. Like the weasel, he lives in conditions of complete impunity, because usually the owner finds out about their visit after the fact. Therefore, the problem of how to protect domestic chickens from weasels and ferrets is especially relevant in a number of other concerns about home-grown pets.

The attack style of the ferret is quite aggressive: it sneaks up imperceptibly, overtakes the victim with a sudden jump, strangles it with its paws, and then proceeds to the meal. As a dessert, he prefers small chickens, but chickens form the basis of his diet. If I don’t eat, then I bite - this saying clearly demonstrates his style. Greed brings it to the point of absurdity: after nightly visits, many birds remain dead, but not eaten. Eating birds, he does not touch their heads, but manages to gnaw their throats in the most destructive way: soft tissues begin to decompose very quickly and devalue the entire carcass as a whole. Therefore, it is almost impossible to use a dead bird after its arrival for culinary purposes.

Signs of the appearance of uninvited guests

ferret leads active night image life. Therefore, it is possible to catch him red-handed only at night or in the morning, observing the behavior of birds, in case they survived. If you enter the chicken coop and the birds do not leave their perches, you can assume with 100% certainty that unwanted guests came to them at night. Already on this, inconspicuous at first glance, nuance, one should think about taking preventive measures.

Having tasted the chicken at least once, the ferret considers the entire nursery to be his property. For him, it is turning into a strategic reserve of the future. Even if you replace dead bird on a new population of birds, the problem will not disappear. The petty thief will definitely find a way to kill the updated herd of chickens. Therefore, it is better to think about how to catch a ferret in a chicken coop. .

Getting rid of a ferret in a chicken coop

Given the nocturnal lifestyle of the animal, you can try to watch for it in the dark. However, the animal is quite dexterous and nimble, and catching it alone is quite problematic. In addition, it is necessary to provide not only the safety of chickens, but also their own, including.

If you want to fight a predator alone, you must act according to the following scheme:

• when you see a ferret, throw a fairly heavy old coat or raincoat over it;
• then wrap it up and place it in a pre-prepared cage;
• to pull it out of there, you should secure your hands with very tight gloves and only then touch the animal;
• if the predator somehow managed to bite the trapper, it is necessary to pinch the nose of the animal, and place a small piece of wood in the jaw.

The further fate of the thief depends only on the mood of the farmer. This method is not the most pleasant, since the animal's anal glands exude a strong stench at the moment of fright.

Despite the damage that ferrets cause to poultry farms, one should be aware that the animals act according to their nature. No intentional malice not in their actions. It is necessary to think several times before harming an animal in a fit of rage.

Ferret Control Methods

If the independent catch of the beast is not included in the plans, then you can solve the problem of getting rid of the ferret using the old grandfather methods.

Trap: tested in practice

At the first alarm bells, it is necessary to correctly place hunting traps. A small predator is quite cautious and has an excellent sense of smell, so it is recommended to treat the trap with special solutions in order to remove the smell of human presence. You can use the following options:

• coat the trap with manure;
• rub with dried lizard skin;
• take a brush and apply slaked lime to the device;
• place in boiling water and boil for several minutes in spruce needles.

Once the trap has been properly handled, it can only be handled with thick cloth gloves.

If the animal has already acquired its own burrows in the area adjacent to the poultry house, the trap should be placed at the entrance to the tunnel.

To choose the right trap, experienced farmers recommend purchasing two No. 1 traps at once. You can buy other varieties: the most important thing in a good trap is a sensitively tuned gatehouse.

Prices for traps

Rat traps

The first trap should be installed directly in the chicken coop. It is necessary to hang a bird strangled by an animal on a hook located 10–20 cm from the floor surface, and place the trap itself under a dead carcass. The trap is recommended to be set at the moment when the birds are calm and comfortably settled in their perches. If a predator enters the house, you can place the bait on the doorknob.

Place the second trap at the animal hole. For greater credibility, the body of a dead bird can be treated with poison or sleeping drugs - depending on the degree of hatred for the annoying thief, you can choose one or another remedy.

Immediately after waking up, you should inspect the traps and, if the animal did not undertake a night outing, postpone them until the next time.

Homemade traps

There are several options for traps small predators.

When placing various ingenious devices on the territory, do not forget that in addition to ferrets, welcome pets can also live on the site. Domestic cats and dogs can easily fall prey to these simple devices, so care should be taken to keep pets away from the trap areas.

Trapping ferrets with a live trap

If this method was chosen, the following devices will be needed before installation:

• live trap;
• bait;
• sand;
• decoction of wormwood;
• well trained dog;
• mastic or goatskin;
• fortified barn;
• thick gloves.

After all the necessary components for catching a ferret have been found, the following measures must be taken.

1. Familiarize yourself with the habits of a predator and make every effort to figure out its holes. If there are guesses about possible places of night visits other than the chicken coop, you can pour sand there, and then follow the tracks to make a picture of the movements of the polecat.

   

2. Since the predator is activated at nightfall, prepare a live trap in advance. It is a trap with which you can catch a ferret safe and sound. Despite the fact that trapping small predators in farmlands is possible without a permit, for humane reasons it is better not to use killer traps.

   

3. If there is no time or financial resources to buy a live trap, you can make it yourself. To do this, you need a cage made of boards, equipped with a screening door. A device should be placed above the roof, according to appearance similar well - "crane". One end of the rope must be tied to the door, and the bait must be fixed to the second - it is desirable that it be a piece fresh meat with blood.

   

4. Try to apply tricks experienced hunters and lure the animal with baits made on the basis of animal musk glands, like Akron, for example. They are sold in hunting shops.
5. The trap should be wiped with a rag treated with a strong decoction of bitter wormwood: this will kill the human smell.

   

6. Hide the live trap in a secluded place: skillful predators often ignore them, and they only serve as bait for household utensils and long-suffering birds.

Video - Live trap for a ferret in a poultry house

Four-legged guardians

Do not discount pets. They are also able to ward off the annoying beast. A doghouse should be placed near the poultry house, and even better, put the dog on a chain so that he can freely explore the territory entrusted to him. Trained cats can be run into the chicken coop itself.

It is better not to leave dogs alone with birds in a closed house. Locked in a closed space, they start to get nervous.

How to avoid a ferret

If there is no need to resort to such drastic measures as setting traps, you can try to protect the house with all possible measures. One of the most important preventive measures to protect the chicken coop from martens and other members of the mustelid family, which includes the ferret, is to concrete the floor. You can also lay a special mesh under the floor and be sure to close up all the holes. Animals are excellent at digging holes: they can dig even in hard frozen soil, which can be worked with difficulty with a shovel. Sharp teeth and tenacious claws of animals cope even with such a difficult task.

One of the most important defenses of the chicken coop from foxes, polecats and other living creatures is to clear the area: the adjacent area should be freed from any boxes or haylofts. Animals can hide in a pile of stones or boards, in tall grass and any rooms located near the chicken coop. They especially love places with high level humidity.

Prices for chicken coops for birds

chicken coops

Since the ferret does not make forays into the barn during the daytime, it can attack a bird that is far from the yard. Accordingly, the area for walking birds should be carefully fenced. You can surround the whole space with dug sheets of iron or slate, and enclose summer aviaries with a fine mesh.

Be a caring owner so that one tragic morning you do not have to watch a hill of corpses in the middle of a barn. Keep birds during the day in well-protected pens, and at night move them to a well-locked chicken coop. Once the animal has made several unsuccessful attempts to attack the poultry house, it will lose all interest in trying again. And caring owners of birds will be able to sleep peacefully, being in full confidence in the safety of the chicken population.

Conclusion

The ferret is a smart and quirky creature. Relying on his instincts, he becomes more and more inventive each time in ways to penetrate the chicken coop. If you are thinking about how to prevent the destruction of birds , you can attack first and start your own hunt for the beast. To do this, you should find the dwellings of night robbers in the adjacent territories and ruin them. To search for the places of residence of animals, you can attract a trained dog or use the services of an experienced hunter. The destruction of the holes of small robbers will be the most effective and effective measure, but it cannot be called humane.

It would be much more expedient to preventive measures in the fight against the ferret and carry out a series of measures to strengthen the poultry house in order to prevent the possibility of penetration of predators on the vine. Do not tempt animals with easily accessible prey!