Top 6 Books About the Care of Pet Ferrets

1. "Ferrets for Dummies"

This book by Kim Schilling is an excellent all around guide to ferrets. It covers a lot of ground including choosing a ferret, ferret proofing, housing, feeding, grooming, safe toys, common health issues, and much more. All this is presented in a friendly, easy to read format (384 page softcover book). One drawback is that most of the photos are black and white.

2. "The Ferret: An Owner's Guide to a Happy Healthy Pet"

This hardcover book by Mary R. Shefferman is a good introduction to all aspects of ferret care for new or potential owners. Described by Amazon.com as "extremely informative" and a "fun read," this book is considered by many to be one of the best general ferret care resources available. The author is editor and co-creator of "Modern Ferret" magazine.

3. "Ferrets : Everything About Housing, Care, Nutrition, Breeding, and Health Care"

This softcover book is one of the Barron's Complete Pet Owners Manual series, written by E. Lynn Morton. Covers the basics of care as well as a bit on health and breeding, with a nice section titled "Understanding your Ferret." Several useful checklists are included, including an assessment of whether a ferret will mesh with your lifestyle.

4. "The Ferret Handbook"

A softcover book by Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville in the Barron's Pet Handbook series. This book is another good overall look at ferrets as pets, including suitability as a pet for your situation and general care. It also has quite a bit of information on handling, training, and behavior management, and fairly extensive ferret proofing advice.

5. "Training Your Pet Ferret"

While this book by Gerry Bucsis only briefly touches on the basics of care (feeding, housing, etc.) it is a helpful book for ferret owners due to its in-depth coverage of behavior and training issues. The book starts with advice on preparing for a pet ferret and handling the homecoming, and goes on to cover different behavior issues in each chapter.

6. The Essential Ferret

This is a book edited by Besty Sikora Siino. While it does contain some useful information, it lacks some detail in other important and basic areas, so it is not as practical as some other ferret care books.