Hi,
Thanks for your interest in WNYFLFA's shelter.
Here are some things I think you should consider in making your decision.
Consider cost. It's not that we're not interested in finding these guys a good home, but we'd rather not see them come back into our shelter because their new owner didn't take cost into consideration. Keep in mind these guys can live anywhere from 6-10 years. Provided they stay healthy and don't develop any major illnesses (insulinoma, adrenal, etc. which can cost $275+ per operation and medication), you can expect to pay $30-$100 a year in vet bills per ferret (depending where you go and live). Ferrets need a yearly rabies shot and distemper.
Ferret food seems expensive in comparison to dog or cat food, but they don't eat as much. It's best to do a variety of food - I do a mix of Zupreem, 8-in-1 ultimate, Totally Ferret, and Superior Choice from theferretstore.com (all of these can be purchased from there). This is about a 30 pound mix that I store in a rubbermaid airtight container and lasts about 3-4 months for my 3 and about 5-6 months when I only had 2. They do have to have their food and water constantly filled as they have small intestinal tracks and eat every 3-4 hours. Which translates to what they do with their finished product every 3-4 hours. I use a large ceramic bowl for water and one size smaller for food that I fill anywhere from daily to a day and a half. I make sure I fill extra bowls if I plan on going away for the weekend. Ample litter pans is a must. I use a product called Woody Pet that is a wood pellet based litter. It costs about $4 per 40 pound bag (this lasts about 2 months for my 3 ferrets - completely changing the 2 main litter pans weekly and the other 3 biweekly). You can use any wood pellet item for litter - the kind that you can get from Home Depot or Lowes for pellet stoves - the cost is about the same. If you're planning on having them caged most of the time, you also have the cost of the cage to consider. I started with a cage from SuperPet that was ample size for my first 2. I added tubes to the cage so they had play space while they were housed and we were at work, sleeping, etc. They now have run of our downstairs bathroom which is about 90 sq. ft. They have about 8 places to choose for sleeping and ample climbing and tunneling opportunities. When we let them out, they have run of our 19' x 20' family room. I learned that the more space they are given to roam, the less hyper they are. You just have to make sure you ferret proof the area. They are definitely escape artists. If you know you have to cage them, then in the cage they should have a hammock or hanging tube for sleeping (it's good to have 2, so when 1 is being washed, they have use of the other one), a water bottle (I have a drip dish so the water doesn't go everywhere in the cage), a bowl for food, a litter pan, and a toy. My guys liked having a chewy star attached to a chain that allowed them to grab and chew, but not run away with it. I also provided a small plush toy (any one that's safe for infants will do).
You can call Sue our shelter mom at 223-9106 to set up a time to visit our fuzzballs.
I hope this helps. Let me know if you need more info. :)
Michele