Quotes from customers and pet store employees

[Allalaskan]

This one sticks out in my head.

I went to the pet store to look at a Boa they had (ended up not getting it for other reasons) and this is what happened.

Me:Well, I dont think im ready for a snake like this, I don't have the proper set up yet (and my wife just plain didnt like it and let me know lol) and from some people I talked to online (on this forum) who have had these gave me some good info on them and after holding it and really thinking I dont think im going to get him.
Them: A forum? I wouldnt listen to what they say.
Me:Well I was talking to some people on line on a Forum and I have learned quite a bit from them about the care of my Corn snake. And many of them have other snakes too so I asked some on there.
Them: Forums are the worst places to find out information, they are full of people who think they know it all and go off bad experiences and not facts. Do NOT listen to them. Only go by care sheets.

Now so you understand this is the same lady who fed a very small (like 10 inches long) Corn snake 5 (yes 5 in one feeding) pinkies. When She told me this I responded.

Me: Isn't that an awful lot for one little corn snake in one feeding?
Them:O no, you would be surprised how many people under feed there snakes. This one guy that comes in here, he only feeds his ball python one rat every two weeks and its full grown! It should be eating at least 3 to 4 rats in 2 weeks.

At that point I was done listening to her because what ever I said to her I was plain wrong. There are a few people who work there who actually know a lot about the animals they sell but some I am nice to but try not to talk to.

I am far far far from a snake expert of any kind but I have learned a lot from this site and have really started to notice how many people do not care properly for their snakes. And when I see pet stores doing it and tell me to listen to them and not people on forums it makes me chuckle.

 

[headly1994]

not sure wat kind of snake it was probably an emory rat snake but i saw a corn snake that lookd like a juvenile candy cane in the same tank as the that snake. the "emory" was 1200g im assuming based on its size in relation to my 400g corn i pulld it out and it was almost my height at 6'1. poor little juvi corn was maybe 150g (i think it was an emory because it had a corn pattern with an odd shaped head pattern)

 

[ceduke]

The thing that drives me up the WALLS, and makes me want to tear my hair out in handfuls, is how many people that come into my store who baby their pets RIDICULOUSLY when it comes to feeding time.

"Oh, Schmoopsie won't eat anything except flaked Fancy Feast with shredded fresh chicken on top, microwaved for 5.3 seconds so it's warm, and fed to her off of a spoon...but lately she's not eating that well, do you have anything tastier?"

NO!! Put a bowl of food down for your pet and WAIT UNTIL THEY EAT IT! Unless there is something wrong with your animal or the food, they WILL eat when they get hungry enough!! Of course, then I'm a big meanie and I couldn't possibly understand that Schmoopsie is just the most specialest, delicate little flower that has ever existed!

Inevitably, if these people actually have their pet with them, it's disgustingly obese as well.

 

[TheJadeReptile]

The thing that drives me up the WALLS, and makes me want to tear my hair out in handfuls, is how many people that come into my store who baby their pets RIDICULOUSLY when it comes to feeding time.

"Oh, Schmoopsie won't eat anything except flaked Fancy Feast with shredded fresh chicken on top, microwaved for 5.3 seconds so it's warm, and fed to her off of a spoon...but lately she's not eating that well, do you have anything tastier?"

NO!! Put a bowl of food down for your pet and WAIT UNTIL THEY EAT IT! Unless there is something wrong with your animal or the food, they WILL eat when they get hungry enough!! Of course, then I'm a big meanie and I couldn't possibly understand that Schmoopsie is just the most specialest, delicate little flower that has ever existed!

Inevitably, if these people actually have their pet with them, it's disgustingly obese as well.

lol. So true. I just keep a bowl down and let them eat when they want. But not now here lately since my mother's rescued Great Dane.

 

[Snakewhisperer]

One of best quotes was from a customer who killed a perfectly healthy ball python in 3 days. Sorry, I meant to say that "The darkness killed his ball python after 3 days" He's on our no-sell list now.

Of course, there is always the coworker convo:

Coworker: I'm don't think you're right.
Me: Oh really? who taught you about such-and-such?
Coworker: Petsmart.
Me: (slightly sarcastic tone) Right, I learned from experts, hands-on experience, and professors. What could I have been thinking?

I don't mind the ignorant people, and I try to educate them, but if they just flat out refuse to listen then i send them to another employee ^_^

 

[tyflier]

The thing that drives me up the WALLS, and makes me want to tear my hair out in handfuls, is how many people that come into my store who baby their pets RIDICULOUSLY when it comes to feeding time.

"Oh, Schmoopsie won't eat anything except flaked Fancy Feast with shredded fresh chicken on top, microwaved for 5.3 seconds so it's warm, and fed to her off of a spoon...but lately she's not eating that well, do you have anything tastier?"

NO!! Put a bowl of food down for your pet and WAIT UNTIL THEY EAT IT! Unless there is something wrong with your animal or the food, they WILL eat when they get hungry enough!! Of course, then I'm a big meanie and I couldn't possibly understand that Schmoopsie is just the most specialest, delicate little flower that has ever existed!

Inevitably, if these people actually have their pet with them, it's disgustingly obese as well.

I have noticed that it seems to be the only people with incredibly picky pets are people that can afford incredibly picky pets. I've been around a lot of dogs in my life, and I've never seen one willingly starve in lieu of eating food it "didn't like"...

 

[Stefanie]

Off topic, I understand, but Dogs can do quite fine on a vegetarian diet.
This is from Wikipedia (I can't type it up better ;-):
"Despite their descent from wolves and classification as Carnivora, dogs are variously described in scholarly and other writings as carnivores or omnivores. Unlike obligate carnivores, such as the cat family with its shorter small intestine, dogs can adapt to a wide-ranging diet, and are not dependent on meat-specific protein nor a very high level of protein in order to fulfill their basic dietary requirements. Dogs will healthily digest a variety of foods, including vegetables and grains, and can consume a large proportion of these in their diet."
Wolves pretty much eat what they can find when times are tough, they are not strictly carnivores but eat berries, bark and grass as well.

And back to topic:
These stories make my skin crawl. I will NEVER understand how people can own pets they know NOTHING about. To be responsible for a life and not know what I'm doing is against everything I'm brought up as, and I hope I teach my children to respect and care for every living thing.

 

[airenlow]

I overheard this convo last week at work...

Customer: Can I get 2 feeder mice, please?
Coworker: Sure. What are you feeding?
Customer: Green tree python.
Coworker: Oh. Aren't those venomous?
Customer: I don't get close enough to find out.
Coworker: Good. It could kill you!
Customer: That's why I'm selling it.
Coworker: Good call!

 

[airenlow]

These were questions on my store training test...

 

[VickyChaiTea]

Ignorance is bliss. There are a TON of people that simply do not have the information that they should have in order to keep the pets that they have.

One thing I learned over the years as a reptile educator, pet shop employee, zoo employee, breeder, etc...sometimes, it's not what you are saying to someone that makes them not listen, it's how you say it.

In other words...some of you might find yourself getting better reception to your advice if you would lose the arrogance and attitude associated with it, and try being nice. Just because someone doesn't know something doesn't mean they are stupid. It means they have wrong information. Shoving it down their throat with a "facepalm", an arrogant attitude, and a "holier-than-thou" philosophy rarely works. Offering simple advice with a smile and a pleasant demeanor works a lot better...

Imagine how many pets you could really help if you dropped the bad attitude and tried being nice...:shrugs:

I learned this a long time ago, I have never actually facepalmed in front of a customer. At worst, I've gotten into a bit of an argument about an animals facts or care like "Yes, this goldfish WILL get a foot long." Or "No, you CANNOT feed your iguana crickets". I've actually gotten a lot better at explaining care to people without sounding like a know-it-all jackass. I smile a lot and don't sound condescending. (at least I try my hardest not to)

This one sticks out in my head.

I went to the pet store to look at a Boa they had (ended up not getting it for other reasons) and this is what happened.

Me:Well, I dont think im ready for a snake like this, I don't have the proper set up yet (and my wife just plain didnt like it and let me know lol) and from some people I talked to online (on this forum) who have had these gave me some good info on them and after holding it and really thinking I dont think im going to get him.
Them: A forum? I wouldnt listen to what they say.
Me:Well I was talking to some people on line on a Forum and I have learned quite a bit from them about the care of my Corn snake. And many of them have other snakes too so I asked some on there.
Them: Forums are the worst places to find out information, they are full of people who think they know it all and go off bad experiences and not facts. Do NOT listen to them. Only go by care sheets.

Now so you understand this is the same lady who fed a very small (like 10 inches long) Corn snake 5 (yes 5 in one feeding) pinkies. When She told me this I responded.

Me: Isn't that an awful lot for one little corn snake in one feeding?
Them:O no, you would be surprised how many people under feed there snakes. This one guy that comes in here, he only feeds his ball python one rat every two weeks and its full grown! It should be eating at least 3 to 4 rats in 2 weeks.

At that point I was done listening to her because what ever I said to her I was plain wrong. There are a few people who work there who actually know a lot about the animals they sell but some I am nice to but try not to talk to.

I am far far far from a snake expert of any kind but I have learned a lot from this site and have really started to notice how many people do not care properly for their snakes. And when I see pet stores doing it and tell me to listen to them and not people on forums it makes me chuckle.

That's just... terrible! That's abuse in my book. That will make a snake downright obese and unhealthy.

And as far as vegetarian diets for dogs, I have yet to see a study on the long term effects on them but they are omnivores, not carnivores. I am not convinced they can thrive on a meatless diet though, because they are not herbivores. They're omnivores and B12 is something that ONLY comes from animal sources or in the form of a synthesized vitamin. That and complete protein is only found in one non-animal source. (quinoa) I just see it as a lot of work and potentially deadly to a dog. It's known to be healthy for them to eat an omnivorous diet. I am a Vegan and I'd never keep a dog on a vegetarian or vegan diet. I own carnivorous pets and I have to deal with the fact that animals die for them to live. If I don't like this fact or can't handle it then have no business owning carnivorous or omnivorous pets.

 

[HazAnga]

Customer: Yeah, I tried the fish thing. I really wanted it to work but it never did. I spent all this money on a big 55gal tank, fish, filters, the works. But my fish kept dying.
Me: Really? What was wrong?
Customer: I don't know. I came in here and tested my water and everything. I followed their advice and they still died.
Me: *sneaky suspicion I know what was wrong* How often did you change your water?
Customer: Well the people here kept telling me to do a partial change once every three months or so.
Me: That's your problem RIGHT there. I can pretty much guarantee 100% that was the issue. You absolutely HAVE to do weekly water changes on pretty much every tank.
Customer: Really? But you guys said not to. Even the owner.
Me: Well, not all of my co-workers know what they're talking about. You seem like you really want to enjoy fish and keep them, it's a shame they gave you bad advice. You should start up your tank again and do things right. Weekly water changes, lots of research, don't overstock, etc.

He seemed interested but still very put off by his previous experience, which was a shame. He seemed like a nice guy who would really be interested in aquariums had things gone better.

Well... I do have to say that doing weekly water changes on a bigger tank is a hassle and not needed. maybe every couple weeks or more as long as you have good filtration. My dad used to have a 325 gal, 110 gal, 90 gal, and others... he did water changes maybe once a month, and the fish did very well. see when you do too many water changes you end up taking too much of the good bacteria out and putting fresh water in that has nothing (no good or bad) and it throws the whole system out of wack.

A couple came in and said their daughter had caught 5 garter snakes a month ago and they were keeping them. One had died so now they had four. They said they were very young, they kept them all in the same cage, and get this...

They had been trying to feed them bits of cooked ground beef and lettuce...

They came in asking what else they could feed them and wanted to give them crickets. Cue my speech on their care, yadda yadda yadda. In their defense they were mortified to learn that they were starving and eventually going to kill them and took home 4 frozen pinkies and agreed to release two and keep two, and to house them separately. They also were surprised to learn to feed them separately and that they would grow. I'm just glad they came in when they did. No wonder one of the poor things died.

Check out this site www.Thamnophis.com You'll see that housing garter snakes together is perfectly fine, but a big no no is housing different garters together that are opposite sex's, that's frowned upon making mixed breeds.

 

[BlackBear123]

Gotta love some pet owners. I dealt with this often when I used to work at a major chain petstore. I love when you get the question "Is it real/alive?" to the animal in a cage. As many people have said, the best you really can do is educate. Although I know how hard it can be when people refuse to change something that's hurting the animal. :nope: But for every jerk that refuses to change, there's somebody out there that is willing to learn which IMHO makes the job of a pet store employee/keeper/educator/aquarist very rewarding (outside of the animal time of course).

Customer: Yeah, I tried the fish thing. I really wanted it to work but it never did. I spent all this money on a big 55gal tank, fish, filters, the works. But my fish kept dying.
Me: Really? What was wrong?
Customer: I don't know. I came in here and tested my water and everything. I followed their advice and they still died.
Me: *sneaky suspicion I know what was wrong* How often did you change your water?
Customer: Well the people here kept telling me to do a partial change once every three months or so.
Me: That's your problem RIGHT there. I can pretty much guarantee 100% that was the issue. You absolutely HAVE to do weekly water changes on pretty much every tank.
Customer: Really? But you guys said not to. Even the owner.
Me: Well, not all of my co-workers know what they're talking about. You seem like you really want to enjoy fish and keep them, it's a shame they gave you bad advice. You should start up your tank again and do things right. Weekly water changes, lots of research, don't overstock, etc.
.

I have to agree with HazAnga. It is not necessary to do a weekly water change. Unless you have extreme high ammonia, Bi-weekly or monthly depending on the number of fish should do just fine. And water changing too often for a younger tank can actually really throw the proper balances off. It really sounded like he might have had something else going on. I would have investigated a bit more before jumping to a conclusion. It's important to remember that we don't know everything and to keep an open mind before writing off what our co-workers have to say.

 

[SquamishSerpents]

Ignorance is bliss. There are a TON of people that simply do not have the information that they should have in order to keep the pets that they have.

One thing I learned over the years as a reptile educator, pet shop employee, zoo employee, breeder, etc...sometimes, it's not what you are saying to someone that makes them not listen, it's how you say it.

In other words...some of you might find yourself getting better reception to your advice if you would lose the arrogance and attitude associated with it, and try being nice. Just because someone doesn't know something doesn't mean they are stupid. It means they have wrong information. Shoving it down their throat with a "facepalm", an arrogant attitude, and a "holier-than-thou" philosophy rarely works. Offering simple advice with a smile and a pleasant demeanor works a lot better...

Imagine how many pets you could really help if you dropped the bad attitude and tried being nice...:shrugs:

lol, i think most the responses to this thread in regards to roll-eyes, facepalms, beating heads against walls, etc are all figurative terms. i have never actually been rude or mean or talked down to a customer.

HOWEVER this is why threads like this exist. we need to let it all out somewhere, lest we go nuts.

as for dogs being on a vegetarian diet, sure, it's possible and dogs can do well on it. though i 100% do NOT think that your dog should be a vegetarian because of yof your personal (human) beliefs.

 

[VickyChaiTea]

Well... I do have to say that doing weekly water changes on a bigger tank is a hassle and not needed. maybe every couple weeks or more as long as you have good filtration. My dad used to have a 325 gal, 110 gal, 90 gal, and others... he did water changes maybe once a month, and the fish did very well. see when you do too many water changes you end up taking too much of the good bacteria out and putting fresh water in that has nothing (no good or bad) and it throws the whole system out of wack.



Check out this site www.Thamnophis.com You'll see that housing garter snakes together is perfectly fine, but a big no no is housing different garters together that are opposite sex's, that's frowned upon making mixed breeds.

For tanks 100gals+ frequent water changes are not needed, anything under that is properly stocked absolutely does. He had a 55gal with African cichlids, indeed partial weekly water changes would be the best course of action. (25-40%)Most of your beneficial bacteria is in your filter media and the gravel, so removing large amounts of water may, at worst, cause a mini-cycle. But that doesn't usually happen, especially if you have enough bacteria built up. You NEED to do partial water changes during a cycle, or else you are very likely going to loose fish. You have to create a good balance between keeping enough ammonia for the bacteria to live off of and not leaving so much in that it kills fish. (this is why I always recommend a fishless cycle)

Good filtration can only do so much, you always have to do water changes to replace lost minerals in the water and to remove ammonia. You have to be there to remove physical waste or it just rots.

As far as garters, they're solitary snakes unless they are brumating/breeding. At no other time to they live in groups and therefore should not be housed together. It's very similar to corn snakes. Some people keep them together no problem, others do it and end up with dead snakes. These are not social creatures, therefore housing them communally will most likely have adverse effects on them. Also, they had no idea of the genders or species of garter. I asked them what kind of garter snake they were and they gave me a vacant look. D:

I have to agree with HazAnga. It is not necessary to do a weekly water change. Unless you have extreme high ammonia, Bi-weekly or monthly depending on the number of fish should do just fine. And water changing too often for a younger tank can actually really throw the proper balances off. It really sounded like he might have had something else going on. I would have investigated a bit more before jumping to a conclusion. It's important to remember that we don't know everything and to keep an open mind before writing off what our co-workers have to say.

Some of my co-workers are giving out spot on advice. The same worker may give someone in depth instruction on how to care for their saltwater reef tank including everything they'd need to know, then tell someone to put 5 goldfish in a bowl or sell them a tiny ass cage for a single parakeet and instruct them to feed nothing but bird seed. Some of the workers there, as much as I hate to say it, are very poorly educated on pet care and should not be allowed to give out advice. The owner has even told me some doozeys, some of which make me question his ability to care for the animals in the store properly.

 

[ceduke]

I do all of my eye-rolling and facepalming on the inside, while showing the customer a calm and compassionate exterior. I realize that most people do want the best for their animals and do care, they just don't know. It's hard not to laugh sometimes though...like the poor lady who kept offering her RES iceberg lettuce and didn't understand why he wasn't interested.

The only time I ever LOST IT with a customer was someone who told me a story about her dad strangling a parrot who had picked up some cuss words, then laughing like it was funny. She then had the gall to say "well, there's nothing you can do at that point..."

 

[VickyChaiTea]

I think this story shows the difference between my co-workers and I quite well. I was in the back room with a co-worker. Another worker came in smiling. She lifted up a ziplock bag containing a dead betta that had obviously lodged itself into a small hole in a ship decoration died. It was still lodged in the ship while in the bag. She started laughing and talking about how the "dumb fish" killed itself and about how the guy who bought it was asking for a refund. Everyone else started laughing like it was the funniest thing ever, and all I wanted to do was yell at them for being so heartless. It most likely died of suffocation. (bettas have to breath air from the surface) How is that funny? How is that even remotely funny? The fact that they were so callous about the life of a living creature to the point of laughing at it's painful death was horrific to me.

I don't even want to tell this story, it's so sad but there was this one guy who came in and told me about a Cockatoo he used to have that loved him so much. It was super friendly and awesome to everyone. He was so stupid that he let it sleep in the same bed as him. He rolled on top of it and smothered it while he was asleep one night. It made me want to cry that the poor animal that loved him so much died in such an awful way because of his pure stupidity.

 

[ceduke]

I don't even want to tell this story, it's so sad but there was this one guy who came in and told me about a Cockatoo he used to have that loved him so much. It was super friendly and awesome to everyone. He was so stupid that he let it sleep in the same bed as him. He rolled on top of it and smothered it while he was asleep one night. It made me want to cry that the poor animal that loved him so much died in such an awful way because of his pure stupidity.

One of my customers came in in tears and devastated recently because his beloved cockatoo of over 30 years bit a power cord and electrocuted herself. She survived, but is now paralyzed. It's got to be so crushing to lose a pet like that and blame yourself.

 

[angmont1882]

Not quite as funny as the others I had read....but here is my story:

(at Petsmart)
Me: Do ya'll carry rheostats or thermostats?
Employee: No, why?
Me: Well I am getting a cornsnake this weekend and want to get his temperatures regulated.
Employee: Cornsnakes do not need extra heat, they prefer it to be about 60 degrees.
Me: And somehow I felt bad that Petsmart wouldn't hire me...

I later found a rheostat at petco for one snake and built a homemade one when I got my second snake.

 

[Pal-O-Mine]

All I can say is that working so closely with the public has taught me how to have a poker face. I have learned only to roll my eyes or exchange 'that look' with my co-worker when the client is not looking. And to choose my words VERY CAREFULLY!

But yes, I agree we desperately NEED to let off some steam about the people we run into. We are also in the position to educate the public and while its true that some people will never learn, there's also a group of people that WILL listen to the advice and genuinely want to do better by their animals. We usually just never hear the follow up story on this so we don't know and so we understandably get discouraged on trying to educate people who have made mistakes.

Now here's an uplifting story that happened just recently. A client comes into our hospital complaining that her pom is peeing all over the house and that it's bloody. One urine test and an e-ray later and we find out the poor little dog is completely blocked with bladder stones. But the owner has let the dog go on shots. So in order to do surgery, we have to get the dog caught up all its overdue vaccinations. Which of course will add to the size of the bill. I thought they would try to skip as much as possible to make the bill more affordable. I was a little shocked when they chose to get caught up immediately and get the dog in ASAP for surgery. We did the surgery the next day and pulled enough bladder stones our of the dog to fill a LARGE pill bottle. We saved them for the owner to see.

The owner was shocked at the amount of stones that were blocking her poor little dog. She left singing our praises and saying that we saved her dog's life.

I think everyone who works in the animal business needs more stories to build them up like this. Remember for every one person who kills their fish by doing something stupid, there's at least 5 more who don't. You just don't hear about it when they come in to buy food because they do not engage you in conversation. They just come in, get their stuff and leave.

Devon

 

[Pasodama]

At least dogs can do well on a vegetarian diet.... It's the CAT people that make me irate.

It would be worse for cats. However, even though dogs can survive on a vegetarian diet (as long as the diet is very well formulated, has appropriate substitutes, etc., etc., etc.), it is, still, not the best thing for them.

What is even worse are the people who seek to convert their snakes into vegetarians (yes, those people do exist).