How are ferrets with dogs? With cats? Birds? This is something I've been asked several times when I take my woozles with me to the store.
This is from my experience. Every ferret is different, as is every cat and dog. The situation always depends on BOTH animals involved. Ferrets will typically show little to no fear at all when meeting a new animal. They simply couldn't be bothered. Every new animal is a potential playmate! My kids would walk right up to a huge, strange dog in the petstore if I let them, which I don't. I've heard that people think ferrets and cats can't live in the same house together because they'll try to kill one another. I have to say, not true. I own cats, know fellow ferret owners who have ferrets and cats. The ferret will want to check your cat out, possibly try to wrestle with said cat. Its usually on the cat whether or not a fight happens. I've never seen a ferret fight with another animal. My cats are in fact scared of my ferrets and avoid them at all costs.
If you search on youtube you'll find all kinds of videos of ferrets playing with both cats and dogs. Our domesticated ferrets were bred to retain their kit like qualities, making them more social than their ancestors. Ferrets are playful and if they can get someone to join in their games, who cares what species it is? With that being said, it's probably best to keep ferrets well away from rodents and reptiles. While some ferrets, like my own, have no prey drive whatsoever, keeping a ferret around critters that are part of its natural diet could lead to tragic accident. A friend of mine lost a leopard gecko to one of his ferrets. They didn't eat it, just played with it... a little rough. Ferrets attacking rats, mice, guinea pigs and rabbits is also not unheard of. Even if raised alongside them. I've never had a ferret around birds or spoken to anyone that has. I can say that when my ferrets see birds at the pet stores they are very interested. To be safe, I'd say you should probably keep them apart.
So we know not to keep our ferret around animals it would naturally hunt and eat. But cats and dogs are fine assuming they don't have a high prey drive? Honestly, I see no reason to allow a ferret to interact and play with your dogs or cats. But didn't I just say there are videos of ferrets playing peacefully with cats and dogs? Yes I did, but let me explain.
As I've mentioned before, Kiba is my first ferret. Very shortly after I got him I got Kobi, a marked white ferret. At this point in time I allowed my ferrets to free roam in my room with my dogs, as long as I was there and supervising. I had read that many ferret owners did this, it wouldn't be until later that I would learn that doing so is more of a risk than it's worth. My dogs would allow the ferrets to crawl on them and would gently bat the ferrets with their paws. This went on for almost six months. They'd all even share beds! One evening while I was cleaning their cage the two boys were playing around my room, Lucy (Cocker Spaniel) was sleeping on the floor while Draco (German Shepherd/Lab) was lounging on the bed. The boys were dooking around, cackling and having a jolly good time. Kobi jumped at Draco's paws as he often did and Draco would nose him around. Kobi nipped at his lips and Draco nipped back.
At first I didn't know what happen. Kobi fell backwards on the floor. When I saw blood appearing on his neck I knew something was wrong. I scooped him up in my arms, his body convulsing, eyes bulging from his head and blood coming out of his mouth. I grabbed a towel from a nearby bin to wrap him in and yelled at my mother to start the car. Kobi died in my arms before we even got the car started. I can not blame my dog, he had done nothing wrong and did not understand the damage his nip had done. From that moment on my dogs and ferrets interact through the safety of a playpen. When the ferrets are free roaming the dogs aren't allowed in the same room.
What I'm trying to get at is, ferrets are delicate and it doesn't take much for them to get hurt, as I had learned tragically. It's not just big dogs that can be a threat. I met a rescue ferret that lost his eye to a toy poodle friend when they were playing and the dog nipped him. Ferrets have had necks broken from being stepped on by dogs.
I'd just like to sum up this post with, if you want your ferret to have someone to play with, get another ferret. Or make some extra time for yourself to play with your ferret. My ferrets are perfectly happy not playing with my dogs and it's going to stay that way. If you love your ferrets and your dogs/cats, keep them apart and keep them safe. Believe me, what I had gone through is not something you want to experience. I always share this story when asked this question now to hopefully spare someone else the heartache.
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