The playful domesticated ferrets seen in homes and pet stores today were derived from the wild polecat.
They were working animals for many years. As far back as 63 B.C. to 24 AD, Strabo writes of a plague of rabbits in the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean. He describes a Libyan animal that was bred for the purpose of hunting, muzzled and put into rabbit holes. This animal appears to be a ferret. Ferrets were muzzled and let loose. Once loose, they would tunnel down rabbit holes. It was the scent of the ferret and not the animals themselves that would scare off the rabbits. Once above ground, the rabbits could be hunted. The first references to ferrets in England were in 1223 and 1281 where a ferreter was listed as part of the Royal Court. In 1390 there was a decree prohibiting use of ferrets on Sundays, most likely to respect laws of the Catholic Church. It is reported that Emperor Frederick II of Prussia used ferrets for hunting, like many other notable people did.
Ferrets' use extended beyond just scaring off rabbits.
Ferrets were used to control rodents around barns and on American and European ships. They were in great demand during colonial times, since they could chase mice and rats into the many narrow holes and passageways on ships, unlike the bigger mouse-catchers - cats. Ferrets were first brought to the New World in the 17th century. Ferrets were imported to the United States as vermin exterminators to destroy rabbits, raccoons, gophers, rats and mice. The scent of ferrets make prey animals flee, so only a few were needed to protect barns, granaries and warehouses. If a farm was infested, farmers could call a ferretmeister to release ferrets on the property. Once the ferrets were let loose, people and dogs would be placed around the area to kill vermin as they escaped. Ferrets were used extensively in the U.S. from the 1860s to the start of World War II to protect grain stores in the American west.
Ferrets were used to hunt rabbits as food and for rabbit population control. Ferrets enjoy running through burrows and seeking out prey. In ancient times they were muzzled to prevent the ferret from killing the rabbit underground and then taking a nap. There is also evidence that in ancient times, another method to prevent this was by holding their lips together with a metal ring. Once the rabbits came out, they were either caught by string nets, chased by dogs, or shot by hunters. This kind of rabbit hunting is still practiced in some areas of the world.
