| Author | Subject: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)! |
| West Side Reptiles | Posted At 22:46:01 08/02/2001
I suggest that you stay away from Petco, the other day I went there and there lizards were living in there waste. They had no food no water! Some had parasites and were skin and bones. On the walls of Petco I saw 2 anoles and the lady that worked there said that it happens all the time and they don't do anything about it. I won't buy anything thing from petco but maybe it's just this Petco, I don't know about the other Petco's maybe there cleaner and better. I asked the manager why she isn't cleaning out there cages and feeding them and she wouldn't answer me. Thanks for listening, Jorden |
| Laura VanAlyne |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6730.html Posted At 23:30:43 08/02/2001 My Petco doesn't do too badly with their lizards, but their ferrets are swimming in flies and waste, with nasty, wet-tail symptoms. Overall, I think it's most pet stores in general. Most of the stores know little to nothing about what they sell. I have a local store where it is nothing to walk through and see decaying animals alongside living ones, in dirty cages with filthy water. It really saddens me. And no, most don't even want to hear about it. That's truely sad. |
| Troy Cromwell |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6733.html Posted At 05:49:30 08/03/2001 Check with your local humane society, in some areas it IS legal to, remove an animal from an establishment or residence,that is obviously being kept in inhumane conditions. Make sure you report ANY cases like you mentioned with the humane society, and FOLLOW UP. Ask what you can do, although most aren't very familiar with reptilian care, they usually have someone qualified available for emergency adoptions,etc...a parasite ridden baby Green Iguana w/ no food & water available have the same "rights" as a Dog does in these situations, and animal cruelty charges can be brought against them (but usually they'll just be monitored sub-frequently to clean up their act) which also couldn't hurt. Oh yeah...pass out some "free advice" next time you're in one of these places, I've tried the "questioning of conditions routine, and I usually get the same response...nothing. Just be the nice guy/girl that goes in and innocently finds an "over-looked" animal that's sick or dehydrated, and offer to help "perk" him back up!! I don't know...it might work ; ) |
| Sydney Alcorn |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6735.html Posted At 08:49:53 08/03/2001 I myself worked in a petstore a few years ago. My main job was to care for the herps. I ended up being asked to leave because I was using too much of the stores materials for the herps. I was costing more to keep the animals than they were making in profit. I can't speak for all pet stores, but I will never buy another herp from them after that. |
| Michael Mastison |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6736.html Posted At 09:49:43 08/03/2001 In my area there are now only two pet stres. One pet store which I have on occasion sold a few of my overstock animals to and another that is a downright digrace to the community. On several occasions the bad pet store has called me to come "rescue" their animals. Which were usuaully iguanas and anoles that had been kept in caging where they only had the own fecal droppings for substrate. Most of the little guys I picked up had feet that were falling off and tails that were down to the bone. After being called up to this store for the tenth time, I couldn't hold back, and I exploded in the store announcing to all the customers exactly what I was doing there and what kind of people owned the store. I had already contacted the local human society, which itself is pretty lame in my area, and needless to say, I am no longer welcome in that store. The main thing I can say is that, if and when you do find a pet store with educated and caring sales people and owners, support it fully. Tell your friends and people in the area who trust your judgements. Once people get a chance to see the difference between what you recommend and what the other stores habbits are, they will become more aware themselves as to how a pet store should be run. Please excuse my typos.MM |
| Tracy Willis |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6737.html Posted At 09:52:33 08/03/2001 Troy has a very important point that we all must consider and that is.. it is NOT the animals fault they are put into this situation... and WE need to help them! Avoiding and ignoring the situation doesn't help, however reporting to the SPCA and helping them help the animals is VERY important. Most SPCA's in North America operate by donations and volunteers, without that assistance then the animals suffer. PLEASE!!! If you can help, please do! Give them proper husbandry info if they do not have ti and give thenm the amminition they need to charge and possibly even close down these horrible stores that kill animals. Also, if anyone has taken photographs of these deporable situations, we are working as we speak to help reptile rights in the US and Canada. Send a JPEG image with description (store location) and email them to me. I put my whole heart into things like this and you WILL get a reply from me. I do not mean to promote anything at all, this is NOT a business, this is all strictly to help the reptiles we all love. Thanks for reading, Tracy Willis (aka Trace on the kingsnake Leopard Gecko Forum and gexfiles.com) |
| Kat |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6745.html Posted At 12:21:37 08/03/2001 Well, I'd like to say that the PetCo in my area actually seems to do a pretty good job of taking care of their reptiles. The anoles and other lizards seem in good shape, the cages are clean, and the reptiles all have clean water. I think the only negative point I can give the PetCo near me is that I once saw a ball python in there that was having trouble shedding. On the other hand, there are two other pet stores in Colorado Springs which (while they don't qualify as super-horror story material) I wouldn't recommend anyone buying from them: Pet City and Pet Ranch. Pet City had several baby ball pythons crammed into a space equivalent to half a 10 gallon aquarium, and four yearling corns in the second half of said space. Pet Ranch's employees are still under the mistaken impression that cornsnakes eat crickets and that it's okay to sell 13-year-old boys a pet anaconda. I think in general it depends on the specific petstore in question, especially when they're part of a large franchise. |
| Kat Hall |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6751.html Posted At 15:36:06 08/03/2001 my full name |
| Dawn Zielinski |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6753.html Posted At 15:53:21 08/03/2001 The Petcos around here take pretty good care of ALL forms of animals... But I have a big issue with whoever they BUY from.. These emancipated looking reptiles give me the willies. Leopard Geckos (SELLING for 100 bucks, no less) are so skinny they have NO tail, the lizards look scrawny and uner-nourished. While I know that these animals never stay there long enough to blame Petco for the neglect, they should REALLY NOT BE BUYING from people who starve these critters. |
| Angela Dean |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6755.html Posted At 16:30:50 08/03/2001 One of the PETCO's in Georgia had their leopard geckos in a jungle like environment and were feeding them fruits and greens. Get many a blank faces when you ask them why they are treating dry environment geckos like a rainforest animal. Needless to say I'd never buy from them. They need to spend more money on educating who they hire before they carry animals. |
| james parks |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6756.html Posted At 16:37:58 08/03/2001 well this is to michael mastison....your local human society must be pretty lame if they let you stay around ...i cant beleive you have the gull to call your self a animal rescue |
| Mike Keck |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6757.html Posted At 16:43:59 08/03/2001 I called Petco the other day because I needed a heating pad for one of my Vision Cages. I was looking for a certain model, which they didn't have. Then I asked him if they carried Flex-watt and the guy had no idea what it was. Then he asked me what I was trying to heat and I told him a Vision #422. He had no idea what a Vision Cage was. This guy was supposed to be the head of the reptile department! He asked me a couple other things and gave some suggestions that made me think "Where do they get these people?". My girlfriend who is a little iffy about snakes and lizards knew more that this guy. I think they need better trained people there. |
| Roy Sargent |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6841.html Posted At 22:58:57 08/05/2001 I have this to say they get what they pay for when you only pay minum wage how are you going to get anybody with the knowledge needed |
| West Side Reptiles |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
6856.html Posted At 10:48:53 08/06/2001 Ya I have to agree with you Roy because they don't have a reptile expert there BUT they have a Fish expert and a bird expert there but no reptile expert. Its a shame they say on there logo "pet supplies and fish" but they don't say pet supplies and fish, birds & reptiles. Because they don't have a big reptile section so they don't need to hire someone who has knowlege in reptiles. Jorden |
| Josh Brinkman |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
7095.html Posted At 17:56:52 08/10/2001 I have had good experience with petco as far as fish go but i have never purchased reptiles. As far as the staffing they get.. the turnover is too high to train very well, its all caused by low pay. I have had fish reptiles and birds since i was very young, yet they would not hire me. I have also had retail experience.. now that is basically what it is a pet retail.. they didnt hire me because i didnt have petstore experience.. how stupid ... needless to say i dont buy anything from them anymore |
| Joel Holloman |
Re: DO NOT BUY REPTILES FROM PETCO (BAD COMPANY)!
7096.html Posted At 18:09:01 08/10/2001 There was a petco here in Salinas, Ca. a few years back and they had alot of reptiles and I must say they had very clean cages and were set-up according to how they should be. Most of the employees were good about helping and if i did have a comment they were polite about my giving them advice. Why they closed im not sure, probably not enough business but i did get a few herps as they were selling everything at half price. I haven't been top another as of yet but the one that was here i give an A+ for cleanliness,adequate cage space per species, and for knowledge. |