MC wrote:
>Bill...Marshall Farms Ferrets does not use distributors(*)..they use
>one, their own, and not all MF kits go through that distributor.
 
Errrrrrrrr, MC, your wording here confuses me.  They have different
distributors for different regions, so one for your region, but not one
nationally or internationally.  Some places buy directly form them, but
others buy from the distributors who are independent of MF and buy from
MF.  Did the original person perhaps incorrectly think that MF owns the
various distributors or did you read it that way?  I read it differently,
but thought that the person over-estimated MF's power.  There are always
limits on how much any place can control a different company's actions or
know what happens when they figure no one if looking.  That is just life.
 
>I believe CDC, Hagan's Ferrets, Triple F Farms, and, Path Valley, *DO*
>use distributors.  My friend's pet store has received ferrets from most
>to us via distributors.  What I have observed about MF ferrets, holds
>true to these farms as well.
 
Plenty of places use distributors.  These are beautifully logical comments
of your's.
 
>Addressing your comment, Prey tell, how do we educate the public to only
>buy from reputable breeders?  Do you and I advertise in all the papers,
>television, radio, magazines, etc.  to let people know?  Get real...what
>you advocate is an impossibility of the first magnitude.
 
Yep.  It's all "buyer beware".  If a person doesn't look around, ask
questions, get health data, etc. then no one else is going to get the
person to do so.
 
Also, I run too often into people who pass the buck because they aren't
yet used to ferrets enough so they miss important symptoms, and also into
people who go first for fancies when so many fancies are already more
prone to health problems no matter where they come from, and into people
who have not sought out ferret-knowledgeable vets.  Often there is a
heart-breaking combination of newbies, lack of reading on health issues
so the people don't jump fast enough and don't know how to jump, lack of
health precautions like heartworm meds or other such as or lack of testing
at the right ages (most of which can be avoided by learning ahead of
time), too little reading of material written by actual ferret vets
(sometimes combined with too much influence by non-medical folks), etc.
Go and combine those downfalls with so many who are new to ferrets ALSO
getting too many ferrets at first to carefully monitor health aspects
(preferentially go for fancies and WHAM!  If the people don't have a
ferret when they should be learning.  That may sound harsh, but i have
run into that sort of combination over and over again, month in and month
out for so very many years that I can't figure out why the simple lesson
"LEARN FIRST" doesn't take hold.
 
The person to whom MC was replying said:
>She is sweet and loving and docile, and SMALL as she was altered at 6
>weeks as are all Marshall Ferrets.
 
If you go into the FML archives and read the posts from breeders when the
proportion of breeders was higher you will find post after post form them
saying that the UN-spayed females are smaller than the spayed ones, while
the UN-altered males are larger than the altered ones.  Haven't heard
from any breeders on this is some time.  Would one of you, please, address
this?  Is this still the norm in your experience?  The rule of thumb then
was that sexual dimorphism was greater with non-sterilized animals, with
the differences being from changes to both of these genders.
 
Our alpha here is a smart-as-a-whip female who is next to our smallest in
size and she has been the alpha for about 2 years now without dispute.
This morning when I was calling Scooter for his chemo she found him and
herded him to me.  She always does stuff like that.
 
>Let's talk about rescues and sick, neglected ferrets..*now* we see more
>private or unknown bred ferrets.
 
Gads, yes, inbreeding, and poor-stock breeding backyard breeders, and
animal hoarders -- possibly the two worst banes of the ferret world.
 
>Try getting **FACTS** from reputable sources before posting as true.
 
My heart be still!  LOL!  Seriously, the ferret world ABOUNDS with
fake rumors.  They cost us all.  I have to say that facts rather than
accusations or suppositions are such a hope of mine, too.
[Posted in FML issue 3817]