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"Petco"

surfrkidTS

surfrkidTS

New member
This is a little random but I want to tell you all a story about the local Petco. Let this be a warning for newbies. I went into the store and decided to look at their corns when a worker asked me if I wanted to hold one. Because I am always willing (;)) I held it and noticed a few small black things on my finger. When I looked closely, they started moving and jumping. Worried for the small snow, I told the man and he said "It has parasites? I guess I'll tell the manager..." The manager walked past about a minute later when I was putting it back so I told her. She replied, "I noticed some black things on them but I guess I'll just take care of it later." This made me sick! I went back and sure enough, the snake was out of the cage and I sign that said "New friend coming soon" was in the window. I hope he got sold but he was so skinny I think not. Its horrible wgat pet chains are doing to them...:(
 
While I am not in favor of pet stores carrying animals, instead I believe they should be referring to reputable breeders, I have to say that each store may be managed differently so that condiditons in one store are better than in another. It is also possible to find breeders of animals that do not provide appropriate care and housing as well as those that do. I wish that as a new corn snake owner I had known better, but my first corn snake did come from PetCo and while she had only been maintenance fed, she's been healthy and parasite free. She was better kept there than our second that had been traded in at a small local pet store and basically left on a shelf (yes, I did "rescue" him). I think it would be worth your time to send an e-mail to PetCo indicating the city and state you were in when this happened. Describe the situation. I know that PetCo has been under fire for poor practices before.

I will add that any additional corn snakes I purchase will be from reputable breeders so as not to add to the demand for corn snakes in pet stores.
 
Yes, even some specialty reptile stores I've been in have had ridiculously small cages or extremely bright heat lamps. One place even had shavings that smelled like pine! I think I will mail Petco because corns aren't the only ones they are depriving of good health. I have a friend that wants a corn and today he stated, "I'll probably just get him from a local Pet Store..." I flipped. Luckily, I stopped him in time and let him know he could come with me to the San Diego show coming up and I could help him pick out a corn snake. I'm not saying all stores are bad or even that the Petco snakes are bad but just take caution. Do it the right way and don't get a corn you know may be prone to healh problems
 
This isn't about snakes directly but I should tell you. A different local pet store has a good supply of all aged mice and so that is where I've been getting them for snake food. I overheard the men talking about mites and noticed all of the hides they normally have in the mouse and reptile cages were all gone. I asked them if they were having parasite problems and they said, "Yes, but only in our last batch of mice." This made me worried although I know that I check and feel the mice I feed to my corn. What if he had internal parasites? One more reason to go frozen as soon as Rio will let me...
 
I would enjoy robbing a petco of their herps then leaving nasty hate-letters behind in their tanks. If only it was legal... lol

But seriously, the stores around here are alright when it comes to basic coulibrids but when they venture into anything exotic it gets really sad. Iguanas with AQUARIUMS the size of the lizard, Chameleons with 0 humidity, Boas with barely any food. The list goes on. I'm not going to say taking care of these pets are easy, but they difinatly shouldnt buy something they have no clue how to take care of (or care for that matter).

I would bet any amount of money if a dog or cat were in the same shape as these herps in pet stores the shop would promptly be informed/warned/fined (depending on the store).

People just dont get it. These animals are just as important as any dog or cat, and they have an important ecological role in all parts of the world. But people just REFUSE to understand that just because this animal doesnt show their feeling the same way, or look a little different, or basically do nothing like a human that they are still animals and could be somebody's favorite pet (even though I hate calling them pets, but thats another rant:D )

Alright, I'm done. lol:D :)
 
Just gotta get in my two cents.

Being a teacher currently, my first job was in a pet store, and I currently work part time in the same one as well. (Feeds my addiction!!) I have to stand up for 'em to a point.
I work for a private owner of a store, and would have to agree that the corporate run PetCo's, PetMarts, etc. are tragically ignorant of the animals they are keeping. Decisions about husbandry on all levels are made from the corporate office not at the store level for the most part. (We have a local PetCo, and I have inquired about this myself)
As for privately owned shops, you will run across the gamet of good, bad, and ugly. The store I work for, if we don't know the answer we find out. That's a personal philosophy of my own as well as my coworkers. You have to remember that there are as many bad stores out there as there are bad people in a population. The flip side is that there are also as many good stores as good people.
Making a blanket statement like 'people should get their animals only through reputable breeders' is ludicrous really. That puts the good shops under the blanket of losing business. The bad shops will eventually feel the pain of losing customers to bad husbandry practices. It's happened around here quite often in the last 20 years. The guy I work for has been in this business for 30 years! That's not to say everything has been perfect! I've had to teach him a thing or two about herps and their maintenance, but the difference here is that he listens, and lets me make the necessary changes. That's a good business owner.
Lastly, SurfKid, are you sure the snake at PetCo was sold, or was he placed in treatment somewhere?

I hope I didn't ramble too much . . .
D80
 
I'm sorry. No, not all stores are bad and many are pretty good. The one way to tell is to ask for a 'educated' individual on corns and if they come up with someone and they answer the questions you ask correctly, I see no problem in buying from a store. I'm sorry if I offended anyone.
 
I have to agree about even some reptile stores keep there animals in extremely small cages. I was at a reptile center around here yesterday and saw a female ball python that was farm bred for $70 I couldnt believe it.
 
Probe7899 said:
I was at a reptile center around here yesterday and saw a female ball python that was farm bred for $70 I couldnt believe it.
Click to expand...

I used to know an owner of a pet store that would sell babies for $9.99... that’s when they where in season. A lot of people bought them because they where cheap, A lot died because of the lack of knowledge the buyer had on raising them. :(

Have any of you gone to www.petcosucks.com its pretty sad... if not check it out when you have nothing to do.

Joel
 
PetaSucks

Not that I support PetCo in any way shape or form, they are the enemy, but I don't put any stock in information given out by PETA. Just not in my agenda.

As to pet stores. . . One must remember that a pet store is not looking to house their items long term. Therefore a short stint (1 week?) in a smaller than normal cage is not harmful to an animal really. The argument was put forth in a recent thread about housing snakes in rack systems or naturalistic cage environments. Which is better? Does the snake really care? The bottom line is the bottom line for a pet store owner.

The conflict comes in how the animal is actually cared for, fed, bathed, handled, etc. during that short duration. Also what information is given to the new owner? That's the more important job of the pet store employee. etc, etc, etc.

That's enough for me on this topic. PETA and PetCo both suck, and private pet stores will endure if they are honest and intelligent, bad shops will go down.

D80
 
Got any hints?

Im getting a corn snake soon, for my birthday. Im new to this but ive done heaps of research on them so i look after it properly. Since you all probably have one already, does anyone have any hints about looking after them?:confused:
Thanx:)
 
to: 2corny

Well if you haven't gotten it already, get The Corn Snake Manual by Bill and Kathy Love. You can buy it from www.corn-utopia.com
It's a great books with tons of helpful info and tips, a must for beginners
:)
 
More PETCO horror

I was actually there yesterday....I went only to get a leash and stuff for my new pug puppy, but I decided to look at the cornsnake they supposedly had. funny thing is, the cage is was in had no water, no hide and ........NO SNAKE!!! The lid to the thing was loose, and I guess the little baby escaped! The only thing he left was his skin shedding. I was sort of glad. It looked like some bad conditions. Not to mention that they were selling a baby Snow corn for 65 bucks!!! CRAZY!!! I have also witnessed some nasty stuff in the Alameda store. Dead rats still in the display cages, I even saw a Facy mouse who had been almost ripped in half by something and was still trying to get sold! I tryed to say something, but they told me that the mouse was recovering. NO WAY!! I would have been surprised if that mouse lived through the night. Anyway...PETCO should not sell animals...only pet supplies! IMHO -Don
 
2Corny... Tyler?! Hey! what's up? The Corn Snake muanual is great with basic stuff to breeding stuff and I got mine at the Triangle Square Petco. $10 if you have a petco pals card. If this isn't Tyler, than I feel really stupid. But the birthdate matched up!
 
(Hint: Tyler is a good friend in my science class. He wanted a king but I made him want a corn. Hopefully we can go to the San Diego IRBA show together to look for corns.)
 
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