356 THE FERRET. 
was soon rendered almost senseless by giddiness, and gave him an opportunity of grasping 
it with his right hand. The Ferret ‘could not bite while thus held, and was borne 
triumphantly home, in spite of the wounds which had been inflicted on the hand. The 
bite of an enraged Ferret is of a very severe character, and, probably in consequence of 
the nature of its food, is difficult to heal and extremely painful. 
It is a fierce little animal, and is too apt to turn upon its owner, and wound him 
severely before he suspects that the creature is actuated by any ill intentions. I once 
witnessed a rather curious example of the uncertainty of the Ferret’s temper. A lad who 
possessed a beautiful white Ferret had partially tamed the creature, and thought that it 
was quite harmless. The Ferret was accustomed to crawl about his person, and would 
permit itself to be caressed almost as freely as a cat. But on one unfortunate morning, 
when its owner was vaunting the performances of his protégée—for it was a female 
—the creature made a quiet but rapid snap at his mouth, and drove its teeth through 
both his lips, making four cuts as sharply defined as if they had been made with a 
razor. 
Still, the Ferret is really susceptible of kind feeling, and has been often known to be 
truly tamed. One of these animals was accustomed to accompany its master when he 
took a walk in the country, and was permitted to range at will. Round its neck a little 
bell was hung, so as to give indications of its presence, but it was so extremely tame that 
this precaution was hardly needed. It would follow its master like a dog, and if he ran 
away would hunt his footsteps, anxiously and eagerly seeking for his presence. This was 
a Polecat-ferret. 
When Ferrets are used for the purpose of hunting rabbits, their mouths are securely 
muzzled before they are permitted to enter the burrows : ; as, if their teeth were at liberty, 
they would in all probability kill the first rabbit which they met, and remain in the 
burrow for the purpose of sucking its blood. They are purposely kept without their 
ordinary meals before they are taken into the field, and are therefore especially anxious 
to secure their prey. Several modes of muzzling the Ferret are in vogue: some of them 
being as humane as is consistent with the act of fastening together the jaws of any animal, 
and others being most shamefully cruel. Not many years ago, it was the general custom 
to sew up the lips of the poor creature every time that it was used for hunting, and 
elaborate descriptions of this process are given in the sporting books of the period. 
Leathern muzzles are made especially for the purpose, and are the best that can be 
adopted ; but in their absence, the Ferret’s mouth can be effectually closed by means of 
two pieces of string, one of which is placed round the neck and the other under the jaws, 
and the four ends tied together at the back of the neck. 
Almost any Ferret will enter a rabbit-burrow and drive out the inmates, for the 
rabbits do not even think of resisting their pursuer, and flee before him with all their 
might. But there are comparatively few Ferrets that will venture to enter a rat-hole, 
especially after they have suffered once or twice from the sharp teeth of those voracious 
rodents. If the Ferret is accustomed to chase rabbits, it becomes totally useless for 
the purposes of the rat-catcher, for it will not venture even to face a well-grown and 
vicious old rat, and much less will it dare to enter the burrow. After suffering from the 
bite of a rat, the Ferret is seized with a very great respect for a rat’s teeth, and will not 
willinely place itself within reach of those sharp- edged weapons. As has been graphically 
said by a practical rat-catcher, to force such a Ferret into a rat-hole is “like cramming a 
cat into a boot, and as for hunting, it is out of the question.” 
When a Ferret is possessed of sufficient skill and courage to face its long-tailed foes, 
and has been perfectly trained to the service, it can achieve wonders in open fight, and is 
a most valuable animal. As a general fact, a large grey old rat will beat off a Ferret, if 
it can only back itself into a corner, so as to prevent an attack from behind ; but when 
the Ferret is well trained to the business, it becomes a most destructive rat-slayer. There 
is a very graphic narrative in Mr. J. Rodwell’s work on rats, which not only shows the 
wonderful powers of the Ferret, but gives a good description of the modes of attack and 
defence which are practised by both animals, 
