@DelacoursLangur yes, the adjacent exhibit to the right is roughly the same dimensions and setup and also houses a black-footed ferret. Both can usually be found in the tunnels below their exhibits, as seen in this photo.
@Chlidonias I believe (though I may be wrong here) that the ferrets are always elderly individuals no longer used in breeding programs, and this is a grim retirement home. As I said though, I’m not sure, and they could just be any ferrets in excess of the breeding program. Smithsonian’s small mammal house has some good and some not-so-good exhibits, this one falling of course in the latter category. The new curator (who has been in place perhaps a bit over a year or two) has made several good changes diversifying the collection, but improvement in exhibit quality for the most part has been minimal. I hope a larger portion of changes in the future improve quality.
@Chlidonias I agree many small mammals get the short end of the stick when it comes to exhibits here in the US... I feel many zoos kind of shove them in a corner since most visitors pass small mammals by.
Its not only the size which is bad, its the lack of vertical space and enrichment. This would be fine if they wernt worried about making it naturalistic and gave them a full multi level climbing gym like a domestic ferret. This is just a bare box made of painted concrete, suitable only for reptiles.
