--- title: "Ferret (Mustela furo) | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "A domesticated weasel relative that spends over 60% of its time asleep in the lab." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/ferret-1.webp" published: "2026-10-10" updated: "2026-10-10" --- # Ferret (*Mustela furo*) > **Status**: Checked against 8 sources, listed under Sources below. > **Tagline**: A domesticated weasel relative that spends over 60% of its time asleep in the lab. > **Soundtrack Vibe**: Chillhop & Lo-Fi Beats // J Dilla, "Workinonit" > **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/33T6ABvdB3P2iYOWJnBjsQ) > **Vibe Match**: Its REM sleep comes as a high number of short episodes rather than long periods. Dilla's Donuts is built the same way, a run of loops mostly under two minutes, each one over before it settles. ## Biological Superpowers & Stats - **Taxonomy**: *Mustela furo* - **Danger Level**: Low - **Conservation Status**: Not Evaluated ([IUCN Red List](https://www.iucnredlist.org/)) - **Superpower**: Sleeps over 60% of the time in the lab, with an unusually large share of it in REM sleep - **Habitat**: Domestic; kept as a pet in homes around the world - **Diet**: Meat; a small carnivore - **Tags**: mammal, mustelid, domestic-pet, carnivore, predator ## Natural History & Behavior ## A small carnivore that mostly sleeps Ferrets are small carnivores in the weasel family. In lab recordings of two adult males, ferrets spent over 60% of their time asleep. Sleep comes in stages, and one is REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. In those males, REM took up 40.28% of total sleep time. The high REM share comes from a high number of REM episodes rather than long REM periods. A second study measured sleep in eight adult ferrets. > **REM share** > In that study, REM sleep filled 24.01% of total recording time, considerably higher than typically reported in placental mammals. The authors suggest REM sleep may have been present in greater amounts in early stages of mammalian evolution. ## How big, how long An intact male, called a hob, weighs 1 to 2 kg. An intact female, called a jill, weighs 0.5 to 1.5 kg. Animal Diversity Web puts males at 0.9 to 2.7 kg, with neutered males often lighter. The body is long and slender: females are typically 33 to 35.5 cm long and males 38 to 40.6 cm, plus a tail of 7.6 to 10 cm. As pets they can live 6 to 10 years, and a review gives 8 to 10 years, and up to 15. Ferrets become sexually active in the first spring after their birth, usually around 9 months of age. ## Hunters turned housemates Ferrets are common pets all over the globe. The same review says they were used as rat and rabbit hunters about 2000 years ago. They are also kept as laboratory animals and for fur. One study compared ferrets with their wild counterpart, the European polecat, and with hybrids of the two. Ferrets do not develop fear of man. Hybrids raised with their mother through a critical window of 7.5 to 8.5 weeks of age do. ## Weak spots Canine distemper is a virus that affects many pets. It is fatal for virtually all ferrets that meet it. Vaccination protects them. Another problem is adrenal disease, called hyperadrenocorticism, meaning excessive production of sex steroids. A review says it is unique to ferrets. It calls it one of the most common endocrine (hormone) system diseases in neutered ferrets. Coat colour matters too. In a study of 152 healthy European pet ferrets, 29% had congenital deafness in one or both ears. It was strictly associated with white coat markings and premature graying. All panda, American panda and blaze ferrets in the study were deaf. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Can ferrets get human flu? Yes. They are exquisitely susceptible to infection with human influenza viruses and show some of the same symptoms people do. That is why researchers use them as an animal model for influenza, and many see them as the ideal small one. *(Source: [Matsuoka, Lamirande & Subbarao 2009]())* ### How big is a newborn ferret? Tiny. Kits are blind at birth and weigh 6 to 12 g. Litter size averages 8 kits, from 1 to 18. *(Source: [Grinblate & Ilgaza 2019]())* ### When do ferrets breed? Light sets the clock. Mating activity depends on day length, and gonadal activity appears when the day exceeds 12 hours. Females can be brought out of heat by mating. *(Source: [Grinblate & Ilgaza 2019]())* ## Sources 1. [Marks & Shaffery (1996). A Preliminary Study of Sleep in the Ferret, Mustela putorius furo: A Carnivore With an Extremely High Proportion of REM Sleep.]() 2. [Jha, Coleman & Frank (2006). Sleep and sleep regulation in the ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Behavioural Brain Research.]() 3. [Grinblate & Ilgaza (2019). Biology, Reproductive System Particularities and Hyperadrenocorticism in Domestic Ferret (Mustela Putorius Furo). Biomedical Journal of Scientific & Technical Research.]() 4. [Poole (1972). Some behavioural differences between the European polecat, Mustela putorius, the ferret, M. furo, and their hybrids. Journal of Zoology.]() 5. [Piazza et al. (2014). Prevalence of deafness and association with coat variations in client-owned ferrets. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.]() 6. [Matsuoka, Lamirande & Subbarao (2009). The Ferret Model for Influenza. Current Protocols in Microbiology.]() 7. [Mustela putorius furo (domestic ferret). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]() 8. [Pet Talk: Ferret Distemper. Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences.]() *Published October 10, 2026. 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