I rescued two ferrets a few months ago. One of them initially had problems with biting: She would walk up to me, and literally chew on my skin until I bled / bruised horribly. This behavior subsided after several weeks of cautious handling and playing with them utilizing distractions.

For about the past week I have begun letting my ferrets free roam during the day, and the same ferret with biting problems has begun sprinting away from me and hiding when I get up or walk near them. Initially, I thought this was playful behavior as she comes out a few moments later and will allow me to approach her, handle her, and never causes a fuss.

Just now, she tried to run away from me as I was heading into the kitchen, and she made a really really loud squeaking / screeching sound before running under the couch to hide. It sounded like genuine terror, yet a few moments later she was climbing my pants leg wanting to be picked up?

I'm not sure what to make of this behavior and wanted to ensure I'm not missing anything, TIA for any input