Ferret supplies: a practical checklist

The ferret supplies checklist

This is everything a ferret needs before it comes home. Ferrets sleep a lot, chew a lot and get into everything, so buy tough, washable and lockable wherever you can.

• A large, lockable cage, or a ferret-proofed room or shed
• Two or more hammocks, plus a dark sleeping box or sleeping sack
• Soft bedding: fleece blankets, old towels, old T-shirts and jumpers
• Two to four high-sided litter trays, one fixed in the cage
• Recycled paper or wood pellet litter, plus newspaper to line around trays
• Heavy ceramic food and water bowls, or bowls that lock to the cage
• A complete ferret food, and small pieces of meat or ferret treats
• Tunnels, tubes and cardboard boxes
• Tough cloth toys and hard balls too big to swallow
• A dig box or a tray of shredded paper
• A secure carrier for vet trips
• Pet-safe disinfectant and spare bedding for weekly washes
• A second ferret, or a plan to adopt a pair

Our guide to setting up a ferret cage shows where each of these goes.

Ferret cage supplies: the home comes first

Buy the biggest home you can fit. Sources disagree a lot on the minimum. VCA, a US vet hospital group, gives a minimum cage of 60 x 60 x 45 cm (24 x 24 x 18 in) and says bigger is better, with at least 2 to 3 hours a day out. Burgess, the UK pet food maker, gives at least 3 x 2 x 2 m (10 x 6.5 x 6.5 ft) for a pair. We'd lean towards the larger UK figure: ferrets are agile and need room to explore, play and hide, as the RSPCA puts it, and a small cage only works with many hours of free-roam time.

• Locks that close securely; VCA calls ferrets escape artists
• Several levels with ramps and platforms that aren't too high, as Burgess advises
• Solid or sturdy floors, ideally plastic, which VCA says is easier to clean than wood
• Good ventilation, out of direct sun and draughts
• Room for a litter tray in a corner, well away from beds and food

VCA prefers multilevel cages of the Ferret Nation style for up to three or four ferrets. Our guides to ferret cage size and the best ferret cages compare the options.

Bedding, hammocks and sleeping boxes

Ferrets sleep a great deal: VCA says 12 to 18 hours a day and the RSPCA up to 20. They want somewhere dark and soft to curl up. The RSPCA suggests an old T-shirt, a hammock or a sleeping box, and VCA adds towels, blankets, cloth bags and ferret tents. Woodgreen suggests putting bedding inside cardboard boxes or cat and dog beds, and making hammocks from old sheets or jumpers.

VCA advises against woodchips, which are dusty and messy, and says to remove any bedding your ferret starts to chew, since swallowed fabric can cause a blockage. In a multilevel cage, VCA suggests the hammock goes high and food, water and the litter tray go on the bottom level. Our guides to ferret hammocks and ferret bedding go into more detail.

Ferret litter trays and litter

Ferrets back into corners to go to the toilet, so VCA recommends a high-sided tray fixed in a corner of the cage, plus a second tray in the play area. Woodgreen suggests three to four cat or high-edged corner trays for a ferret room, lined with small shredded paper, with newspaper underneath and around. Burgess notes that ferrets need to go within about 15 minutes of waking, so put a tray near where they sleep.

Clean trays every day, as VCA, Woodgreen and Burgess all advise. Our guide to litter training a ferret shows how to get them using it.

Food, bowls and water

Ferrets are strict meat-eaters. The RSPCA says they need a well-balanced, meat-based diet, can't digest much fibre or starch, and should not have bread or cereal. Ask your vet about a complete ferret food and follow the pack's feeding guide. Ferrets eat little and often, so the RSPCA says food should be available at all times, with small pieces of meat or ferret treats as extras.

For bowls, VCA suggests heavy ceramic dishes or bowls that lock to the cage, as ferrets tip things over, and notes that sipper bottles are hard to disinfect properly. The RSPCA asks for clean water at all times, checked twice a day. Our ferret diet guide has the detail on what to feed.

Ferret toys and accessories

Ferrets are playful, curious and strong chewers, so toys need to be tough. VCA suggests cloth pet or baby toys, balls, boxes, paper bags and tubes. Woodgreen adds wand toys, jingle balls, tunnels, a sandpit, tyres filled with blankets or shredded paper, and a box of old socks to snuggle in. Hiding food in bedding, boxes and food toys gives them something to hunt for, as both Woodgreen and the RSPCA suggest.

• Tunnels and tubes, fabric or hard plastic (see our guide to ferret tunnels)
• A dig box filled with shredded paper
• Cardboard boxes and paper bags
• Hard balls too big to fit in the mouth
• Food toys and scatter games
• A shallow paddling pool for hot days, which Woodgreen suggests

Our best ferret toys and ferret playtime guides have games and ideas.

Ferret-proofing and travel supplies

Out-of-cage time is part of the deal, and VCA says at least 2 to 3 hours a day, supervised, in a ferret-proofed space. VCA's rule of thumb: if the head fits through a gap, the body will too. Block gaps behind appliances and under furniture, cover access to sofa and mattress foam with thin plywood or hardware cloth, and pick up shoe inserts, earplugs, headphone foam and rubber bands. Our guide to ferret-proofing your home goes room by room.

For vet trips, you need a secure, ventilated carrier with soft bedding that smells of home; the RSPCA suggests familiar-smelling items when travelling. Our guides to ferret carriers and ferret harnesses cover the options. Keep ferrets cool: the RSPCA gives 15 to 21°C (59 to 70°F), and Burgess warns that above 26°C (79°F) is too hot and above 30°C (86°F) can be fatal. Our ferret temperature guide has the warning signs.

DIY and cheap ferret accessories

Many of the best ferret supplies cost nothing. Old T-shirts, jumpers, towels and sheets make bedding and hammocks; cardboard boxes, paper bags and kitchen roll tubes make dens and tunnels; a car tyre or a storage box of shredded paper makes a dig pit. Woodgreen suggests almost all of these. Sew no buttons or beads into anything homemade, and remove zips, elastic and loose threads from old clothes first, since VCA warns that swallowed objects can block the gut.

Ferret supplies for sale: a few to look at

For the full budget, see how much a ferret costs, and for everything else ferrets need, our complete ferret care guide.