Ferret may seem flighty but they are actually rather smart and you can teach your ferret tricks. Just look at the ferrets that have starred in movies and you can see that they can be trained. The trick to training ferrets is that you need to remember that they are very active and won't sit still for a long training session.
To teach your ferret tricks, you should plan on small training sessions that are full of activities that your ferret will enjoy. If you incorporate activities that stimulate your ferrets natural tendencies into the training, that will make your job much easier.
Anyone who has a ferret will tell you that they are curious creatures with a short attention span so you might be wondering how on earth you are going to get their attention in order to train them. The best way is to hold the training sessions in an area that they have already fully explored. This way you won't be batteling them as they try to climb off your shoulder to check out something new. In fact, teaching your ferret to stay on your shoulders, is the first trick! To teach them to do this you want to use the method of encouragement. Coerce them onto your shoulder with a treat and some kind words. If they start to climb off, say ?NO? loudly and sharply. Eventually they will get the message that it is more pleasant to stay on your shoulder.
When teaching your ferret to do tricks, you must remember that he is only going to obey if there is something in it for him. Most animals are trained in this manner, whether it be a treat or affection of the owner you need to give him a reason to do the trick. Find out what your ferrets favorite treat is and get him to perform the desired trick and then reward him with the treat. Eventually he will associate the action (or trick) with getting a treat and perform on command.
Ferrets can learn a variety of tricks including sit, stay on your shoulder and roll over. To start training you must find a way to get your ferret to do the action - for example you might notice that if you hold his favorite treat in the air over his nose he will sit up. Do this while saying ?SIT? and when he sits up give him the treat. Keep repeating the command, try to get the word out before he ?sits? and then reward. This will take patience and repetition but eventually he will start ?sitting up? when you say sit.
Training your ferret to do tricks is a great way to spend time with your pet. Remember to always use the reward system and never hit or punish your pet. With some time and persistence (and a lot of treats) you'll soon have the best trained ferret on the block!
Horses are susceptible to a variety of diseases and the wide majority of them we are not too concerned with because we vaccinate our horses. It is important to remember that just because some diseases are vaccinated against, your horse may still be able to contract them but the vaccination will lessen the effect of the disease. Vaccinations are important because you never know what may be floating through the air from a sick horse passing by in the stable or even riding down the road in a trailer.
Influenza and Rhinopneumonitis
These are respiratory diseases that are very similar to the human flu. These diseases have very similar symptoms to the flu. Your vet may recommend that your horse be vaccinated every 3 months or at least every 6 months for these diseases, depending on how often you travel with your horse and often the horse is exposed to other horses.
Tetanus
Tetanus is a bacterial disease that a horse contracts through open wounds. A horse should receive regular tetanus boosters, as the disease is easily contracted through puncture wounds and lacerations. The bacterial disease wreaks havoc on the horse's nervous system and may cause brain damage. The prognosis is generally poor for a horse that contracts tetanus, so horse owners want to do their best to prevent it. The symptoms include extreme sensitivity to touch and spasms in the neck and jaw muscles. It is recommended that horses receive these vaccinations at least once per year.
Strangles
Strangles is a very contagious disease that spreads from horse to horse very easily. Many horses will have the virus, but show no symptoms, which makes it even harder to detect until other horses begin to show symptoms. Horses will generally have a pus discharge from the nose and abscesses form in the lymph glands. The abscess will often burst with thick yellow pus. The horse may develop a fever and go off feed. Most animals will recover, but the care for these horses can be very difficult, especially if they develop the abscesses. Horses should be on a regular vaccination program for strangles, especially breeding and performance horses. Strangles live in the ground and there are various strands that may develop. High-risk horses include broodmares, stallions and performance horses. They should be vaccinated every six months. You should also vaccinate if you are moving to a new stable and ask if they have their own version of the vaccine for their particular strand of virus.
Both Lee Dobbins & Jo Thompson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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