From:
ferrets1st@ferretshelters.com
Date: 2001-03-07 12:15:00 UTC
Subject: That's Bob! ( Behavior/Bullying)
"...dominance structures are wacky ..."
I do so love it when you get all technical ;)
Good post. I think you've pointed out a basic flaw we all tend to
overlook from time to time: Our observations are sometimes biased
even though our intentions are the very best.
I've managed to integrate* into groups quite a few ferrets that were
previously antisocial. (Single ferrets in a shelter are a huge drain
on playtime/playarea resources.)
*Integrate defined as: "will sleep with or adjacent to others in the
group"
Failures to date: 1
And I think that one was just terrified of others to the point of
instant aggression on meeting other ferrets. After attacking
(visciously) he would hide after the other ferret retreated.
The aggressive encounters I see are usually a physical squabble
lasting less that 2 minutes, with a lot of that being more noise than
teeth, then a "cease fire" until happenstance brings them back within
sniffing distance.
Debi Christy