Pet harbor in Boardman Ohio

Originally Posted by ElexisOrtiz

And I just told you it wasn't about the boi at the time yet I guess you think repeating it will make me change my story?

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Originally Posted by ElexisOrtiz

It sickens me that a reptile owner and I'm guessing breeder thinks those conditions are acceptable. Algae in water, mites, stick shed, no heat, feces in a lot of cages nasty old veggies in the bearded cage, no you're focused on me not whipping out the phone in front of employees snapping photos and be thrown out. I got what I could discreetly. If any of you think that's ok for the reptiles to be housed that way, even for retail you are part of the problem.

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REALLY???? If that's what you got out of that, then be sickened!

You have some SERIOUS ISSUES!

Lynn Peterson
Big Time Reptiles

Originally Posted by ElexisOrtiz

Why did i even try to warn people? You guys stick up for everyone else but as soon as I post I'm torn to shreds.

Originally Posted by ElexisOrtiz

decided to post to the boi even though I knew 3 people who just love to take shots at me would come justify it because it was myself that posted it.

The first quote was from the last BOI thread you participated in. I feel as if there are two separate issues going on: The first is the pet shop, and the second is the drama being played out here.
I do think that another set of photos might help, and if you don't feel comfortable going back in, get a friend to help. People seem to be about evenly divided about the pictures posted so far (and not just the people you seem to have issues with, either).
That doesn't necessarily mean your points are not good, Elexis, it means, if people are 50/50, that you probably need more evidence to knock the balance your way, if you can get it. Remember even in a courtroom if one party is guilty as sin, and you can't persuade enough people that hedunnit, he's walking.

If there is a choice between more/clearer photos and more drama, my vote goes to the photos.

The pictures of the bearded dragon bowls could be algae, the one that has the dragon soaking in it is definitely gross looking.

The BP in a bad shed is from lack of humidity, no surprise there, as most pet stores improperly keep their reptiles.

I can't comment on the dogs, other than it looks pretty standard.

Originally Posted by Mike Schultz

Looks like 99% of pet stores. Not excellent care by any stretch of the words, but I wouldn't go so far as to call it "abuse."

Personally I don't blame the employee for responding to your attitude, he probably gets paid $8.50 an hour to help old ladies put dog food in their car and here is some nerd freaking out at him because one of the ball pythons has a stuck shed. And he called another employee to help fix the problem as soon as you told him, and you call him snotty. Ha!

When I worked in the retail pet trade, failure to note a customer concern like this was grounds for dismissal. You checked it, mentioned it to a manager or if you were really busy made a note so you could get to it later, but it HAD to be addressed prior to the end of your shift. Now, at our rescue, we have a specific protocol our volunteers are to follow when a visitor notices a husbandry problem. We all try hard, but nobody is perfect and things do get missed. Using patrons as an extra set of eyes makes sense. Even if 9 times out of 10 there is nothing to really see.

I'm not going to go back for individual posts and quotes because I'm on my tablet and that's too fiddly and a pain in the butt, and my thoughts aren't necessarily on the same order as the posts they may be referencing.

First things first: Elexis, if you feel you're being singled out and targeted, and even harassed, then stop replying to those people and report them. Seriously, it is exhausting seeing it over and over and over. Stop taking the bait, and talk to a mod about your concerns. Surely, you don't think even the mods have an agenda against you? Every time you post, it's "people hate me," and "this is my last post," and "you only disagree because it's me." Please. Stop. If you honestly feel harassed, then get the mods in to resolve the issue and move on.

Next, bad shed. Bad shed can happen to any snake for a variety of reasons and is not always a husbandry issue. Sometimes, my snakes have bad sheds even with water dishes sufficient for them to soak and enclosures that keep their humidity higher than my room. It just happens on occasion, and sometimes a single thirty minute soak and mist is not sufficient. With mine, they will get "saunas" over several days if the first soak doesn't cure the issue. How do you know, other than assumption, that this isn't happening? Just because an associate was (reportedly) "snotty" about it? I'd probably be snotty too if someone walked up to me, all know-it-all, and tried to school me on reptile care.

Old food in tanks? Could that be the morning's/day's feed and it's just not been cleaned up yet? The high heat and low humidity of a beardie tank dries out vegetable matter very quickly. When I worked at a major pet retailer, we cleaned out food and water dishes daily (or more, if they got funky during the day). It only takes a few hours for the kale or other vegetables to dry out. Even the tortoise enclosure had this issue; I was accused more than a few times by my manager of not renewing tortoise food, until HE was the one to experience brand new food being dried up like that.

Now, as someone who worked 5 years in pet retail and did my own research above and beyond what we were taught at work, when someone comes up to try schooling me, it did not endear me to them. No, I'm not claiming I know everything, but I sure as heck and not stupid or completely ignorant on the animals in my care just because they weren't up to the customer's standards. Customers will always be able to create a more suitable enclosure than a retailer can. Retailers, whether national chains or private, have time and money constraints, specific procedures to follow, rules on enclosure set-up, and policies that employees are required to follow, whether they liked it or not, or they could lose their jobs. Now, did I LIKE having bettas in tiny, crappy cups? No, but it's not my call and railing at me like I'm the one responsible just irritates me.

That snake with stuck shed? Maybe it is being treated, per store policy, that YOU are not privy too? If it was 2 month old stuck she'd, I'd expect it to look worse. Or, maybe, just maybe, that snake has a chronic shed condition that is being treated, but is taking excessive time to resolve? They aren't required to explain treatment plans of their animals with you, and it might even be against policy to do so. I sure wouldn't talk to my customers about our policies regarding ill animals and threaten my job.

They are so many variables, and the photos are not enough evidence right now. They aren't perfect- and the nature of a pet store ensures they never will be, because you can have the most spotless store and enclosures for an animal to take a giant dump ten minutes before a customer walks up- but there is nothing exceptionally concerning in what is presented.

Originally Posted by Herps Alive!

When I worked in the retail pet trade, failure to note a customer concern like this was grounds for dismissal. You checked it, mentioned it to a manager or if you were really busy made a note so you could get to it later, but it HAD to be addressed prior to the end of your shift. Now, at our rescue, we have a specific protocol our volunteers are to follow when a visitor notices a husbandry problem. We all try hard, but nobody is perfect and things do get missed. Using patrons as an extra set of eyes makes sense. Even if 9 times out of 10 there is nothing to really see.

We would always go at least look. A few times a tortoise had tipped itself upside down and got stuck, or a bird got into a weird position behind a water crock, but yes, 9 times it was really nothing wrong.

But if someone came up to me with an attitude and acted like I was an idiot, then no, they aren't getting a sweet reply about it. Yes, I'd still go look, but you aren't getting on my good side by coming at me aggressively right from the start.

I swore I was not going to join this circus but......
From the pix I have seen so far I actually thought it looked pretty good for a multi pet type store, trust me I have seen FAR worse!
Now even the best stores can miss stuff as animals do not keep schedules as to when and where they need go to the bathroom!
But any good store will take heed of the extra set of customer eyes and if not jumping on it right away will hopefully attend to it as they can.
But approach with an attitude......I know my local stores and they just have zero time for the "attitude" person.
I am well enough known in most of mine that I will mention a minor issue and just tell them I am taking care of it, whether it be feces, shed whatever etc.
So far I have seen or heard nothing that tells me this store is worse than many out there and tbh it looks ok so far from the pix provided.
I have no axe to grind with the op or anybody else on here, just as I see it right now.

I just want to make sure I'm understanding this correctly:

You don't like this pet store because the animals sometimes poop in the cages and it isn't immediately cleaned, and when you stand there audibly complaining about it and trying to get attention no one pays attention to you, and then you're forced to make a scene (because you obviously weren't already). You've even gone so far as to stand around complaining and telling the store how to take care of its own animals for over an hour at a time and are mad because they tried ignoring you hoping you would just leave (they probably hoped you had something better to do).

You say you didn't want to get kicked out of the store for taking pictures of the supposedly terrible conditions, yet you also say you haven't been there in 3 years, don't want to support them, and don't want to go back. Why would it matter if you got kicked out?

Your friend had a job interview there and didn't get hired, and now suddenly hates the store too and is talking about how they have mites and sick animals (which isn't substantiated by any of your photos). She also mentions that they told her DURING HER JOB INTERVIEW that their animals have mites. That doesn't really sound like interview conversation to me, but more like a little girl who didn't get the job she wanted and is now trying to give the store a bad name.

Did I miss anything?

Originally Posted by MCMB Reptiles

I just want to make sure I'm understanding this correctly:

You don't like this pet store because the animals sometimes poop in the cages and it isn't immediately cleaned, and when you stand there audibly complaining about it and trying to get attention no one pays attention to you, and then you're forced to make a scene (because you obviously weren't already). You've even gone so far as to stand around complaining and telling the store how to take care of its own animals for over an hour at a time and are mad because they tried ignoring you hoping you would just leave (they probably hoped you had something better to do).

You say you didn't want to get kicked out of the store for taking pictures of the supposedly terrible conditions, yet you also say you haven't been there in 3 years, don't want to support them, and don't want to go back. Why would it matter if you got kicked out?

Your friend had a job interview there and didn't get hired, and now suddenly hates the store too and is talking about how they have mites and sick animals (which isn't substantiated by any of your photos). She also mentions that they told her DURING HER JOB INTERVIEW that their animals have mites. That doesn't really sound like interview conversation to me, but more like a little girl who didn't get the job she wanted and is now trying to give the store a bad name.

Did I miss anything?

Yea you're completely wrong and twisted what I said.

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Originally Posted by ElexisOrtiz

Yea you're completely wrong and twisted what I said.

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Can you please clarify? Because that's exactly what you've said just in different words. I can go back and quote every single one of those points if you'd like.

Actually no, I'm not going to waste my time. But you literally have said all of those things...except the part about your friend, but since she tried to get a job there she obviously didn't hate them until after they didn't hire her...or she's a masochist and wanted to work somewhere that she hated?