A Major Step Forward: Chewy Drops Marshall Pet Products
In a major step forward for the victims of animal testing, Chewy, one of the largest online retailers of pet supplies in the United States, has dropped Marshall Pet Products.
The decision came after years of public pressure from advocates and advocacy organizations like Species Unite, who have sounded the alarm about the connection between the brand, which is primarily known as a supplier of ferret care products, food, toys, and accessories, and its parent company, Marshall BioResources, one of the largest breeding facilities for animals used in experimentation in the United States.
Species Unite has been calling on Chewy, Petco, and PetSmart for years to cut ties with Marshall Pet Products and stop supporting this cruel animal breeding operation, where beagles, cats, ferrets, pigs, and other animals are bred to be sold to laboratories across the United States and around the world. According to an investigation by Rise for Animals, approximately 23,000 dogs may be housed in Marshall's sheds at any given time. Aerial footage of the site has exposed endless rows of windowless buildings on the property, which has been cited numerous times for violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
A representative for Marshall BioResources has even publicly acknowledged the grim lack of compassion for the animals held at their breeding center, stating, “We will breed anything a lab wants. If they want a dog with 3 legs or an abnormally large heart, we can do it.”
Now, Chewy has finally done the right thing and proven that private companies can take a powerful stand against animal abuse. We are deeply grateful that Chewy has listened to our concerns and those of so many individuals who reached out and asked the company to do better. This major development represents a one-third victory in our fight to hold the leading e-commerce pet supply companies accountable, and we are truly thankful to the thousands of Species Unite Community members who signed and shared this petition over the past few years. We have now updated the petition target to focus on Petco and PetSmart, and we will continue to hold these companies accountable until they, too, make the compassionate and ethical choice to stop supporting Marshall Pet Products.
This decision by Chewy helps add momentum to the fight against animal testing at a key moment. This weekend, animal advocates will gather in Albany to begin the March to Abolish Animal Testing, a 207-mile journey across New York that will take them over 14 days to North Rose, where they will take part in a peaceful rally outside Marshall BioResources to bring attention to the horrors taking place inside the animal breeding facility each and every day.
If you are based in New York, you can join the opening rally in Albany on September 12, take part in the march, or participate in the final action outside Marshall BioResources on September 26.
If you haven't already, you can also make a difference by signing both our petition speaking out against Marshall BioResources for its cruel breeding of dogs and other animals for experimentation and our petition calling on PetSmart and Petco to follow the example of other ethical companies and do the right thing by dropping Marshall Pet Products.