Kitten and Ferret?

I am leaving to visit home in 6 weeks and was planning on leaving my 3 m/o kitten Aya with a friend.

Well, the friend just suprised me with the news that she has a new pet -a ferret, after volunteering to mind the kitten for 2 weeks.

Having never had a ferret before, I was wondering how they might get along? Is this a good arrangement, or not? Any tips or advice for making this work?

Aya is a very active kitten.

Do a youtube search for "kitten and ferret."

It'll depend on the animals themselves really. Ferrets play a lot like kittens in my opinion. When I got my kitten I was worried about how he would get along with the ferrets. They were a little rough with him at first, but for the most part they'll just leave him alone now. I would never leave them unsupervised though. Ferrets have thicker skin than most animals, so they tend to bite a little harder than they should when playing with other species (until they learn better).

I'd make sure your friend has a safe place for the kitten to be away from the ferret though just in case they don't get along.

In my experience it mainly depends on the cat/kitten. Most ferret I have known are perfectly happy to play with anyone/thing that is willing to play with them. The cat I had when I had ferrets was freaked out by them and would hide when they were running around but my dog loved to play with them... I've known other people who had cats or dogs with ferrets and they got along well as long as the cat/dog was ok with it.

How old is the ferret, is it an adult or still a kit? Ferrets tend to be fearless and will play with other species, including dogs.



When I had 4 ferrets, my cats respected them and didn't view them as prey. Ferrets are carnivores, like cats, and are predators in their own right. Cats seem to sense that and tend to leave them alone.



As long as both kitten and ferret are up to date on their rabies and distemper shots, and there is constant supervision, everything should be fine. Never leave them alone as ferrets can play rough and will use their teeth. They have very powerful jaws and can clamp down. The kitten could feel overwhelmed, so I would only allow short playtimes together. But again, everything depends on the personality of both.

Dont' ferrets live in cages? If so, I wouldn't see a problem..

They do spend time in cages, but require out of cage time (at least a few hours a day) for play and socialization. Ferrets are very social and want to be with their people.

Well, I had a chinchilla and Kitty at the same time for awhile... Lets just say I wouldnt ever leave them alone. the chinchilla (Lola) never was allowed to come out around Kittty just in case. I think ferrets are probably a little bigger and maybe better with cats. Will they be interacting?

after 2 years, Lola has since gone to a better equiped home and is very happy.

Originally Posted by Meowers

Well, I had a chinchilla and Kitty at the same time for awhile... Lets just say I wouldnt ever leave them alone. the chinchilla (Lola) never was allowed to come out around Kittty just in case. I think ferrets are probably a little bigger and maybe better with cats. Will they be interacting?

after 2 years, Lola has since gone to a better equiped home and is very happy.

Click to expand...

OMG Chinchillas are the cutest little furballs!! I am a big chinchilla fan

Well, yesterday we brought Aya-chan over to my friends house. I was relieved that she was warming up to my friend (no hissing and growling like last time). But she was very scared of the ferret, and was hissing and growling at him. Poor Spaz! He was completely fearless and bounded after her. She retreated under the bed and he followed. We finally had to put him in his cage, so she felt more comfortable. Then everything was fine.

At one time I had two ferrets and a cat. They all seemed to get around very nicely and played all the time. When a friend would bring over her puppy, it would hide once it saw my ferret (lol)

Ferrets and kittens usually get along GREAT! Older cats are sometimes loath to associate themselves with ferrets, but kittens are full of curiosity, as are ferrets, and they usually make a perfect team.

Here's a pic of a kitten(I think she was 4 or 5 weeks old in the picture) I handraised snuggling with her favorite buddy(Ziggy) behind the computer desk:

i have 2 cats, 2 ferrets, and a dog. the cats and the ferrets get along fine. they mostly just leave each other alone. my cats were older (6 and 10) when we got our first ferret so the cats were not really open to playing with the ferrets, they were set in their ways. sometimes they do play with each other though, and i love those times! i find that kittens and ferrets are great companions as long as the kitty is ok with it. my friend has 2 ferrets and she was staying with her parents who have 2 kittens and they are all best friends now! they curl up and sleep together.

i hope that it works out well for you and your kitty.