Hello, I'm the proud mother of 4 ferrets. I have come across some information about Marshall products that I find VERY disturbing. I'm going to post some links and let you do the research for yourself. I questioned the company awhile back, when I discovered most of their foods contained corn as the first ingredient. I challenge you to do the research on this, but I've found it detrimental to their health and well being. I've also discovered that they support and breed ferrets and Beagles for animal testing. You may not have a problem with that! But, I do. Please do some research and spread the word if you have a problem with their practices. http://www.change.org/petitions/all-people-who-cares-about-animals-pledge-to-boycott-marshall-pet-products-don-t-support-vivisection https://www.facebook.com/BoycottMarshallPetProducts http://boycottmarshallpet.wix.com/boycott-marshall-pet http://www.peta2.com/boards/topic/boycott-marshall-pet-products-dont-support-animal-testing/ http://www.thepetitionsite.com/472/572/446/boycott-marshall-pet-products-stop-breeding-animals-for-experimentation/ http://boycottmarshallpetproducts.blogspot.com/2013/01/boycott-marshall-pet-products-i-started_13.html Thank you Joan. I cannot support a company that does this to the same animals they sell products for a profit.

I think only uneducated people or new owners feed Marshalls anyway... but thanks. 

I notice most brands and Ferret drys have all kinds of crap theyre not supposed to eat! First few ingredients being corn/ corn meal, some other vegetables or grains... The only grain free stuff I found was Some cat food that has freeze dried raw chunk pieces. Even treats Ive seen have peas and carrots or some craziness... I was wondering what all the beef with Marshalls products was and theyre not the only brand.

Went to the vet today at PetSmart to get my boys checked for the 1st time and all I heard was Marshalls this and Marshalls that. It felt like I knew more than he did about ferrets just from the little I've seen on here and internet. Only good thing is he checked their ears and weighed them.

I am lucky my vet owns ferrets so he is pretty good at knowing what they need and don't need many vets aren't. As far as food I get a high protein and fat kibble I have only 16 ferrets right now at my highest I had 34 at one time and I was rescuing back then I haven't recently although I may start again once my number is down to 10 ferrets which since they are fairly young shouldn't be for awhile. I feed Orijen a kitten and cat food very high in protein and fat and Zupreem and Evo ferret foods also high in protein and fat. I have ferrets that live pretty long lives my last one to die Bandit was over 10 years old and most of mine are around 9 when they die. With as many as I have had over the last 16 years 48 ferrets you do get a few that die young of diseases you can't control. I won't use Marshalls food and never have.

My vet owns ferrets too, thankfully. 

I think Petsmart vet pushes Marshalls because changing the food voids their "warranty" or whatever, so if they're under a year they supposedly want them on that for warranty reasons, but I feel like feeding them that for that first year of them growing is much worse than the vet cost of removing them from it and not having a warranty on them anymore (I hate using that term for something alive).

Although I guess it's just like our doctor's being in the pockets of the phaemaceutical companies.

I didn't care about the warranty I would have never exchanged a ferret that was sick for a well one once I had taken it home. Once they were home with me they were mine for life. I only had one die just before it's first birthday it had juvenile lymphoma and he got it very young at around 3 or 4 months and the vet was surprised at how long he lasted I never once thought about the warranty nor would I have used it. Feeding it Marshalls was never a consideration because I had no use for the warranty and I thought the food was junk.

They weren't eating much of the stock kibble we brought home with them from Pet Land. Girlie bought a bag of Marshalls ferret diet without me knowing and when I came home they were munching it up. They're poo has since stabilized and they've gained a few ounces. I'm still shopping to find something else for food but most of what I see that says grain free still has peas, corn and other stuff I see they shouldn't have... even Zupreem.

We feed Zupreem ferret diet, but not the grain free.  check this food chart.  
http://forum.ferret.com/tm.aspx?m=242115

We went to a chain pet store this week looking to add a dry cat food to the mix for variety, and didn't find one without peas, corn or both, including a couple we fed in the past.  It's sad, because they are only a mile away, but they don't even carry N Bones and their prices are double what you would pay online, so we really have no reason to go there again. 

As raml said, as soon as we got our last 4 from Petco, we got them off Marshall's.  It's not worth feeding them a food you don't believe in on the off chance they got sick from it in the first year.  It takes longer than a year for insulinoma, etc, to show up.  

THE DOOKS OF HAZARD