Ugh, the thought of cleaning dishes sounds exhausting- yet alone the cage of the messiest little creatures on earth. Sometimes scrubbing down that ferret home seems more daunting than worthwhile. So that's why we've decided to help you out a bit- and create a step by step tutorial on getting every bit of that pesky little cage clean. This process should be made at least once a month, but we recommend every two weeks, or as often as your cage begins to smell musky or 'ferrety' as some people would call it.
Step One: Remove the critters. Put your little guys in a safe playpen where they can frolic around without you having to look over your shoulder every two seconds to make sure they're not getting into some sort of trouble. You want to focus all of your attention on cleaning- so leave the playful one's in a mischief-free zone.
Step Two: Remove all plastic and glass objects. Your food dish, water dish, litter box, and part plastic toys. Empty them all out and set them in a bowl of hot water. This well help begin cleaning them. Just let them sit.
Step Three: Remove all other objects. Blankets, tents, hammocks, cloth toys, and any other soft objects should be set aside. Anything that can be thrown into a washing machine should be put on a delicate cycle and cleaned with hot water- no soap necessary.
Step Four: Remove 'floors' or 'levels'. Any plastic tunnels, ladders, and floors should now be removed. If you have a container large enough to put them into with boiling water, place them in hot water and let them sit. If not, fill up a bathtub with hot water and set them in there.
Step Five: Remove the bedding. Discard of all of the bedding and wipe away any bits of bedding that are left behind. Even a small vacuum can work well for removing all bedding remnants.
Step Six: Get yet another bowl of hot water and a tough scrubber (ones for dishes work great). Take your scrubber, soak it in the hot water, and beginning at the top of your cage scrub down the sides. By starting at the top you will keep the 'ugly dripplings' from hitting an already clean bottom. Once you have finished the sides, grab a clean towel and wipe them down. This will help dry them off as well as pick up any missed bits that are stuck to the bars.
Step Seven: Once finished with the sides you can begin on the bottom level. Just as with the sides, take your scrubber and boiling water and wash it down well. Scrub off any bits that are stuck to the sides. After you have finished scrubbing take a towel and wipe up the excess water- this will once again help pick up any missed pieces that were stuck to the bottom. It will also help dry your cage up. Once the bottom is dry- add fresh new bedding.
Step Seven: Now move onto your 'levels' that you placed in either the bathtub or a large container of hot water. Since they have soaked any messes stuck to them should be easy to wipe away. Using the same scrubber you used for the cage, wipe down your levels, tunnels, and ladders. Once you have finished take them out of the water, dry them with a towel, and place them in the cage.
Step Eight: Go back to your plastic and glass objects (litter box, dishes, and plastic toys) and do the same thing with them. Scrub them down well, dry them off, and place them back into the cage.
Step Nine: Now go to your cloth objects- pull the ones you could wash out of the dryer and place them back in the cage. Take any that you couldn't wash, scrub them with a damp cloth to remove any stains or messes, and set them out to dry. Once they have dried you can place them back in the cage (you can move on to the next step as they dry).
Step Ten: Let your little furries check out their new clean home! By rearranging their home regularly you give them entertainment, a chance to explore, and prevent boredom.
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Step One: Remove the critters. Put your little guys in a safe playpen where they can frolic around without you having to look over your shoulder every two seconds to make sure they're not getting into some sort of trouble. You want to focus all of your attention on cleaning- so leave the playful one's in a mischief-free zone.
Step Two: Remove all plastic and glass objects. Your food dish, water dish, litter box, and part plastic toys. Empty them all out and set them in a bowl of hot water. This well help begin cleaning them. Just let them sit.
Step Three: Remove all other objects. Blankets, tents, hammocks, cloth toys, and any other soft objects should be set aside. Anything that can be thrown into a washing machine should be put on a delicate cycle and cleaned with hot water- no soap necessary.
Step Four: Remove 'floors' or 'levels'. Any plastic tunnels, ladders, and floors should now be removed. If you have a container large enough to put them into with boiling water, place them in hot water and let them sit. If not, fill up a bathtub with hot water and set them in there.
Step Five: Remove the bedding. Discard of all of the bedding and wipe away any bits of bedding that are left behind. Even a small vacuum can work well for removing all bedding remnants.
Step Six: Get yet another bowl of hot water and a tough scrubber (ones for dishes work great). Take your scrubber, soak it in the hot water, and beginning at the top of your cage scrub down the sides. By starting at the top you will keep the 'ugly dripplings' from hitting an already clean bottom. Once you have finished the sides, grab a clean towel and wipe them down. This will help dry them off as well as pick up any missed bits that are stuck to the bars.
Step Seven: Once finished with the sides you can begin on the bottom level. Just as with the sides, take your scrubber and boiling water and wash it down well. Scrub off any bits that are stuck to the sides. After you have finished scrubbing take a towel and wipe up the excess water- this will once again help pick up any missed pieces that were stuck to the bottom. It will also help dry your cage up. Once the bottom is dry- add fresh new bedding.
Step Seven: Now move onto your 'levels' that you placed in either the bathtub or a large container of hot water. Since they have soaked any messes stuck to them should be easy to wipe away. Using the same scrubber you used for the cage, wipe down your levels, tunnels, and ladders. Once you have finished take them out of the water, dry them with a towel, and place them in the cage.
Step Eight: Go back to your plastic and glass objects (litter box, dishes, and plastic toys) and do the same thing with them. Scrub them down well, dry them off, and place them back into the cage.
Step Nine: Now go to your cloth objects- pull the ones you could wash out of the dryer and place them back in the cage. Take any that you couldn't wash, scrub them with a damp cloth to remove any stains or messes, and set them out to dry. Once they have dried you can place them back in the cage (you can move on to the next step as they dry).
Step Ten: Let your little furries check out their new clean home! By rearranging their home regularly you give them entertainment, a chance to explore, and prevent boredom.
