Did you know that in the ’90s, ferrets were one of the most popular pets in America? Aside from dogs and cats, ferrets took third place in the “interactive household pet” category.
Now, rabbits are far more popular. Nevertheless, a study by the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2018 found that 326,000 households in the United States own at least one ferret.
But, in their 2000-odd years as domesticated pets, no ferret is as famous as this one.
Ferrets are highly intelligent animals and make great pets. They can be trained to walk on a leash, sit, and shake hands – and their inherent curiosity is sure to always keep their owners entertained! But that’s not all.
Ferrets also have the ability to solve complex problems – which means they are able to come up with ploys to attract attention from their humans.
The viral video of this ferret has garnered more than 39 million views to date – and all because of her bizarre “ploy.”
Unsplash/Yulia Vambold
Unsplash/Yulia Vambold
The adorable video was posted onto YouTube by RM Videos and has attracted thousands of likes and comments since it was uploaded in 2017.
The video begins with a ferret. She’s leaning off the edge of a table to gently grip her owner’s finger in her teeth.
Once she’s got a good grip, she begins to insistently pull at her owner’s hand, using her tiny little back feet for leverage. You can tell she’s not biting very hard, thankfully. But she is very determined!
At first, her owner resists the pulling, but then he relents.
What is she trying to do?
Slowly but surely, the adorable ferret pulls his hand closer and closer to a box on the table. And she’s still gripping his finger ever so gently.
It’s becoming clear that she desperately wants to show him something in her nest.
Eventually, she manages to drag her owner’s hand so it’s positioned above the box. She’s making strange-sounding clucks and chortles of approval all the while. And then, she disappears inside.
That’s when high-pitched mewling sounds erupt from the nest.
Inside the box are her baby kits! They’re squeaking because she’s come back inside the nest.
Newborn ferret babies are only around 20 inches long – they’re so tiny that they can fit comfortably inside a teaspoon!
Her owner picks one of the babies up, but the mom ferret quickly snatches it away again.
Even though you can see that these babies are a little older, it’s unbelievably cute that this momma ferret would expose her vulnerable kits like this.
She wants her owner’s hand to be inside the box with her! And she doesn’t let up. Her owner takes his hand out of the box again, but she’s insistent.
Once again, she drags his hand back into the box. This happens three times. But why is she doing this?
At first glance, it appears as though she wants to “show off her babies,” but netizens had a few other theories.
“She probably recognizes that she receives comfort and health from that hand, so she wants to bestow it on her babies,” one Redditor posited.
Or, maybe it was just a ploy to get some attention from her human? Whatever her motives were, the video is certainly the most adorable video you’ll see today.
Watch the video below to decide for yourself!
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