- Target:
- Ferret Owners
- Region:
- United States of America
Marshall Farms, based in North Rose, New York, is a commercial breeder of dogs and ferrets for pets and scientific research. Marshall Pet Products, a division of Marshall Farms founded in 1993, sells a wide range of food, toys, and other accessories for ferrets and rabbits.
Founded in 1939 by Gilman Marshall, the company is currently the largest ferret breeder in the United States. Ferrets from Marshall are commonly seen in pet shops across the United States, Canada, and (increasingly) Japan; they are also used in biomedicine laboratories, particularly in the fields of viral and parasitic diseases, cardiovascular and behavioral research, and reproductive endocrinology.
Pet ferrets originating from Marshall Farms usually have two small dots tattooed in the right ear, though this practice is not exclusive to Marshall. One dot indicates that the ferret has been spayed or neutered; two indicate that its anal scent glands have also been surgically removed.
Animal rights groups such as PETA have attacked Marshall in the past for breeding animals for scientific and medical research. The firm was the subject of an Animal Liberation Front raid in 2001, in which it was claimed that 10 ferrets and 30 beagles were removed from the complex.
My goal is to stop the horrendous practices of a Corporation that doesn't care about their animals. Being a ferret owner and loving them like I do I would rather see many less in the US as opposed to the mistreatment that they undergo. My heart won't let me sit on the sidelines any longer without having my voice heard. My ferrets are Marshall Ferrets and when I got them I had no idea what to do with them but I took the time to learn about caring for them and how much time they truly require. In learning how to care for them (which in retrospect I should have been done a long time beforehand) I learned that due to over breeding and and poor conditions at the actual farms often leads to an overabundance of ferrets that cannot be cared for and often sold for medical research. Many are born with birth defects from over breeding and I cannot let this happen any longer. My heart bleeds for all of these animals and I would like your help to stop this Corporation for benefiting from these horrific practices.
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The No More Marshall Farms petition to Ferret Owners was written by Laura Robinson and is in the category Animal Rights at GoPetition.