In this rural area of IL, there are 5 pet shops off the top of my head that carry reptiles. And 2 of them have no idea how to care for them. A petshop in the mall, i have found dried up bodies of green tree frogs and igaunas. I have also seen several other igaunas in skinny with loose skin and brown spots. Not the right lighting available either. Crikets out numbering anoles that are dehydrated and skinny, ribs showing badly and spots with no water. All of these reptiles are in the same cabinet. Which i think they all have the same lighting, humidty, and temp thru out the cabinet. Along in the cabinet is water dragons, uromastix and leos. How many different climents should we have here? They only have one. The other petshop I have seen painted turtles, large ones, 3-5 with no lighting, in a 30-40 gal tank. I have also see fat tails in arid desert like setups when they are supposed to be kept in a humid one, with the leos in the humid foresty setup. I hate these stores who shouldnt be open in the first place. Is this something that is very common?
It's shame to see stuff like that! Have you tried to discuss the situation with store managers or owners?
I'm sure that with the first pet store that you described, you could call an animal rights organization to step in. That treatment is unfair, and extremely cruel. Rebecca
Um, yeah, the first shop, definitely call an animal rights group, humane society and BBB. Take a camera with you before you call and get as many incriminating pics as possible. Sharon
Ugh... don't call animal rights groups.. they will just use that as more ammo to use against pet owners as a whole. I would call the humain socity.. BBB is sort of pointless. The deal with other areas.. not how pets are taken care of.
No, calling the BBB is not pointless, but it will require effort on the part of the caller to follow up. And yes, some animal rights groups WILL use that as ammo against exotic pet owner but lots of them DON'T. Our ferret rescue organization doesn't do that. We do harrass them (legally) with multiple visits, web bulletins about problem stores, petitions, emails, letters and phone calls to home offices or main office. It has made a difference. And the cool thing is that it isn't the effort of ONE person that makes a difference, its the 1000 people who read a bad report, get fed up and talk the ear of the store manager for 20 or 30 minutes about their bad housing. What can I say. I've seen it work. Sharon
The USDA monitors all petshops and laboratories. If you have issues with a shop near you, call them to have the shop inspected. They'll be pretty much the only people that can really slap it to them if they aren't doing things by the book!
good idea pet stores like that should be torn down, crumpled up, and thrown in the wastebasket, well...a really big wastebasket
that is horrible!!! it is such a shame that things that that happen:{{{. i would definently say something about it to them. but they will probaly take offense to it, and get cocky, they do here if yu critisize....of course its workers are a bunch of teenagers. the animals there need to be rescued, they are suffering so bad. ive seen animals in petshops that looked like they were crying they looked so miserable. its horrid. scratch the big wastebasket idea, crumble it up small enough to fit in a ziplock.
that is horrible!!! it is such a shame that things that that happen:{{{. i would definently say something about it to them. but they will probaly take offense to it, and get cocky, they do here if yu critisize....of course its workers are a bunch of teenagers. the animals there need to be rescued, they are suffering so bad. ive seen animals in petshops that looked like they were crying they looked so miserable. its horrid. scratch the big wastebasket idea, crumble it up small enough to fit in a ziplock. you are in caramel indiana??? whats the petrstores name we might have the same one.
My friend once went to one of the Pet Stores in the Mall and they wanted to buy a Leopard Gecko, When the associates were getting the animal they put it in a plastic bag(those ziploc ones) and didn't even put any air inside, my friend asked remarked on why it was in a plastic bag and they said they had run out of boxes and that's what they usually put reptiles in. When I heard this I decided I would never but live animals of any kind from the store.
wow they put it in a bag??? i wouldve told the guy to go f*** himself and then showed up another day with my cousins and took care of some business.
i have seen a lot of pet shops like that, it is a shame. they are there to make money and face it the majority of people who visit and buy there have no idea what is right and wrong. i think that with the introduction of the internet provides an oppertunity for people to research the proper care of animals. i guess what i am saying is that these places are there to make money, hit it where it hurts them. let everyone know what that shop is like, maybe organize some type of protest, i live in the chicago area and would definatly like to help spread the word.
i have seen a lot of pet shops like that, it is a shame. they are there to make money and face it the majority of people who visit and buy there have no idea what is right and wrong. i think that with the introduction of the internet provides an oppertunity for people to research the proper care of animals. i guess what i am saying is that these places are there to make money, hit it where it hurts them. let everyone know what that shop is like, maybe organize some type of protest, i live in the chicago area and would definatly like to help spread the word.
i work in a reptile petshop in the uk and they trat all the animals well and give them 5 star treatment. They are all helpful and very knowledgable.
Pet store certification It is a shame that per stores aren't required to be certified in the care of all species they sell and a monitoring system would be good too. Our local pet stores got a shock recently when my wife and I went in and educated them on Iguana and Beardie care, one changed its ways in 24 hours, the other sadly won't change a thing, it is only in it for the cash. Pet stores should be required to learn and offer the proper care of any creature before they sell to that excited kid who has pestered it's parent into getting the hapless creature they have seen at their friends house.
