ferretmaster
Going Natural
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Ferret Slave
Posts: 120
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Post by ferretmaster on May 26, 2008 9:42:47 GMT -5
Where I'm going to get my ferts..the guarantee is the same..they have to be fed zupreem in order for the year guarantee to stay in tact..couldn't I buy a bag and just keep it handy  The main reason Ferret mills tell you to feed "their food" for the guarantee is to make money! They know Ferrets imprint on their food at a young age and by feeding them "their food" it will be much harder for you switch them off of it later on in their life. You may give up on trying to switch them onto a different food and continue to use their product, hence making them more money. Feed your ferrets what ever you think is best for them to live a long happy life, if a problem does arise just tell them you are feeding whatever food they recommended. |
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Post by Forum Administrator on May 26, 2008 22:00:21 GMT -5
Thats a good point, Dom. How the heck would they know you are/aren't feeding their food, anyway?
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ferretmaster
Going Natural
Ferretopia Ferret Forum[/color]
Ferret Slave
Posts: 120
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Post by ferretmaster on May 27, 2008 22:30:39 GMT -5
Thats a good point, Dom. How the heck would they know you are/aren't feeding their food, anyway? I doubt very much they are going to spend any cash on lab work trying to figure out if you are feeding their food, i even doubt if they actually get the ferrets back to the breeder. |
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Post by josiesmom on Jun 3, 2008 23:20:32 GMT -5
Most health issues take at least a year or more to show up, so the "one year guarantee" isn't much of a guarantee at all when it comes down to it. There are instances of some ferrets showing adrenal issues younger than a year and some other health issues, but mostly ferrets are healthy through their first yeay anyway.
Josie made it just past her one year mark then succombed to Juvenile Lymphosarcoma - something totally NON dietary related!
Considering that the predominant health issues affecting ferrets ARE relatd to diet, wouldn't it be better to offer the ferret a diet its system is designed to assimilate, rather than force it to eat foreign substances?
Cheers,
Kim
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Post by amyandfuzzies6 on Jun 5, 2008 9:46:01 GMT -5
Where I'm going to get my ferts..the guarantee is the same..they have to be fed zupreem in order for the year guarantee to stay in tact..couldn't I buy a bag and just keep it handy Marshalls has the same "health guarantee" but you couldn't pay me to feed that stuff! I'll take my chances. Like Giuli said, it seems like they develop and get larger when fed a natural diet as early as possible - especially during the 1st 6 months. I have noticed Marshall ferrets have been getting larger, too  I hope they keep it up. |
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Post by buzzonesbirdie on Jun 6, 2008 9:02:59 GMT -5
All of our fuzzbuts are about the same size. Tootsie who is a M/Farms is our smallest at just over a pound. Riely is also a M/Farms is our biggest at almost 5 lbs we joke that his father was a polar bear. Riely and Crash are M/Farms but we got them as very young kits and have been on raw most of their lives and their muscle tone is a lot better then the rest of them. None of this includes Hydra who is from a private breeder, comes from raw feed parents and was not altered until 11 months old. She is about 2 1/2 lbs but it is ALL muscle. We bought Crash and we did not care about the quarntee either he was brought home and given a piece of chicken and that was that. Riely, Crash, and Hydra are the only ones we have that wont try to steal the cats kibble.
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Post by mustelidmusk on Jun 12, 2008 23:36:41 GMT -5
Hi Meli, Just Feed your fert a healthy diet. If you lose a fert - or if it has a congenital defect which entitles you to get a refund or replcement, trust me...you won't care about the money or the guarantee...you'll be so heart-broken that the idea of money or a trade-in will be just like somebody twisting on the knife in your heart. AND you wlll be blaming yourself as well, wondering if your fert may have been OK if you fed a better diet. Not to be gross, but like Giuli mentions, you have to jump through hoops to make the guarantee's stick. They'll probably require a necropsy & report from your vet to prove that your baby was fed Zupreem! Yes, these are very harsh words, but also very true. Ferrets are so special - they WILL steal your heart so completely and so quickly...ferrets are unlike any other experience in my life - and I ain't no "spring  " And when the time comes for your fert to get his wings ( regardless of age), you'll be happiest and feel the best about whatever happens if you just do the best you can for your ferts. You will know what I mean very shortly after you are owned by your ferts. We all know that you're already a sucker for fuzz -jennifer |
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Post by amyandfuzzies6 on Jun 13, 2008 13:38:57 GMT -5
"Yes, these are very harsh words, but also very true. Ferrets are so special - they WILL steal your heart so completely and so quickly...ferrets are unlike any other experience in my life - and I ain't no "spring"....posted by Jennifer (mustelidmusk) You couldn't have said it better, Jennifer (and I'm no spring chicken either ). I've always had pets and been surrounded by animals but ferrets are REALLY special. They are so intelligent and loving - 10x more than any dog I've ever had. I'm always tell my babies that they're little angels wrapped in fur. |
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Post by susan4rest on Jun 21, 2008 9:45:11 GMT -5
This was one of the reasons I did not adopt out of a pet store in the mall, although they bring in litters on a pretty consistant basis - so there are always kits on the way, they are only marshalls ferrets and you have to feed them marshall food for a year for the gaurantee to be in effect. So glad that I adopted from outside the pet store ring, although I recently fell in love with a cute little kit at petco, when does the temptation for more go away? LOL  |
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Post by weloveourweasels on Jun 24, 2008 2:38:08 GMT -5
I would say that most Marshall's kids are between 1-2 lbs for females and 2-4 lbs for males, if over a year and a half old. There has been some talk that in the last year and a half Marshall's has introduced some European blood to there mix and the ferrets have gotten bigger. That is only talk and letters that have been written by others and myself to Marshall's trying to find out if this is true have gone unanswered. There is also speculation that the tattoo on some of the Marshall's ferrets paws indicates European blood lines. From what i have seen with my 2 boys and other peoples ferrets that are Marshall's and have paw tattoos are larger than Marshall's ferrets from a 2 years ago, my 2 boys are 10 months old now and are 4 lbs in summer trim and should be getting bigger. A ferret reaches full maturity at around a year in age and their adult body weight should be stabilized at 14 months[if i remember correctly] A ferret can gain as much as 40% of their body weight in the winter and then loose That added weight for summer. I have one female Marshall's fert that never changes her weight and stays a constant 1 lbs 7 oz so it depends on the ferret and their metabolism on how much they pack on in the winter. I would say with your kids they may put on some muscle mass due to the better food and exercise, but i think they are done growing. I weigh my my kids once a month with a food scale so i can keep track of their weight, a sudden weight change could indicate a health issue that other wise might go unnoticed till other sometimes appear. I have 5 path valley ferrets and they are larger than my Marshall's kids. The 3 females range between 1 3/4 -2 1/2 lbs in summer and the 2 males 3-5 in summer. My Rolo baby has a tattoo on her left paw its on the second inner digit and she is way bigger now( at 9 months) and heavier than my 2 year old girl Loki (she has no tattoo) I can't remember their weights when i went in january for shots but i think they were both .75 ( Rolo was 4 months old) Do you think if i called the vet and asked they would have their weights on record and could give it to me? I do know they said they put them on the normal scale and they didn't even register. They had to use the baby scales. (They are both Marshall's) |
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Post by weloveourweasels on Jun 24, 2008 2:43:29 GMT -5
Thats a good point, Dom. How the heck would they know you are/aren't feeding their food, anyway? the way the pet store explained the guarantee to me is since the guarantee is if anything happens to your ferret (death) they will replace your ferret only if they do an autopsy and they find Marshall's food in their intestinal tract. They can tell what you have been feeding by the autopsy. yeaaaa mine were only on Marshall's for the 2 weeks i was switching them to Wellness kitten health (they aren't on that anymore) |
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ferretmaster
Going Natural
Ferretopia Ferret Forum[/color]
Ferret Slave
Posts: 120
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Post by ferretmaster on Jun 24, 2008 21:58:45 GMT -5
Thats a good point, Dom. How the heck would they know you are/aren't feeding their food, anyway? the way the pet store explained the guarantee to me is since the guarantee is if anything happens to your ferret (death) they will replace your ferret only if they do an autopsy and they find Marshall's food in their intestinal tract. They can tell what you have been feeding by the autopsy. yeaaaa mine were only on Marshall's for the 2 weeks i was switching them to Wellness kitten health (they aren't on that anymore) I had [key word HAD] a friend that managed a large chain pet store, you have to think like a business person for this. A ferret cost the store between 30-60 bucks depending on the supplier, an autopsy and lab work would cost between 300-600 bucks. They are not going to spend that kind of money on a deceased animal, its not good business, they are just going to give you another animal and cut their losses. The reason they want the body back is only proof that the animal is deceased. I will not go into detail on what they did with the deceased animals, but it was not right what they did.  |
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