Furet Standard

Representatives of the order Carnivora descend from miacids; mustelids separated from them during the Eocene, approximately 40 million years ago. The first representatives of the genus Mustela appear in the Miocene, approximately 20 million years ago and gradually give rise to stoats, minks, weasels and polecats. The domestication of the latter led to the ferret. In Europe, ferret domestication, probably from the North African polecat, preceded the appearance of cats by more than five centuries. The use of ferrets by humans for hunting rodents and rabbits can be found as early as the 4th century BC. The spread of ferrets throughout the rest of Europe was the work of the Romans. The Greeks and Romans used various mustelids for rodent control and hunting, making it difficult to precisely distinguish ferrets in ancient texts. The nature of the Greek iktis remains debated. In the 1st century BC, Strabo describes rabbit hunting in the Balearic Islands (Gymnesiae insulae); to combat massive rabbit proliferation, inhabitants requested help from Emperor Augustus. He sends them an animal specially trained to hunt rabbits, which is muzzled and put in rabbit burrows to flush them out. The procedure thus described exactly matches ferret hunting use. From the 1st century, Columella clearly distinguishes between ferrets and polecats. Pliny the Elder, his contemporary, describes ferret hunting in the same manner as practiced in the 21st century. Like stoats, ferrets remained pets throughout the Middle Ages, and this use did not completely fall out of fashion until the Romantic era. Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting "Lady with an Ermine," a portrait of Cecilia Gallerani, attests to this fashion. However, the enormous animal, whose size relative to the lady's hand can be estimated at 45-55 cm compared to 22-32 cm for an ermine, and whose front paws are not sufficiently sturdy, is clearly a white albino ferret, even though Leonardo intended to depict an ermine, symbol of purity.

Like dogs, ferret domestication has led to pronounced behavioral neoteny in this mustelid, meaning ferrets retain juvenile behavioral traits throughout their lives. This domestication process has also developed their educational abilities, facilitating cohabitation with their owners. Regarding excretion, they use a specific spot like cats. But unlike cats, ferret owners often use multiple litter boxes distributed throughout the home. Indeed, the urgent nature of ferrets' needs doesn't leave them time to travel long distances to reach a single litter box. Unlike dogs, ferrets don't necessarily need outdoor outings. It's not possible to let a ferret go outside alone as it would eventually wander and get lost; a leash is therefore mandatory. For the same reason, when the ferret owner has a garden and wants their animal to enjoy it freely, the garden must be fully enclosed and present no escape route. An electronic microchip allows easier recovery of the animal if lost. It is mandatory if traveling within the European Union. Ferrets respond poorly to punishment, so education is based essentially on rewards, making it primarily positive reinforcement training. It is entirely possible to teach a ferret various tricks; however, according to the type of education needed, the ferret will always act based on an expected reward and never to please its owner as a dog would (hierarchical relationship). Pavlovian reflex plays an important part in ferret learning. Although naturally crepuscular, ferrets can be educated to a daytime lifestyle. Ferrets are social animals and need to evolve in a gregarious domestic environment. They can be raised with other ferrets or other carnivores like cats or dogs and will then need their owner less for play. Play holds an important place in their activities. They are animals that like to attract their owners' attention, and their instinctive curiosity drives them to encourage play and interfere in their owners' activities. Ferrets don't perceive themselves in a hierarchical relationship like dogs; their obedience is thus more limited. Ferret sleep is a particular characteristic among pets. Their owner must thus adapt to this specific biological rhythm. Ferrets sleep approximately 12 to 18 hours per 24-hour period. When sleeping, they enter a state of lethargy, and even if there is noise in their domestic environment, they don't wake up. Their body temperature drops from 39°C to approximately 37°C and their heart rate slows. Upon waking, ferrets must recover their active body temperature of 39°C; they tremble strongly to warm up, giving the impression of shivering. Although domesticated for a long time, ferrets retain certain primitive characteristics. Behaviorally, the bite of young ferrets distinguishes them from most pets. It disappears by around 4 to 6 months of age with proper education in 95% of ferrets but can sometimes persist into adulthood if the animal is poorly socialized or hasn't learned to control its bite. This is quite a particular case among domestic animals. Like other domestic carnivores, ferrets are playful animals. But because of their instinctive curiosity and gripping ability, household accidents with ferrets are much more frequent than with dogs or cats. This tendency affects the bond with their owners, which is more protective with a ferret than it would be with a dog or cat. Indeed, even adult ferrets require supervi

Like all pets, ferrets can be vectors of zoonotic diseases. This applies both to anthropozoonosis (diseases transmitted from humans to animals, like human flu) and zooanthroponosis (diseases transmitted from animals to humans, like rabies). Although smaller than dogs or cats, ferrets require as much maintenance. They don't require daily outdoor outings like dogs, but they must be able to leave their cage for at least 2 to 4 hours per day. Ferrets must be treated against internal and external parasites. Baby ferrets (kits) should be dewormed monthly during their first 6 months, then as adults twice a year (every 6 months), as well as regularly treated against parasites like fleas or ticks. Usual antiparasitic treatments (topical drops) also protect the animal's ears. Ferrets are susceptible to ear mites (otitis caused by Otodectes, called "ear mange"). Since ferret cerumen is naturally brown, the usual diagnostic methods for dogs or cats are not applicable to ferrets. If ear mite infection is suspected, ear cleaning should be done at two-week intervals using an antiparasitic solution (for ferrets or kittens or, if necessary, for dogs with dose adjustment), or appropriate products prescribed by a veterinarian if the condition doesn't improve. Nail trimming is generally done based on their wear and length. Wear depends on the terrain on which the ferret moves. Bathing is not necessary for ferrets. On the contrary, frequent baths or inappropriate products damage the mustelid's skin and can cause excess sebum. A sandbox for rolling in is more appropriate. Like other domestic carnivores, it is recommended to vaccinate ferrets against distemper, a still-incurable deadly disease. Although this is nearly eradicated in France, it still appears sporadically. Only the C valence is necessary; in the absence of a vaccine with only C valence, a vaccine with C and H valences is typically used. Like all carnivores, ferrets can be infected by the rabies virus, and rabies vaccination is mandatory in several countries and for border crossing. It is required if ferrets travel within the European Union. Ferrets are particularly susceptible to distemper vaccine-induced disease on initial vaccination due to the use of dog vaccines (live attenuated or other types), the only vaccines available in Europe.