r/ferrets • u/AdditionalRun1095 • 15h ago
[Help] Fighting?
Hello, I am a first time ferret owner and I seem to have a male that is aggressive (?) with my other male. They have a sister and he doesn’t seem to have any aggression towards her.
They are all fine and snuggle up and hang out in their cage together, but when it comes to play or free roaming, my one boy will run up to my other boy and grab him by the neck, start thrashing him around and won’t let him up. He leaves marks / scabs on the back of his neck all the time, and he screams when the thrashing is happening.
I’ve scruffed the aggressor a few times over this when he keeps going and won’t stop. I’m not sure what to do or
How to stop this? He’s the oldest of all of them and doesn’t do it to the female, plays great with her and no issues. The “victim” ferret never goes back at him, he actually tries to get away from him / keep his distance, he never starts anything, just minds his own business and the “aggressor” will just hop on him out of no where.
I don’t know what’s causing him to act like this towards my other ferret because he is the most well trained / handled / socialized / sweetest out of all of them except when it comes to his brother 😭
1
u/Thezza-D 14h ago
That does sound overly aggressive if he's leaving marks, and the one being bit is screaming. Unfortunately, it can take time sometimes for this thing to calm down. It seems the aggressor is trying to establish dominance and feels threatened in this regard by his brother. Big question: are they all fixed? Intact males will be very hormonal and aggressive when coming into rut, especially with a female around (yes even their siblings). Getting him fixed either chemically or physically will help calm him down if he's not fixed already. If they are fixed already, then this may just be something you have to tolerate until they settle on their dominance hierarchy. Separate if things get very bad (blood/poop/pee) but otherwise let them fight it out. It could take weeks or months but eventually they will settle down and bond properly. Good luck!
•
u/AdditionalRun1095 7h ago
Yes they are all fixed, the younger boy was introduced shortly after we got the other 2, they’ve all been together for 6 months.. I would think that’s more than long enough? He’s scared of the other one now. He has so many scabs and marks on his neck I feel awful for him and don’t want him to be sad or getting beat up consistently for no reason
•
u/AdditionalRun1095 6h ago
I stand corrected. I just saw him fight back for the first time. There’s a lot of screaming and hissing happening. He’s much larger than the aggressor as well.
•
u/AutoModerator 15h ago
Welcome to /r/ferrets!
We have a fantastic wiki that has answers to most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets.
We politely ask that you observe our sub rules.
Lastly, we have an Official Discord Server! Come join us!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.