The magnetic latch-and-key system works best for
many people; they're available at many hardware or
children's' stores. The kind that lock around two
handles at once, available from baby stores, have
also gotten a good report. If your ferret
scratches at the underside of your couch to get
through the fabric into the bottom, try taking off
the couch's legs, if it has them. Heavy cloth or
plywood stapled or nailed to the bottom can work,
too, though ferrets can often rip cloth
loose.
Sometimes ferrets try to get into the bottom or
arms of the couch by burrowing between the
cushions and the back or sides. This is much
harder to prevent, but some people have had good
luck blocking the area with cloth or wood,
stapled, nailed, taped or sewn to the couch.
You
can also give in and remove the bottom fabric and
lower stuffing from your couch, putting a piece of
plywood on the springs and the cushions on that.
Then it doesn't matter as much if your ferrets get
into the bottom, as long as they don't get caught
between the cushions and the springs. Many ferret
owners find it simpler to give up and get a futon
or a "suspended" couch that doesn't have
an inside in the first place.
Attaching eye hooks (screws with a ring shape
at the top) to the door and cabinet and putting a
nail through them both has worked for some people,
and the latches with a pair of rollers on one
piece and a mushroom-shaped catch are said to be
strong enough for most ferrets. Some kinds of
child-proof locks also work very well, though
others are too weak or open wide enough to let a
ferret through.
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