Outside ferrets in cold winter

[Deleted]

That looks wonderful. We used to run a light out to any critters (hens, dogs, cats, etc) we had that had to stay outdoors. The (incandescent) light gave off enough heat inside the shelter/house that they were happy to stay there. Just use fencing tacks or really large staples to secure the cord to the ceiling, that way they can't easily gnaw on it. You might drape carpet over the entrance so they can go to the bathroom outside when they need to. You could even line the inside floor with outdoor carpet for the royal treatment.

[Sherry]

Feb 15, 2012 23:51:05 GMT -5 @boojum01 said:

The (incandescent) light gave off enough heat inside the shelter/house that they were happy to stay there.

My dad actually used to do that with the hen house. He also used a shade to direct the heat downwards. Amazing at how warm it could make it But yeah, it really needs to be up out of reach of the animals.

[Deleted]

We definitely can't run a light out there- the only way of doing it would be to run about 10 metres of extention cable from an upstairs window and down the length of the garden, and then wire up an indoor light inside (the down stairs at the back on these victorian mid-terraces don't open). I don't know how safe that would be in this case- Spike is to stupid and nosy, no doubt he would lick the plug socket or something. It's a good idea for when I move though- but then they'll hopefully be moving indoors

I've got a thick towel trapped in the roof hinge so that it drapes over the door rather like a cat-flap- it took Spike about 20 minutes to figure out he could actually get in and out this way lol! The only carpet I have would be too stiff to make a viable flap for the littl ehole on the front, they wouldn't be able to lift it, but I'm going to cut out a square to put on the floor of it inside, as it has these slats that have small gaps between them to keep the heat in, so thanks for the idea Boojum.

We're off to go and get her as soon as my bloody food shopping gets delivered!

[Deleted]

Do you have enough to line the bottom and sides? That would be really good insulation. Also you could securely attach a piece of carpet to the front with a smaller hole cut in it and still put the towel in front. Cardboard is good insulation too. You say the roof has a hinge, would a cardboard box with a hole cut fit?

Sent from my SCH-M828C using ProBoards

[Deleted]

Just looked at the carpet and it's all gone mouldy :/ I will try the carboard box idea though, and line the flor and walls with cardboard. They've got tons of warm clothes, so they should be fine

[Deleted]

For the light, we did the extension cord thing because the doghouse was an old hen house that we moved over to the yard. In this case, the cord went from the furnace room back door (underneath), around the side of the house, down the side of the house almost to the front and out about 15 meters. And it was a basic lightbulb with cord set up. You could keep the plug outside the ferret house. We were pretty 'country', but the dog couldn't hold it until morning and we were all tired of cleaning it up. You could cover the plug in part outside on the roof in case of rain?
Anyway, just a suggestion.

[foxfire]

These are great for winter, I have 2, so they can have 1 for day, then 1 for all night. Just take the cover off, heat in the microwave, put cover back on, slip under some bedding and they stay warm for about 9 hours.

www.snugglesafe.co.uk/heatpad.htm

[Deleted]

Mar 4, 2012 19:15:28 GMT -5 foxfire said:

These are great for winter, I have 2, so they can have 1 for day, then 1 for all night. Just take the cover off, heat in the microwave, put cover back on, slip under some bedding and they stay warm for about 9 hours.

www.snugglesafe.co.uk/heatpad.htm

We use those at my work to keep post-op patients warm! They work great and the nice thing is they don`t draw heat from the patient as they start to cool down like hotwater bottles do.

[Deleted]

She's absolutely beautiful. Hooray for you!

[Thérèse]

I have one of those snugglesafe pads. I bought it a few years back when my brother showed me theirs that they had gotten for the rabbits in winter because they lived outside (temps here at night are freezing). My guys live a comfy life inside but I figured it would be good to have (it was pretty expensive from memory though), still never had a need for it though

[crazylady]

Hi if any of your outside ferrets are whole dont do the extra light and heat thing as this will send the body into breeding mode a ferrets natural season is triggured by more light than darkness and warmer temps hope this helps take care bye for now
Bev

[Deleted]

None of my kids are whole, so I wouldn't have this problem, but the only way to run a light outside would be to leave the door open which isn't really an option. Last month has been much warmer so hopefully we're out of the woods now, and everyone seems fine. I suppose I should remember that ferrets have been kept outside in sub zero temperatures for centuries and survived, it's just hard to remember when it's your own furkids

Hopefully moving in 2 months and they are coming to live inside Penny has mostly settled in fine, she was obviously an only ferret before as she has no ferret "social skills" and hated anyone even sniffing her- she screamed and cried so much that Spike ran away and hid from the noise. No fouls though. She's much happier now she dooks and war dances with them, and enjoys playing chase, but starts screaming if any of them actually touch her, and can be a bit snappy with her food if it's something she really likes, so she's not completely there yet, but getting there. She's also much less clingy and more inquisitive now that she has 2 new sisters and a brother, so I think the company is doing her good.