# ferrets



## rage_83 (Jul 30, 2008)

Hey,

Anyone on here know the deal with ferrets in qld??
are they legal or illegal??

If they legal can someone direct me somewhere i can possibly get one ???

Cheers,

Rob


----------



## Brigsy (Jul 30, 2008)

Sorry mate not aloud !!!!!! it sux


----------



## Noongato (Jul 30, 2008)

Illegal, and they are stinky, bitey, wriggly little buggers anyways, why would u want one???


----------



## rage_83 (Jul 30, 2008)

so whats the deal there why not in qld when they are in other states


----------



## Brigsy (Jul 30, 2008)

There just missunderstood


----------



## aussie1 (Jul 30, 2008)

Ferrets if handled from a young age are fantastic pets! They are smart, and have there own personalities.

However 

If they are not handled and left in there cage 24 hours a day with no interaction with humans then they can sometimes become biters however i think they are a misunderstood animal at times.


----------



## Brigsy (Jul 30, 2008)

They have so much character. i have scares from one that had a little too much. but he had been kept in awful conditions prior to me gettin him


----------



## Brigsy (Jul 30, 2008)

scars aswell lol


----------



## Hsut77 (Jul 30, 2008)

Ferrets are the best pets, yeah they stink and bite, but so do kids.


----------



## CassM (Jul 30, 2008)

Hsut77 said:


> Ferrets are the best pets, yeah they stink and bite, but so do kids.



nawwwww they're sooo cute!


----------



## Tim.Arm (Jul 30, 2008)

*My friend has a ferret there sooo awsome. It's good because his doesnt bite.*


----------



## fraser888 (Jul 30, 2008)

Haha, I once saw a guy walking his pet ferret. It was so small and cute.


----------



## DanTheMan (Jul 30, 2008)

I lover ferrets SO much, was disappointed to discover they are illegal here
my dad used to catch them wild when he was a kid and they'd be tame within 2-3 weeks (in nz, nothing illegal)


----------



## jaih (Jul 30, 2008)

Haha, There cool.


----------



## slim6y (Jul 30, 2008)

Hsut... I noticed the typo in your post...

They're the best PESTS

Ferrets could do a fair whack of damage to birds, mammals, reptiles etc... Just look at other countries that allow the stoat and ferret and their escapees run rampant!.

I don't think they're as misunderstood as they're poorly looked after - just like cats, dogs etc and all the wee happy furry exotics that are now ferral (and pigs - not as furry).

Goats aren't misunderstood... they do damage... I'm afraid that's what my feeling is of ferrets...

However, I'd like to qualify that i am not qualified to make this comment as I come from a country of flightless birds that are nearly extinct because of mammals such as stoats, weasels and ferrets... 

Why not get a pandemelon - they're cute and local! (probably illegal to maybe - but you can check....)


----------



## RedEyeGirl (Jul 30, 2008)

aww they are so cute


----------



## Hsut77 (Jul 30, 2008)

Slim, I agree that in NZ there are problems with feral populations of Ferrets or should I say dirty filthy Ferret Hybrids. The Ferrets that have decimated your national treasures are hybrids of domestic Ferrets and Euro Polecats. It's like mating a house cat with a wild cat, but that would never happen........would it 

I marvel that there is no such recorded populations in Australia (that I am aware of).


----------



## Noongato (Jul 30, 2008)

I believe the only reason the other states such as NSW can have them, is because we rely on them to a extent to control the rabbit population. Farmers only have them for ferreting. I had 2 housetrained ones, and i believe they are lousy pets.


----------



## Sdaji (Jul 30, 2008)

Ferrets are absolutely brilliant! I used to keep them, they're so adorable and loads of fun. If they didn't stink I wouldn't hesitate to get some more, but the smell is enough to put me off.

Ferrets can't form wild populations in Australia (which is a good thing since thousands upon thousands of them have been released into the wild, mostly accidentally when they go down rabbit burrows and don't come out for several hours and the owner gives up and goes home).

Unfortunately pademelons are also illegal in QLD. They're really weird when it comes to mammals up there - no natives at all.


----------



## slim6y (Jul 30, 2008)

Thanks for that info Hsut and Sdaji (I figured that about pandemelons otherwise i'd have one by now).

You mentioned tho (Sdaji) that ferrets can not form wild populations here - why is that? It doesn't seem to make sense when all the other species released, like the aforementioned rabbits, can survive easily.

Hsut - I wasn't aware of the hybridisation of the NZ ferrets. That would account for some of the voraciousness of the NZ ferrets - I must ask - who was silly enough to let them into NZ in the first place (may as well release the cane toad to!).


----------



## DanTheMan (Jul 30, 2008)

slim6y said:


> However, I'd like to qualify that i am not qualified to make this comment as I come from a country of flightless birds that are nearly extinct because of mammals such as stoats, weasels and ferrets...



Although I like them as pets, that's true
they have caused a bit of trouble with the birds, but they are now illegal which is good, but still there's the wild population which will be hard to get rid of and take a while. The people that still had ferrets when that law came through had to get them fixed up so they couldnt breed, same with the big breeders, I remember one in Invicargill when I went duck shooting there, that breed them for skins had to get them all de-sexed too.


----------



## Hsut77 (Jul 30, 2008)

Slim, I belive it was NZ farmers who led the release of wild ferrets / polecats to control the Rabbit problem. Funny you mention the Cane Toad as they were also released to control pests. Good idea's HUH!!!!!

Ferrets were imported from jolly old England and some even came from Australia.


----------



## mcloughlin2 (Jul 30, 2008)

They can be really interesting but they stink something shocking and I havn't met one yet that doesn't bite. I think they fall under the too hard basket when it comes to pets.


----------



## Jessica_lee (Sep 19, 2008)

what do they smell like?


----------



## ambah (Sep 21, 2008)

Jessica_lee said:


> what do they smell like?


 
A little bit musky? A bit like an old man wearing 'old spice'? :lol:
I actually love their smell, I think it's part of their character.. and they smell no where near as bad as mice! I also agree that they are misunderstood creatures, much like what most people think about snakes I guess. I don't think ferrets would do all that well in QLD anyway, they're not very good with the heat.. and I wouldn't keep one inside, lol


----------

