Full Revelations of a Professional Rat-catcher | Page 8

caught the disease. He
tried all the remedies he knew of, but in 14 days 12 hitherto good,
strong, healthy ferrets died: all he had. This will show at once that the
disease is very contagious. The moment you see signs of distemper
coming on feed the ferret as little as possible. Give it as little to eat as
will just keep life in it, for in feeding the ferret you also feed the
disease. When you have kept the food from it is the time to start curing
if possible. Now, from experience the first thing I recommend is to
sweat the disease out of it, and I find the best way to do this is as
follows:--Get an old bucket with a few one-inch holes bored in the
bottom, and almost fill it with good new straw horse-droppings; put a
little hay on the top of the droppings, and then put the ferret on the hay.
Place or hang the bucket over a boiler or on the mantelpiece, and let the
kettle steam under the bucket, say for 30 minutes, and you will find the
steam and the ammonia from the droppings will together sweat the
disease out of the ferret; then you can start feeding it again. Feed it with
something substantial, such as the jelly from stewed cowheels; give
them the jelly only, not the meat; and you will have a good result. Also
give them a teaspoonful of cream. This is the one and only cure for
distemper.
Another disease in ferrets, especially young ones, is what I call "red
mange." This starts always under the belly, and you will find that the
skin becomes very red and speckled. This is easily remedied by the
simple process of washing in lukewarm water and rubbing with sweet
oil and black sulphur. The same mixture will answer for "foot rot" if
rubbed well into the paws. The general cause of this latter disease is
neglect of the ferrets and the hutches not being cleaned out regularly.

I think the best bedding for ferrets is good oat straw, fresh every
fortnight. Throw the straw in carelessly, and the ferrets will make their
own beds. When breeding ferrets, never go near them more than you
can help, as they are of a wild nature and liable to destroy their young.
When you know a Jill or bitch ferret has young, give her a little extra
good food, but don't interfere with the young ones on any account, and
if you want to give her a little extra bedding put the straw in the same
place as the food, and she will take it into the sleeping place herself. It
is advisable not to touch the young ones for five weeks, or better still
leave them until they come out to feed themselves; and when running
about, if there be a good number, say nine or ten, in the lot, it is a good
plan to remove them into a larger place for sleeping, as young ferrets
are very liable to catch the red mange, which arises from too many
being together and sweating very much.

WHEN WORKING FERRETS FOR RAT-CATCHING
always work them unmuzzled. Make as little noise as possible, as Rats
are very bad to bolt sometimes. Never grab at the ferret as it leaves the
hole, nor tempt it out of the hole with a dead Rat. The best way is to let
the ferret come out of its own choice, and then pick it up very quietly,
for if you grab at it, it is likely to become what we call a "stopper;" and
never on any account force a ferret to go into a hole.

WHEN WORKING FERRETS FOR RABBIT-SHOOTING
always muzzle them. The old-fashioned style of muzzle is, I think, the
best, that is, made with string. I don't approve of wire muzzles, as they
are liable to catch against tree roots and bits of sharp stones, and from
experience I find the ferret works much better with the string muzzle.
There is one way of working ferrets when rabbit-shooting which, if
followed, I think would lead to a better day's shooting. You will often
see the ferrets stick up with the rabbits. Now, in most cases the
gamekeeper or his man working the ferrets will often cut open a dead

rabbit and put the paunch to the burrow. I quite agree as to the
desirability of this to get the ferrets out, but I say that the man using the
ferrets ought never to touch the paunch, as the ferrets will not work half
so well after he has the smell of the paunch on his hands.
Another bad plan is that of throwing a dead rabbit into the burrow so
that the