Why are pet stores so awful?

[sheilabeilabobo]

Tons of plastic for chin cages, death balls, food with fruits and veggies in it, and way more. The ones that are the most horrifying for me are when you go to habitats and click chinchillas, hamster cages show up! Oh, and the dreaded SAND BATH. If it weren't for this forum, I'd probably be out buying my little guy a death ball! Thanks to everyone who has helped me and other people out!

 

[chin_gal]

While I agree that pet stores are bad and shouldn't be selling live animals/harmful products, it IS also on the purchaser to do their research before hand. It's not all on the pet store. Too many people impulse buy and just get whatever the inexperienced worker at the pet store tells them. Either that, or they go in there and figure, "Oh, look! It has a chinchilla on the package, it MUST be safe!". Again, not necessarily the pet stores fault. They are just selling a product. You as the buyer have to make the final decision.

 

[Irishsk8r66]

My problem is the way they treat the little guys when theyre in there. I was in a pet store last night (just a local one, not a chain) and I saw that they had sold one of the two bonded male brothers that they had brought in together. He had fur missing around his eye and looked so mean. He must have barely been handled at all! He had all wire shelves and no wood. Just a plastic house and a food bowl with luckily oxbow pellets but also dried papaya.......I felt so horrible for him I almost brought him home just to get him out of there!

 

[lauralynne]

Here is the easiest answer to your question: MONEY!!!!!!!

 

[chin_gal]

Oh, don't get me wrong, I wish that pet stores would stop selling live animals! They just don't know what they are doing. My local Petco has stopped selling chinchillas because they didn't sell well at all (and they always had watery eyes and were pretty thin. I was always getting on them about it... but I don't think it did much good...), and my local Petsmart, when they have them in, actually do a very good job with them. They keep them in the large parrot aviary (since they never have large parrots in, thank god...), and have them on safe bedding, and on just pellets and hay. They do still have plastic in the cage with them, along with dust 24/7 it seems, but at least it's an improvement from the horrors I used to see with their poor chins (nasty fur, big bowl of fruit/veggies, etc).

But as far as the products go, still the purchaser's responsibility to make sure the products they are buying are safe. As well as purchasing a pet store chin. They need to know what they are getting into/ what exactly they are buying. A pet store is only a supplier. They are a business, and whether its safe for your pet or not, if it makes them money, they are going to sell it.

 

[ChinnyMom]

Here is the easiest answer to your question: MONEY!!!!!!!

agreed!!

 

[Godofgods]

My local petsmarts are horrid with their small animals care, excepcaly chinchillas. Pains me every time i go in their. I used to have a good opinion about them untill igot my chinchillas. Now i see how much bad stuff they sell. They litterly have more bad products on sale for chins then good ones. Its kinda hard to think highly of a store after you see that. It rly brings home the idea that its all about the money, not the pet.

Personaly i think a store could rly boost their market if they stopped buying in all these animals from breeders and out sources that the pet stores use. Theirs so many diffrent animals out their that need rehomes or forced to be forfitted. They could easly take them in, in an effort to rehome the little guys if an owner was unsuccesfull. With the right advertising campaign on that, a lot more ppl would probably be willing to go check that store out. But then you seewhat alot of these store provide in houseing and treatment for them, and you become extremly discouraged.

 

[ticklechin]

At least at pet stores the chins are in public and the conditions can be reported or complained about. I feel more sorry for chins who are produced by BYBs who in reality are just animal hoarders and some of the SKUZZIEST chins I have come across were pet chins. Same goes with products, we have vendors here who sell items that are not chin safe, its up to the person who provides care to the chin to make sure the item is safe, not just because of the picture on the chin on the product nor just because so and so is popular on the forum and sells crud.
\i

 

[Ash]

Most sites have all their small animal cages together, hence why hamster cages come up. Just saying.

 

[Laurie]

Not all pet stores are bad--I think it depends on the individual store. I am often more bothered by pet stores that sell dogs and cats at such an outlandish price than I am the chinchillas and other small animals. Most of these dog and cat selling pet stores allow TONS of strangers to pick up, hold, and prod the dogs and cats they there--even allowing children in the mix. Dirty hands and sick people I'm sure come in contact with these poor things.

What surprises me so much is how many complain about pet stores YET continue to go to them. I would ask those people who visit them yet complain about them why do you continue to go there? Most things for a chinchilla can be purchased onliine.

 

[Stackie]

What surprises me so much is how many complain about pet stores YET continue to go to them. I would ask those people who visit them yet complain about them why do you continue to go there? Most things for a chinchilla can be purchased onliine.

I am exactly on the same page with you, Laurie. I also hope that if you come here to complain about them, you have done something proactive in the store such as attempting to educate the employees, asking to speak your concerns to the manager, etc. Coming here and complaining yet still going to the pet store and giving them your money isn't helping the problem, much.

 

[avecat6906]

Pet stores are horrible I do agree. But most of the time the people there just simply don't do research on how the animals should be kept. The chain stores probably just do what corporate tells them to do. The little ones have no excuses in my opinion but the best thing you can do would be to inform them and help them out. I did this with my local pet shop who was keeping their chinchillas in filthy cages and feeding them all sorts of unhealthy things! The cages are looking cleaner, who knows if they stopped the unhealthy treats though. :banghead:

What surprises me so much is how many complain about pet stores YET continue to go to them. I would ask those people who visit them yet complain about them why do you continue to go there? Most things for a chinchilla can be purchased onliine.

I know in my case, I have other animals who's items cannot be purchased online, at least not as easily and as inexpensively as online would be. It's a relief that I can purchase so many good things for my chinchillas, and a shame I can't get things like live mice and crickets for my snake and lizard. (At least not at reasonable prices.) The plain fact is that they are simply more convenient then online purchases. For that reason, I don't think people will ever stop going to them, no matter what crazy stuff they do there.

 

[Stackie]

I know I purchase my dog food from a pet store in town that doesn't sell animals at all. It's a little out of my way, but I'd rather support that type of store. I realize that may not be an option for everyone, but it would definitely be something to look into if said pet stores are so horrible.

 

[chinnychinchinchilla]

I know in my case, I have other animals who's items cannot be purchased online, at least not as easily and as inexpensively as online would be. It's a relief that I can purchase so many good things for my chinchillas, and a shame I can't get things like live mice and crickets for my snake and lizard. (At least not at reasonable prices.) The plain fact is that they are simply more convenient then online purchases. For that reason, I don't think people will ever stop going to them, no matter what crazy stuff they do there.

Have you tried this site?
http://cricketfactory.com/
They dont sell mice though.

 

[avecat6906]

Have you tried this site?
http://cricketfactory.com/
They dont sell mice though.

Wow I had never seen that site before. Unfortunately my little guy only eats about 24 crickets a week so I really wouldn't want to purchase 500+ at one time. They would probably die before I got to feed him all of them, even if I ended up keeping them in a container with food and water. I really appreciate you showing me that though. I will bookmark it in case I ever get more creatures that require a lot of crickets

 

[squeeky_95]

My problem is the way they treat the little guys when theyre in there. I was in a pet store last night (just a local one, not a chain) and I saw that they had sold one of the two bonded male brothers that they had brought in together. He had fur missing around his eye and looked so mean. He must have barely been handled at all! He had all wire shelves and no wood. Just a plastic house and a food bowl with luckily oxbow pellets but also dried papaya.......I felt so horrible for him I almost brought him home just to get him out of there!

Yea! My parents said that when they went to go get Mouse from the pet store in the mall, they held him all wrong!! They grabbed him by his feet... front paws in one hand back paws in the other... just to tell if Mouse was a boy or girl. I don't know if I'm just being paranoid or not, but did they leave boys and girls together?

 

[Siany]

I dont think pet stores should sell animals for the fact they cant give them the propper care that they need, the cages that they are kept in are usually too small for an animal and often problems are left untreated.

What annoys be about buying products for our little furries is that on the packaging it says its ok for chinchillas when its clearly not and for that i dont think its too much of the pet stores fault as they just try to cater to all animals, i think its more of the people who make these products and list the animals that they have no idea whether these are safe or not.

Before i buy a product now i always check if it is really safe and i think as a pet owner its your responsibity to not just check a label but to research aswell.

 

[[email protected]]

they dont know the hazards of placing plastic things in chinchilla cages. they think chinchillas are just like any other rodent when we all know better!!!

 

[chins1222]

i work at a petstore and i wish we didnt sell animals either

not b/c we dont take care of them properly but b/c of the customers who come in and want to do all kinds of crazy stuff and just dont want to listen

whenever a customer complains about some store telling them incorrect info or when i tell them a product isnt safe and they ask "why do they make it?"

i always tell them it is the owners responsibility to research things before they puchase an animal and they wouldnt have that problem ha ha

i also tell them they make plenty of products that are not safe or healthy for humans to use(ciggarets, alcohol, candy etc.) we just need to make an informed decision before we make a purchase and in the case of our animals we are making a choise for them to eat and use healthy products b/c we should be trying to give them the best life possible

 

[ticklechin]

People are lazy, period. If a package of bacon fat wrapped around chocolate and had a picture of a human kid on it would the parent just feed it because it had a a picture of a human child on it so it must be OK? I think yes.