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DIY #1: Litter Boxes

  • Writer: VI FERT
    VI FERT
  • Oct 20
  • 2 min read

Litter boxes are important to ferrets for several reasons related to their health, hygiene, behaviour, and your convenience as a pet owner.


  1. Ferrets Are Naturally Inclined to Use a Bathroom Area

    Ferrets have a natural instinct to choose specific corners as their bathroom spots. Litter boxes placed in those corners help reinforce good habits and keep their environment clean.

  2. Promotes Hygiene

    A litter box keeps waste contained, reducing mess and odor in their cage or free-roam area. Without one, they’ll choose random corners, leading to an unhygienic living space.

  3. Easier to Clean

    Litter boxes make cleanup much easier. You can scoop daily and deep clean less often. This also reduces ammonia buildup from urine, which can affect air quality.

  4. Health Monitoring

    Tracking your ferret's bathroom habits through their litter box helps monitor health. Changes in frequency, colour, or consistency can indicate illness or digestive issues.

  5. Part of Litter Training

    A well-placed litter box is key to training your ferret. Consistent training using a litter box significantly reduces accidents.


THE DIY PROJECT!


Many of VI FERT's members have become very adept at building all kinds of DIY projects for their ferrets. One of our members has offered to share with everyone their DIY solution for litter boxes!


Starting with a clean bin that you can pick up at most hardware or big box stores. This one just happens to be the perfect size for our needs. Measuring 23.5 inches (59.7 cm) Length, 16.75 inches (42 cm) Width by 5.5 inches (15cm) High. This will be plenty of room for your ferret to use. Often, corner or small litter boxes will be ignored because they don't offer enough room for the ferret to back into and use.
Starting with a clean bin that you can pick up at most hardware or big box stores. This one just happens to be the perfect size for our needs. Measuring 23.5 inches (59.7 cm) Length, 16.75 inches (42 cm) Width by 5.5 inches (15cm) High. This will be plenty of room for your ferret to use. Often, corner or small litter boxes will be ignored because they don't offer enough room for the ferret to back into and use.

Along the long edge we're going to need to cut down the side so that ferret's have an easier time getting in and out. If getting to a litter box is inconvenient most ferrets will simply find another place. It's easier to mark this cut out with a sharpie or marker to make cutting the lines easier.
Along the long edge we're going to need to cut down the side so that ferret's have an easier time getting in and out. If getting to a litter box is inconvenient most ferrets will simply find another place. It's easier to mark this cut out with a sharpie or marker to make cutting the lines easier.
Using a tool of your choice you'll then cut along that line in order to create a bigger opening for your ferrets. We've used a Dremel tool with a cutting blade but you can use anything from an exacto-knife to a jigsaw.
Using a tool of your choice you'll then cut along that line in order to create a bigger opening for your ferrets. We've used a Dremel tool with a cutting blade but you can use anything from an exacto-knife to a jigsaw.
The plastic edges will be rough and have burls. Using a utility knife we can carve away the rough edges and round them in order to create a smooth surface for you ferrets to climb over.
The plastic edges will be rough and have burls. Using a utility knife we can carve away the rough edges and round them in order to create a smooth surface for you ferrets to climb over.
Fill with a litter of your choice. We recommend something paper or wood based and to avoid cat litter or other clumping litters. As you can see from this photo the litter box fits perfectly under the platform found in most ferret and critter nation cages and doesn't interfere with the door closing.
Fill with a litter of your choice. We recommend something paper or wood based and to avoid cat litter or other clumping litters. As you can see from this photo the litter box fits perfectly under the platform found in most ferret and critter nation cages and doesn't interfere with the door closing.

 
 
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