{"id":2458,"date":"2010-09-15T10:01:10","date_gmt":"2010-09-15T17:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/?p=2458"},"modified":"2025-08-06T04:08:46","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T11:08:46","slug":"female-ferrets-will-die-if-they-dont-mate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/index.php\/2010\/09\/female-ferrets-will-die-if-they-dont-mate\/","title":{"rendered":"Female Ferrets Will Die If They Don\u2019t Mate"},"content":{"rendered":"
Note: This is a guest article contributed by a frequent TIFO visitor and owner of DumpADay.com<\/a>, Jon.
\nIf you’re interested in contributing to TIFO click here to read our article submission guidelines<\/a>.<\/div>\n

Today I found out<\/a> that a female ferret (A.K.A. Jill) will die if she doesn’t mate.\u00a0 It’s one thing to say, I swear I am going \"\"<\/a>to die if I don’t get some soon.\u00a0 For Jill however, when sheis in heat, if she doesn’t find a mate she will secrete high levels of estrogen and if this hormone stays in the blood for a prolonged period of time, it will cause a progressive depression of\u00a0 bone marrow that results in a severe, life threatening aplastic anemia which is fatal.<\/p>\n

It’s not like she needs to get pregnant, she simply needs the act of mating.\u00a0 (we’ve all been there) The physical act of mating induces ovulation in Jill and will bring her out of estrus.\u00a0 She’ll then have a false pregnancy that will go full term,\u00a0 (about 40 to 45 days), but without the nasty side-effect called kids.<\/p>\n

Jill has a very unique reproductive system, namely it includes induced ovulation.\u00a0 This basically means she will stay in heat or estrus until the physical act of mating is performed.\u00a0 Once she has mated, Jill and Hob or Hobbet (Manly ferrets) go their separate ways.\u00a0 She will go through the pregnancy and give birth and raise the young all on her own.\u00a0 The Hob has no responsibilities what-so-ever.\u00a0 (Oh, if only reincarnation we real.\u00a0 Talk about winning the lottery!)<\/p>\n

Thanks to medical miracles though, if you have a Jill and she is in heat and you can’t find Hob anywhere, you can take Jill to the vet and they can give her an injection of hormones called a “Jill Jab” which in turn will terminate estrus.\u00a0 While this method isn’t near as much fun as the natural method, it will keep her living a long and wonderful life.<\/p>\n

What a great pic-up line if you were a Hob.\u00a0 “Hey baby, I’ll save you!”\u00a0 Then he can go around all day and brag about how many Jill’s he saved.<\/p>\n

Bonus<\/span> Ferret Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n