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The '''ferret''' ('''''Mustela furo''''') is a small, [[domesticated]] species belonging to the family [[Mustelidae]]. The ferret is most likely a domesticated form of the wild [[European polecat]] (''Mustela putorius''), as evidenced by
Ferrets may have been domesticated since [[ancient times]], but there is widespread disagreement because of the sparseness of written accounts and the inconsistency of those which survive. Contemporary scholarship agrees that ferrets were bred for sport, hunting [[rabbit]]s in a practice known as [[rabbiting]]. In [[North America]], the ferret has become an increasingly prominent choice of household [[pet]], with over five million in the [[United States]] alone. The legality of ferret ownership varies by location. In [[New Zealand]] and some other countries, restrictions apply due to the damage done to native fauna by [[feral]] colonies of [[polecat–ferret hybrid]]s. The ferret has also served as a fruitful research animal, contributing to research in [[neuroscience]] and [[infectious]] disease, especially [[influenza]].
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===Characteristics===
[[File:Mustela putorius furo profile.JPG|thumb|Ferret profile]]
Ferrets have a typical mustelid body-shape, being long and slender. Their average length is about {{cvt|50|cm}} including a {{cvt|13|cm}} tail. Their [[pelage]] has various colorations including brown, black, white or mixed. They weigh between {{cvt|0.7|and|2.0|kg}} and are [[sexually dimorphic]] as the males are substantially larger than females. The average [[gestation]] period is 42 days and females may have two or three [[Litter (zoology)|litters]] each year. The litter size is usually between three and seven kits which are weaned after three to six weeks and become independent at three months. They become sexually mature at approximately 6 months and the average life span is 7 to 10 years.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://njvma.org/all-about-ferrets/ |publisher=New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association |title=All about ferrets |access-date=January 15, 2015 |archive-date=March 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330121138/https://njvma.org/all-about-ferrets/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.elmwoodparkzoo.org/animal-domestic-ferret.php |access-date=January 15, 2015 |title=Domestic ferret |publisher=Elmwood Park Zoo |archive-date=March 3, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150303072928/http://www.elmwoodparkzoo.org/animal-domestic-ferret.php |url-status=live }}</ref> Ferrets are [[induced ovulation (animals)|induced ovulators]]
===Behavior===
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Ferrets spend 14–18 hours a day asleep and are most active around the hours of dawn and dusk, meaning they are [[crepuscular]].<ref name="Anon">{{cite web|url=http://www.pethealthinfo.org.uk/ferrets/|title=Ferrets|publisher=Pet Health Information|access-date=29 January 2010|archive-date=3 February 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100203230129/http://pethealthinfo.org.uk/ferrets/|url-status=dead}}</ref> If they are caged, they should be taken out daily to exercise and satisfy their curiosity; they need at least an hour and a place to play.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ferretbiting.com/ferret-as-pet-care-guide/|title=Ferret as pet care guide|access-date=22 January 2021|archive-date=2 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211102171147/http://ferretbiting.com/ferret-as-pet-care-guide/|url-status=live}}</ref> Unlike their polecat ancestors, which are solitary animals, most ferrets will live happily in social groups. They are territorial, like to burrow, and prefer to sleep in an enclosed area.<ref name="Brown">{{cite web|url=http://www.weaselwords.com/page/ferret_art036.php|title=Inherited behavior traits of the domesticated ferret|last=Brown|first=Susan, A|date=17 January 2010|website=Weaselwords.com|access-date=29 January 2010|archive-date=4 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091004091445/http://www.weaselwords.com/page/ferret_art036.php|url-status=live}}</ref>
Like many other mustelids, ferrets have scent glands near their anus, the secretions from which are used in [[Spraying (animal behavior)|scent marking]]. Ferrets can recognize individuals from these anal gland secretions, as well as the sex of unfamiliar individuals.<ref name="Clapperton1988">{{cite journal |vauthors=Clapperton BK, Minot EO, Crump DR |title=An Olfactory Recognition System in the Ferret Mustela furo L. (Carnivora: Mustelidae) |journal=Animal Behaviour |volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=541–553 |date=April 1988 |doi=10.1016/S0003-3472(88)80025-3|s2cid=53197938 }}</ref> Ferrets may also use urine marking for [[
As with [[skunks]], ferrets can release their [[anal gland]] secretions when startled or scared, but the smell is much less potent and dissipates rapidly. Most pet ferrets in the US are sold descented (with the anal glands removed).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mitchell|first1=Mark A.|last2=Tully|first2=Thomas N.|title=Manual of exotic pet practice|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JMTUKwzPEvwC&pg=PA372|year=2009|publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences|isbn=978-1-4160-0119-5|page=372|access-date=2016-07-29|archive-date=2014-01-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140112053059/http://books.google.com/books?id=JMTUKwzPEvwC&pg=PA372|url-status=live}}</ref> In many other parts of the world, including the UK and other European countries, de-scenting is considered an [[Overview of discretionary invasive procedures on animals|unnecessary mutilation]].
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===Diet===
Ferrets are [[obligate carnivore]]s.{{r|williams1999}} The natural diet of their wild ancestors consisted of whole small prey, including meat, organs, bones, skin, feathers and fur.<ref>[http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=479&S=5 Rethinking The Ferret Diet – Info about species-appropriate diets, and the negative effects of commercially prepared diets, written by a veterinarian] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722231730/http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=479&S=5 |date=2010-07-22 }}. Veterinarypartner.com. Retrieved 2012-02-28.</ref> Ferrets have short digestive systems and a quick metabolism, so they need to eat frequently. Prepared dry foods consisting almost entirely of meat (including high-grade [[cat food]], although specialized ferret food is increasingly available and preferable)<ref>McLeod, Lianne. [http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/ferrets/a/feedingferrets.htm Feeding Your Ferret] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413135328/http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/ferrets/a/feedingferrets.htm |date=2013-04-13 }}. exoticpets.about.com</ref> provide the most nutritional value. Some ferret owners feed pre-killed or live prey (such as mice and rabbits) to their ferrets to more closely mimic their natural diet.<ref>{{cite web|title=Feeding Ferrets whole rabbits ?|url=http://www.thehuntinglife.com/forums/topic/191384-feeding-ferrets-whole-rabbits/|work=The Hunting Life|date=20 February 2011 |access-date=6 October 2012|archive-date=14 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114203459/http://www.thehuntinglife.com/forums/topic/191384-feeding-ferrets-whole-rabbits/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Raw Diets |url=http://www.craftycreatures.com/forferretsonly/ask_angela/rawdiets.html |work=For Ferrets Only |access-date=6 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012052641/http://www.craftycreatures.com/forferretsonly/ask_angela/rawdiets.html |archive-date=12 October 2013 }}</ref> Ferret digestive tracts lack a [[cecum]] and the animal is largely unable to digest plant matter.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gastrointestinal Disease in the Ferret|url=http://www.lafebervet.com/small-mammal-medicine-2/ferret/diseases-of-the-ferret-gastrointestinal-tract/|access-date=24 April 2014|archive-date=24 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140424210834/http://www.lafebervet.com/small-mammal-medicine-2/ferret/diseases-of-the-ferret-gastrointestinal-tract/|url-status=live}}</ref> Before much was known about ferret physiology, many breeders and pet stores recommended food like fruit in the ferret diet, but it is now known that such foods are inappropriate, and may in fact have negative consequences for ferret health. Ferrets imprint on their food at around six months old. This can make introducing new foods to an older ferret a challenge, and even simply changing brands of kibble may meet with resistance from a ferret that has never eaten the food as a kit. It is therefore advisable to expose young ferrets to as many different types and flavors of appropriate food as possible.<ref>{{cite web|title=Frequently Asked Questions|url=http://www.ferret.org/read/faq.html|work=American Ferret Association|access-date=24 April 2014|archive-date=11 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140411133532/http://www.ferret.org/read/faq.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
===Dentition===
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In common with most domestic animals, the original reason for ferrets being domesticated by human beings is uncertain, but it may have involved hunting. According to phylogenetic studies, the ferret was domesticated from the [[European polecat]] (''Mustela putorius''), and likely descends from a North African lineage of the species.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Sato JJ, Hosoda T, Wolsan M, Tsuchiya K, Yamamoto M, Suzuki H |title=Phylogenetic relationships and divergence times among mustelids (Mammalia: Carnivora) based on nucleotide sequences of the nuclear interphotoreceptor retinoid binding protein and mitochondrial cytochrome b genes|journal=Zoological Science|date=February 2003|volume=20|issue=2|pages=243–64|pmid=12655187|doi=10.2108/zsj.20.243|s2cid=33505504|doi-access=free}}</ref> Analysis of [[mitochondrial DNA]] suggests that ferrets were domesticated around 2,500 years ago. It has been claimed that the ancient Egyptians were the first to domesticate ferrets, but as no mummified remains of a ferret have yet been found, nor any [[hieroglyph]] of a ferret, and no polecat now occurs wild in the area, that idea seems unlikely.<ref>{{cite web |last=Church |first=Bob |title=Ferret FAQ – Natural History |publisher=ferretcentral.org |url=http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/history.html |access-date=2007-08-25 |archive-date=2007-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070824045821/http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/history.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[American Society of Mammalogists]] classifies ''M. furo'' as a distinct species.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Explore the Database|url=https://www.mammaldiversity.org/explore.html#species-id=1005867|access-date=2021-07-01|website=Mammaldiversity.org|archive-date=2021-06-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624204851/https://www.mammaldiversity.org/explore.html#species-id=1005867|url-status=live}}</ref>
Ferrets were probably used by the Romans for hunting.<ref>{{cite web|last=Matulich|first=Erika
Colonies of [[feral]] ferrets have established themselves in areas where there is no competition from similarly sized predators, such as in the [[Shetland Islands]] and in remote regions in New Zealand. Where ferrets coexist with polecats, hybridization is common. It has been claimed that New Zealand has the world's largest feral population of ferret–polecat hybrids.<ref>{{cite web |title=Feral Ferrets in New Zealand |work=California's Plants and Animals |publisher=California Department of Fish and Game |url=http://www.dfg.ca.gov/hcpb/species/nuis_exo/ferret/ferret_issues_3.shtml |access-date=2006-09-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060905185101/http://www.dfg.ca.gov/hcpb/species/nuis_exo/ferret/ferret_issues_3.shtml |archive-date=2006-09-05 }}</ref> In 1877, farmers in New Zealand demanded that ferrets be introduced into the country to control the rabbit population, which was also introduced by humans. Five ferrets were imported in 1879, and in 1882–1883, 32 shipments of ferrets were made from London, totaling 1,217 animals. Only 678 landed, and 198 were sent from Melbourne, Australia. On the voyage, the ferrets were mated with the European polecat, creating a number of [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrids]] that were capable of surviving in the wild. In 1884 and 1886, close to 4,000 ferrets and ferret hybrids, 3,099 weasels and 137 [[stoat]]s were turned loose.<ref>{{cite web|title=Rabbit control |work=A Hundred Years of Rabbit Impacts, and Future Control Options |publisher=New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) Rabbit Biocontrol Advisory Group |url=http://www.maf.govt.nz/MAFnet/articles-man/rbag/rbag0010.htm |access-date=2006-09-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010617215222/http://www.maf.govt.nz/MAFnet/articles-man/rbag/rbag0010.htm |archive-date=June 17, 2001 }}</ref> Concern was raised that these animals would eventually prey on indigenous wildlife once rabbit populations dropped, and this is exactly what happened to New Zealand's bird species which previously had had no mammalian predators.
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[[File:Ratting ferret 2.png|thumb|right|Muzzled ferret flushing a rat, as illustrated in Harding's ''Ferret Facts and Fancies'' (1915)]]
For millennia, the main use of ferrets was for hunting, or "ferreting". With their long, lean build and inquisitive nature, ferrets are very well equipped for getting down holes and chasing rodents, rabbits and moles out of their burrows. The Roman historians [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] and [[Strabo]] record that [[Caesar Augustus]] sent "{{lang|la|viverrae}}" from [[Roman Libya|Libya]] to the [[Balearic Islands]] to control rabbit plagues there in 6 BC; it is speculated that "{{lang|la|viverrae}}" could refer to ferrets, [[mongoose]]s, or polecats.<ref name="Thomson"/><ref>Plinius the Elder, Natural History, [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/8*.html#218 8 lxxxi 218] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105233033/https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/8%2A.html#218 |date=2022-01-05 }} (in Latin)</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Natural History, Book VIII |last=Pliny the Elder |author-link=Pliny the Elder |others=[[Philemon Holland]] (trans) |year=1601 |chapter-url=http://penelope.uchicago.edu/holland/pliny8.html |access-date=19 April 2011 |chapter=LV. Of Hares and Connies. |title-link=Natural History (Pliny) |archive-date=5 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105232948/http://penelope.uchicago.edu/holland/pliny8.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In England, in 1390, a law was enacted restricting the use of ferrets for hunting to the relatively wealthy:
{{
Ferrets were first introduced into the American continents in the 17th century, and were used extensively from 1860 until the start of [[World War II]] to protect grain stores in the American West from rodents. They are still used for hunting in some countries, including the United Kingdom, where rabbits are considered a [[Pest (organism)|pest]] by farmers.<ref>{{cite web|title=In Mystery, Ferret Thefts Sweep Southern England|url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304361604579290013495981126|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=2017-03-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170321170935/https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304361604579290013495981126|archive-date=2017-03-21|url-status=dead}}</ref> The practice is illegal in several countries where it is feared that ferrets could unbalance the ecology. In 2009 in Finland, where ferreting was previously unknown, the city of Helsinki began to use ferrets to restrict the city's rabbit population to a manageable level. Ferreting was chosen because in populated areas it is considered to be safer and less ecologically damaging than shooting the rabbits.
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|archive-date=2006-09-18 |url-status=dead}}</ref> but the current Dallas City Code for Animals includes regulations for the vaccination of ferrets.<ref>{{cite web|title=Animal Services|work=Dallas City Code, Chapter 7: "Animals"; Article VII: "Miscellaneous"|publisher=American Legal Publishing Corporation|url=http://www.amlegal.com/nxt/gateway.dll/Texas/dallas/volumei/preface?f=templates$fn=default.htm$3.0$vid=amlegal:dallas_tx|access-date=2006-09-19|archive-date=2006-10-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061004102251/http://www.amlegal.com/nxt/gateway.dll/Texas/dallas/volumei/preface?f=templates$fn=default.htm$3.0$vid=amlegal:dallas_tx|url-status=live}}</ref> Pet ferrets are legal in [[Wisconsin]], however legality varies by municipality. The city of [[Oshkosh, Wisconsin]], for example, classifies ferrets as a wild animal and subsequently prohibits them from being kept within the city limits. Also, an import permit from the state department of agriculture is required to bring one into the state.{{r|regwi}} Under [[common law]], ferrets are deemed "wild animals" subject to [[strict liability]] for injuries they cause, but in several states [[statutory law]] has overruled the common law, deeming ferrets "domestic".<ref>{{cite court|litigants=Gallick v. Barto |vol=828 |reporter=F.Supp. |opinion=1168 |court=M.D.Pa. |year=1993 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17736642397628316680&q=828+F.Supp.+1168&as_sdt=2,44
|access-date=26 November 2012}}</ref>
* '''Japan''': In [[Hokkaido]] prefecture, ferrets must be registered with the local government.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hokkaido Animal Welfare and Control Ordinance |work=Hokkaido Animal Welfare and Control Ordinance Chapter 2, Section 3. |url=http://www.pref.hokkaido.lg.jp/ks/skn/aigo/jyourei.htm |access-date=2009-04-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080309165724/http://www.pref.hokkaido.lg.jp/ks/skn/aigo/jyourei.htm |archive-date=March 9, 2008 }}</ref> In other prefectures, no restrictions apply. {{Citation needed|reason=Not covered by Hokkaido reference|date=May 2024}}
==Other uses==
Ferrets are an important experimental animal model for human [[influenza]],<ref name="Matsuoka2009">{{Cite book |doi=10.1002/9780471729259.mc15g02s13|pmid=19412910|volume=Chapter 15|pages=15G.2.1–15G.2.29|year=2009|last1=Matsuoka |first1=Y. |last2=Lamirande |first2=E. W. |last3=Subbarao |first3=K. |title=The Ferret Model for Influenza|journal=Current Protocols in Microbiology|isbn=978-0471729259|s2cid=43613423}}</ref><ref name="Maher2004">{{cite journal|vauthors=Maher JA, DeStefano J |title=The ferret: an animal model to study influenza virus |journal=Lab Animal|year=2004|volume=33|issue=9|pages=50–53|pmid=15457202|doi=10.1038/laban1004-50|citeseerx=10.1.1.632.711 |s2cid=30541775 }}</ref> and have been used to study the 2009 H1N1 ([[swine flu]]) virus.<ref name="van2010">{{Cite journal |doi=10.1086/651132|pmid=20187747|title=Severity of Pneumonia Due to New H1N1 Influenza Virus in Ferrets is Intermediate between That Due to Seasonal H1N1 Virus and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 Virus|journal=Journal of Infectious Diseases|volume=201|issue=7|pages=993–9|year=2010|last1=Van Den Brand |first1=J. M. A. |last2=Stittelaar |first2=K. J. |last3=Van Amerongen |first3=G. |last4=Rimmelzwaan |first4=G. F. |last5=Simon |first5=J. |last6=De Wit |first6=E. |last7=Munster |first7=V. |last8=Bestebroer |first8=T. |last9=Fouchier |first9=R. A. M. |last10=Kuiken |first10=T. |last11=Osterhaus |first11=A. D. M. E. |pmc=7110095|doi-access=free }}</ref> Smith, Andrews, Laidlaw (1933) inoculated ferrets intra-nasally with human naso-pharyngeal washes, which produced a form of influenza that spread to other cage mates. The human influenza virus (Influenza type A) was transmitted from an infected ferret to a junior investigator, from whom it was subsequently re-isolated.▼
▲Ferrets are
▲* Because they share many anatomical and physiological features with humans, ferrets are extensively used as [[animal testing|experimental subjects]] in biomedical research, in fields such as virology, reproductive physiology, anatomy, endocrinology and neuroscience.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Crawford |first1=Richard L. |last2=Adams |first2=Kristina M. |date=2006 |url=http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/pubs/Ferrets06/ferrets.htm |title=Information Resources on the Care and Welfare of Ferrets |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110213092535/http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/pubs/Ferrets06/ferrets.htm |archive-date=2011-02-13 |publisher=USDA Animal Welfare Information Center}}</ref>
▲* In the UK, ferret racing is often a feature of rural fairs or festivals, with people placing small bets on ferrets that run set routes through pipes and wire mesh. Although financial bets are placed, the event is primarily for entertainment purposes as opposed to 'serious' betting sports such as horse or greyhound racing.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ferret Racing |url=http://www.countrymanfairs.co.uk/family-entertainment/ferret-racing |website=Countrymanfairs.co.uk |access-date=2015-04-19 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150423173347/http://www.countrymanfairs.co.uk/family-entertainment/ferret-racing |archive-date=2015-04-23 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ferret Racing – Starescue – STA Ferret Rescue|url=http://www.starescue.org.uk/racing/4579482855|website=Starescue.org.uk|access-date=2015-04-19|archive-date=2015-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150423055435/http://www.starescue.org.uk/racing/4579482855|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Terminology and coloring==
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==External links==
{{
* {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Ferret}}
* Isaacsen, Adolph (1886) ''[https://archive.org/details/allaboutferretsr00isaa All about ferrets and rats]''
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