From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2004-05-26 03:30:45 UTC
Subject: RE: Licking and Smelling
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <4599814.1085542245384.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
Author wrote:
> Our little blind girl, Candi, uses scent to help her find the way into
> the cages. She will sniff all along the edge and always knows when she
> has reached the door. We kept trying to figure it out until I sat and
> watched one day. When the ferrets crawl into the cages, their rears
> always drag across the edge of the plastic bottom pieces. So, Candi
> just sniffs until she smells that familiar scent, ferret rears, and she
> knows right where she is!
You can also use safe scents like some oils (some herbal ones, fruit ones, other ones safe if any accidently ingested, or flavoring extracts (but be careful of alcohol on wood) to map your home and to prevent bumping into furniture. Chose two scents for each room (one for each side of the room), and one scent for any hall. Mark things like doorjams, protruding bases of furniture, etc. with the scents. Humans stop smelling it within days but ferrets seems to get enough input from the oils to help them navigate for about 2 weeks.
We've even seen blind ones who had stopped running start running again once they have warnings of collisions and can figure out somewhat where they are in the home.