260 THE KEEPER'S BOOK 



till the ''stuck" ferret comes to the surface. If this does 

 not happen after some time has passed, a dead rabbit 

 should be laid at the mouth of one of the holes ; if this 

 does not succeed, the rabbit should be disembowelled 

 and the entrails laid at the mouth of the hole, or a 

 cartridge may be emptied of its shot and fired into the 

 burrow. If all these plans fail, the ferret may be dug 

 out, or nets or harmless traps may be set at several of 

 the holes. 



Neither the "guns " nor the keeper should be seen 

 by the working ferret. They should, if possible, stand 

 down wind and out of sight. We hold firmly that a 

 ferret should never be muzzled, and seldom coped. A 

 rabbit is driven to the surface better by a ferret that is 

 free, and a coped ferret is only capable of worrying, not 

 killing. 



Diseases of Ferrets. The commonest complaint is 

 sweats, with symptoms of abnormal temperature, thirst, 

 running from eyes and nose, loss of appetite, and dul- 

 ness. The affected ferret should be isolated, and bathed 

 in some antiseptic fluid, as mild boracic acid and water, 

 or permanganate of potash. It should be well dried and 

 placed in a clean, fresh, dry, and warm hutch. The 

 animal should be fed on slops fresh warm milk, arrow- 

 root, soup, and similar foods. Whatever is used, there 

 should be a very gradual addition of solid food to the 

 diet as the ferret improves. A good thing is a newly 

 killed sparrow or other small bird, given a piece at a 

 time sprinkled with a pinch of sulphur, once in twenty- 



