Meet Felix,

Mrs. Mc's Class Pet

Hi there, my name is Carissa McDougal. My Pre-K classroom calls me Mrs. Mc.

I had a pet ferret when I was a teenager. His name was Mika and he was by my side through high school, college, and the first couple of years into my married life. He lived with me at college, where I taught him to roll over as a psychology project using Pavlov’s dog. When I entered into early childhood education, the thought of once again having a ferret, this time as a class pet, really intrigued me.

After speaking with Denice at Marshall’s a few times early in spring 2020, we were able to make that a reality. I was so excited to introduce this class pet to our students. We talked about ferrets and watched videos about them. The kids were so anxious for his arrival. Then, in March, our school had no choice other than to close due to COVID. Hoping we would reopen after a short break, I proceeded in getting a ferret for the class. He stayed with my family in our home while we anxiously awaited the return to school.

We named him Felix C. Ferret. The C standing for nothing other than COVID of course. So, Felix COVID Ferret joined my family. My 6-year-old twins, Jaxtin & Adalynn love him. He is absolutely adorable!

Weeks out of school turned into months stuck at home, and before we knew it the school year was over. I was so disappointed my class kids were not going to get to enjoy time with Felix. I shared photos, videos and Zoom calls featuring Felix with my Pre-K kids.

While we awaited the hopeful return of the 2020- 2021 school year, I trained Felix to roll over just as I had done with Mika. We worked on behaviors with him and trained him with small children, seeing as I have two young children myself. Finally, we received word that we would be returning to school in fall 2020!

We began the school year with modifications as many schools have: social distancing, masks and lots of hand washing. But the moment the kids saw this mysterious animal next to my desk, they were such curious little kids.

Most of them, if not all of them, had never seen a ferret before. They asked so many questions: What is he? Is he a hamster? What does he eat? Where does he go to the bathroom? Can we hold him? Once we got through answering all of their questions, I introduced Felix to the class. Their eyes got big and their sweet little faces just lit up. Some wanted to touch and hold him right away, while others were a little more timid. But for the most part, the curiousness overcame the fear.

We talked about how to hold him and pet him and decided we should pass him around. Which anyone that knows ferrets can probably figure that he squirmed his little wiggly self away from a few of the kids. Which turned into me and the other teacher, Mrs. Zoe, chasing him throughout the room, behind the bookcases, into the cubbies, and so on until we caught him. The kids thought it was just hilarious.

Over the past few weeks, Felix has really bonded with some of our children. We have a child that gets overwhelmed easily that has really taken to Felix. Felix helps calm him down, and he looks forward to seeing Felix every day.

Some students have gotten the opportunity to feed him as well as give him treats when he rolls over. We have an old claw-foot bathtub in our room that we use as a reading center. The kids love to climb in there and play with Felix. It is a space we can easily contain him in while the kids get to enjoy playing with him, giving him his toys and occasional cuddles.

Felix goes home with me every day after school. At home, he gets some time to run around more freely and have a bigger space to relax. It’s his home, but he is almost just as cozy at school. He has his yellow banana hammock there that he loves to sleep in and hide from the kids. We usually get him out during social time. But his home is right next to our block center, so occasionally they like to share the blocks they are building with Felix. It doesn’t bother him one bit. But he will try to pull things from them through his cage and hide them under his blankets.

The kids in my class are 4 and 5 years old. They truly love having Felix. They can sometimes get a little excited and hold him a little too tight. It is important to make sure that they are being observed when playing with Felix at all times. They do require more care than a typical class pet, but it is absolutely worth it! I love that the kids have a class pet they can interact with, cuddle and love on. Felix has been an absolute joy to them.

In this age range, and even into kindergarten and first grade, kids thrive on these types of interactions. They teach responsibility, social and emotional skills, and not to mention, how many kids get to say they have a ferret in their classroom? If there are any teachers out there contemplating getting a ferret as a class pet, take it on! Immerse your kids into all of it. They are only this small once and the pure joy you get to experience makes it even that much more purposeful.