Hi All, we currently have 2 ferrets we bought together as kits 1 year ago.  My wife and I have owned another ferret in the past before these two so we leveraged that knowledge in training them but we're still having issues. I apologize for the length of this post ahead of time :)

Both ferrets live in a Ferret Nation 181 cage with the single level. The food and water is on the upper platform.  I got 2 high back littler boxes and cut them and then bolted the 2 sections together to make a litter box that spans the entire width of the cage under the platform.  It's large enough so both ferrets can fit inside it at the same time so space is not an issue.  Both of them had issues going potty outside the box as kits, but for the most part, they grew out of that.  Except one of them.  He's a dark sable, and every other day he will go potty outside the box, but he still also goes inside the box.  It can be very random, sometimes he will do it when the litter barely as has anything in it and sometimes when it's got a lot.  Likewise, he will use the litter box randomly, sometimes when it's pretty clean, sometimes when it's not. I've tried emptying the litter even twice a day but it doesn't change his behavior.

I notice our dark-eyed white ferret pretty much climbs in the litter box and then meanders around for a few seconds and then goes potty like clockwork. He just climbs right in, he's picky in where he actually goes but never picky about getting in the box.  Our dark sable seems to smell the box first, and act very finicky and put one foot in and then back out.  Sometimes he gets back in the box and goes, but I can tell he seems to be very picky.  I know he knows the proper thing to do is go in the box, and when I witness that I always reward him with words and a treat.  But it seems if he doesn't like the first smell or touch of it, he backs out and goes right next to it. Once in a while he will go potty on the upper platform where his food and water is. Keep in mind that nobody is usually around when he goes outside the box.  If I am there watching him and he backs up, I immediately open the cage and place him in the box.  I rarely catch him in the act so there's no good way for me to discipline him for it.

We have not put anything on the bottom floor so it's just the bare plastic, it makes it much easier to clean.  I tried putting down bedding like my previous ferret had, but our dark sable goes potty in the same spot, right on top of the bedding.  I've moved things around and tried different arrangements.  I've found that if he can find a bare spot on the floor, he will go there, even if he might have to step in it or near it.  I'm pretty convinced that unless he gets over his issue with being so picky about the box, he will just find a spot somewhere else to go.

I've tried many things and I'm running out of ideas. He's been full grown for a while so any of his kit tendencies should have gone away. I've thought about putting old t-shirts down but he's a chewer so I think he'd probably just tear them up and eat some of the fabric.  Any help with this issue would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks,
Dan

can you upload a picture of your cage setup. This will help us give you some ideas.

Ok, so here is the cage (I couldn't figure out how to embed the image):

http://s1012.photobucket.com/user/dw8649/library/Ferrets


The towel on the bottom floor is new, just another thing I'm trying but it looks like it hasn't worked either.  He didn't go potty on the towel, but instead went on the upper platform where the food and water is.  It just seems he'll keep doing it unless every inch of the plastic platform or floor is covered.  However, I don't want to cover the upper platform because with their food and water it always makes a mess.  The plastic is at least easy to clean.

Get rid of shelf....this is only temporary. Put his/her food and water bowl in the two corners. Where the litter box is. Make sure those corners are blocked. You can use a stuff animal in the corner. Leave the towel down on the floor. Put a nice blanket on top of the towel. If you have some small toys...put them down on the floor. Clean your litter box AM/PM (twice a day) Before you let your ferret out of the cage. Place your little one into the litter box. Give this a try. Don't be in hurry to put the shelf back up. Give it a few months until your little is litter trained in the cage. Good luck and keep us posted.

You can also keep your hammock up....she/he will climb up into the hammock.

love these crocks. http://www.ferret.com/item/living-world-lock-and-crock-ferret-feeder/720209/

wenmister


Get rid of shelf....this is only temporary. Put his/her food and water bowl in the two corners. Where the litter box is. Make sure those corners are blocked. You can use a stuff animal in the corner. Leave the towel down on the floor. Put a nice blanket on top of the towel. If you have some small toys...put them down on the floor. Clean your litter box AM/PM (twice a day) Before you let your ferret out of the cage. Place your little one into the litter box. Give this a try. Don't be in hurry to put the shelf back up. Give it a few months until your little is litter trained in the cage. Good luck and keep us posted.

Those two bowls are actually food bowls, there is a water bottle hanging up.  I have two because with the two ferrets in the same cage, I can always fill both and I know they'll have enough food for the day.  I think I tried removing the shelf, but that might have been when they were young so it's worth a shot to try it again.  My last ferret had that food bowl that was secured to the side so I could get two of those to make sure the corners are covered.  Just to be clear, he doesn't go potty in the corners on the bottom floor, he goes right next to the litter box.  I will give this a try, thanks.

So here is an update.  I removed the shelf, had the towel on the floor, the food dish in one corner and the water in another corner.  I emptied the litter box a minimum of twice a day, usually in the evening and morning.  I tried to watch the ferrets every time they woke up and if the dark sable went in the litter box I would praise him and give him a treat.  This worked for about 4 days, until the 5th day, when the litter box was nowhere near full, he went potty on the towel next to the litter box.

I cleaned it up quickly, emptied the box again, but in the morning I found he did the same thing.  I'm beginning to think whether the floor is covered or not, he will go there when he feels like it.  Again, it's easier to clean the plastic floor that is bare, than it is to clean the towels or other stuff. So if I can't stop him from going outside the box than I'll leave the floor bare.  I can tell when I sit and watch him, he tries many times to get in the litter box and go, but just can't bring himself to do it.  It's like he knows going next to the box is bad, and that he doesn't want to.  But something in his mind makes him give up on the box and just go next to it.

He'll put one foot in, sniff around, and then step out.  It's like if he doesn't like the initial smell or feel of the litter box, he's just turned off and doesn't want to go in. I am willing to bet if he had his own litter box, this wouldn't be an issue.  But there is no way I'm separating the ferrets because they provide a lot of companionship for each other when we're gone.

It's not the end of the world if this is a habit he never kicks, but I'm always open to trying something I haven't before.