# Classifieds > Testimonials >  Petsmart employees

## into

I'm just ranting here, but went to the local Petsmart today (because they are cleaner than the local Petco) and noticed 2 dead fire bellied toads in their tank under the water.  I told the cricket lady and she shrugged it off and seemed annoyed that I told her about it (i was polite).  People that don't care about animals shouldn't be working at pet stores.  It's weird, the store is the cleanest in town but the animals don't seem as healthy.

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## John Clare

Most people don't think of animals like frogs as mattering in any way - they're not dogs right?  That's probably the case here.

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## John Clare

Good Lord by adding the word dogs to that message I changed both of the google ads completely...

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## into

I actually said that to my girlfriend... if it was a dead dog, it would be different.  I understand that frogs to most people are icky cold blooded display objects, but it still looks bad for the store to have dead animals laying around.

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## jclee

I'm sure she would have cared more if it was an animal she could sell for $200 instead of $2.  To be honest, I have largely lost my ability to be outraged when petstores mistreat animals.  I am, instead, overwhelmingly stunned and surprised when they don't.

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## JeffX

> I'm sure she would have cared more if it was an animal she could sell for $200 instead of $2.  To be honest, I have largely lost my ability to be outraged when petstores mistreat animals.  I am, instead, overwhelmingly stunned and surprised when they don't.


I know how you feel about that one.

Its not just the employees but some of the customers as well.  I had many customers come in and I'd refuse to sell them an animal due to them not having the proper setup.  They wouldn't even care and even some would actually say it's only 5 dollars.  I don't really care.

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## jclee

I know! I've got a friend who really wants to get a goldfish in a 1 gallon  bowl.  I explained to her that this was not nearly big enough, and might only be able to house a betta.  She doesn't like bettas.  I tried to convince her that, if she really wants a small tank with orange fish, it might be better to get a 5 gallon with a pair of plattys.  I explained the whole "organs keep growing," and "high urate output," thing, but she just wants her goldfish in a bowl.  You know, "cuz it looks so pretty on TV."  ARGH!  The weird thing is, she spoiled her dog.  She read everything she could, and she really did everything right for that dog.  But the fish just doesn't matter.  I'll admit that there are some species I can become more attached to than others, but I wouldn't knowingly make an animal suffer like that... well, except maybe a feeder.  I'm sure my crickets aren't too happy with their cramped quarters.  (But even they are well fed and their cage gets cleaned. And I don't claim that they're "pets.")

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## into

I blame a lot of it on miseducation and ut-ummm mismarketing. Frogs are marketed as a child's pet and some literature even states that frogs are easy to care for and maintain, but I don't know if this is entirely true given my experience so far. They are certianly not as easy as say a hampster is or even a ferret.  Years ago I kept pet birds that cost hundreds of dollars and they required more emotional attention but very little maintenance and environmental care.  Temperature, humidity, chemicals... none of this was really a concern, unless one got outside in the winter or snuck under the sink and chewed through a bottle of bleach.

I got into frogs when my son received a planet frog habitat ( http://www.amazon.com/Uncle-Milton-I.../dp/B000062VU0) for Christmas and this thing is now in the trash as I can't imagine putting any frog into this little tiny plastic container. I did initially because I didn't know any better.

I feel that pet store employees need to go through training programs before working out on the floor.

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## Ebony

Me too, I got into Frogs when my Son got Tadpoles for Christmas 5 years ago. There's no way he would have been able to take proper care of the tank let alone the food. It takes alot of time and effort running around catching bugs.

As for pet stores, I cant even go there. I went to one last spring that had about 20 Adult Male/Female Bell frogs in one tank and they were all mating and eggs were every where (on the Land) They only had a NZ ice cream container of water. I went in a week later and the person said that alot died  :Mad: .Frogs in Nz are a bit of a novelty and you don't see them very offen. 
Peaple just don't care. Oh! and you dont want me to tell you about The spraying in our local Reserve that I frequent that had loads of Whistling Tree frogs and Skinks as I always heard them. Now I here nothing...Heart breaking. 
GEE SORRY :Embarrassment: ... But very therapeutic though.

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## Kurt

> I feel that pet store employees need to go through training programs before working out on the floor.


That would be nice. Unfortunately, the ones that actually do this, still don't educate enough.

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## John Clare

The majority of pet store jobs are low wage and the majority of pet store owners aren't graced with the conscience to override their desire to maximise profits.

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## into

yeah and low wage means little to no real training/education. I remember those days right after high school... I worked in a sporting goods store and kept getting calls from people asking about hunting equiptment. Many callers were frustrated that I couldn't help them, so I asked my manager for reference/training materials and he just gave me a funny look and kept walking. (this was before the internet boom)

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## jclee

I honestly do feel bad, though, for the pet store clerks who DO know what they're doing.  So many of us automatically assume the worst of them, and so they must spring back and forth from refusing to sell the goldfish to the girl who wants to keep it in a cup, to getting lectured by someone who assumes they're ignorant and uncaring.  Then again, it is rare enough to find people who really know their stuff working in petstores.  

I'd honestly like to know how much of the mismanagement of animal husbandry in chains is fostered/mandated by corporate policy (i.e. HQ says we can't open the UV light for the suchandsuch lizard as it eats away profits.)  Now and then, I get the nagging suspicion that a clerk/store manager is doing the best s/he can... within the confines of a bigger, inhibitive system.  (Maybe I'm just paranoid or jaded.  Am I the only one who thinks this way?)

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## Kurt

I used to work in the pet industry and compared to what I know now to what I knew then, I was an ignorant little bugger. Still I was the most knowledgeable person in the store. I knew more than the store owner. (This was when Ronald Reagan was President and before the big chain stores came to town.)

So you are right, there are meaningful employees out there, but unfortunately they are in the minority, and a lot of those meaningful employees have very limited knowledge. 

I use to see applicants that would state that a relative had a fish tank, so that made them qualified for a job with us. Sure it does. I have also seen employees make s**t up as they go. Or stores that would make up new names for different animal species. That made life harder for the rest of us. My old boss used to label many types of fish as "sharks" so they would sell better.

Then in the early 90's I worked at the crème de la crème of aquarium stores. We got paid more than your average pet store employee, but we also had to know a lot more than your average pet store employee. The store owner is an ichthyologist and had kept exotic animals for years. I used to hear stores of the old days and be blown away by what they used to have before the laws had changed. Can you say big cats? They are still pretty interesting and knowledgeable and carry interesting stuff. The owner told me recently that he plans to expand into reptiles.

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## JeffX

From my personal experience it all depends on where you go.  I know some people who will stay away from Petco/Petsmart and the chain stores because they feel that they don't know as much.  That is part of the truth.  I've heard some really ignorant advice from local or independent pet stores.  I had spoken to a lady who was told to take her Chinese Water Dragon outside for for it's vitamin d3.  I live in Iowa and frankly this suggestion is rather absurd especially when winter comes around.

Also when I worked at Petco I can tell you I had people that worked in my departments and the managers who didn't know a thing about most of our animals.  The training was focused on product placement and shelving.  I was their head guy in Aquatics/Reptiles before I was given their training.  I had maybe five little paragraphs on animal care.  Luckily I already knew what I was doing and had enough sense to study at home.  The way they setup their displays are all done through a corparate offie and they have no desire to do what the animal needs.  I had twenty or more Ball Pythons stuffed into a ten gallon tank because they wouldn't bother to see what your on hands were and would just send you 15 or more.  You couldn't keep them in the back either.  They ALL had to be out on the floor.

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## jclee

Yeah.  I worked at a corporately owned vet's office for a while, and we had to HIDE frontline and heartguard when the corporate babysitter came around.  Thing was, they wouldn't let us order more if X packages were on the shelves, even if we told them that it was in high demand, and we knew for a fact that it would sell out from the appointments later in the week alone.  Strange stuff.  You'd think, in that case, they'd listen, since it would mean more profit to turn over more product more frequently, but they were only concerned with the day to day.

I spent the first 17 years of my life living in New York City with petstores close to my apartment that kept horrible conditions.  (When most of the staff has never seen a tree-covered hill, let alone a frog in its natural habitat, you know you're in for a treat.)Then I spent the next decade in a small town with a petstore that, for the most part, cared and researched and made an effort, (although I will say that, if you want a pet mouse in the hudson valley, be advised that ALL mice you'll find are former lab animals or their offspring; learned that one the hard way).  

Now I'm somewhere in between.  I've spotted the places that seem to care, but I've also been exposed to chains for the first time ever, (I'd always avoided them, how's that for bias) and have flashed back a little to my previous city experiences.  

Last chain I was in, there was a really sweet old man, telling me how friendly and active the tomato frogs, but he had no idea what he was talking about.  Said they'd max out at 2 inches.  (I just didn't have the heart to correct him.  He really liked them, and he was nice, and I was only passing through.  I had errands to run.)

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## Kurt

I would've corrected him. Of course, I can be a total ******* at times! LOL

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## Madeve

My local petsmart has horrible pet husbandry except for their birds and rodents. Most fish tanks have dead fish, they keep their fire-belly toads in a completely aquatic setup with only a few floating plants. I saw this beautiful Uromastix once and he was kept in one of the smallest tanks they have (10 gal I think). They don't have many exotic pets, they usually have a couple turtles or tortoise and a few small grass lizards(not sure exactly what they are but that's what they are labeled as), every now and then they have something really unusual, like the uromastix. I've never ever seen any newts or salamander available.

My local Petco is amazing. The have knowledgable employees and I have yet to see a dead fish. Save for their crested geckos, their reptiles are kept in pretty good conditions, tank size and housing is appropriate and they even separate some animals if they have a size difference. They even told me they could order me some newts if I really wanted some but I have a better place to get my newts from.
The same 4 crested geckos have been there since the store opened earlier this year, I've been tempted many time when they go on sale to grab all 4 but then I'm afraid they will just get more in and they'll not sell and grow too big for their enclosure.

We used to have 2 local pet stores, one closed after hurricane Rita, about 3 years ago, it had pretty bad conditions. Their fish section was decent but the few rodents they kept were over crowded and inbreeding.
The other used to be the place to go to get exotic pets, they could order you anything you wanted. When I started my quest for an axolotl they knew a breeder in TX but their price was a bit out of my range. They always had snakes, frogs and a few lizards or gecko on display. Unfortunately after the last hurricane season, they relocated to a smaller shop where they only sell a few supplies, mostly for dogs and cats, and have a dog grooming salon.

So I have to shop the big corporate chain stores for supplies or order online and with shipping prices sometimes, I'd rather make the short drive.

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## Kurt

> They don't have many exotic pets, they usually have a few small grass lizards(not sure exactly what they are but that's what they are labeled as)


_Takydromus sexlineatus_, an Asian Lacertid or true lizard. They are all wild caught and rarely do well in captivity.

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## into

> My local Petco is amazing. The have knowledgable employees and I have yet to see a dead fish...


The original complaint on this thread was against a local Petsmart, but they do have the one of the cleanest pet stores around. The local Petco on the other hand is not so good (there's where I purchased all my frogs) They are understaffed and as stated earilier, they keep getting more WTFs in whether they need them of not... so I wasn't concerned about buying one that was in need and them taking that as a demand for them and ordering more. 

There is another Petsmart in my area and their store is beautiful and the the WTFs are in at least in a 30 gallon tank and only a couple are in there at a time... so I guess the blame goes to the individual store managers? since there are good and bad Petcos and Petsmarts around.

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## Johnny O. Farnen

I have found that both Big Name "Pet" retailers in the US to be very, very, touch and go both on cleanliness and knowledge. I often purchase supplies for my pugs and our snakes at them, however I would never buy anything live from them, other than fruit flies. Here in Omaha, PetSmart is better stocked, but PetCo has better prices.

If I were to make a judgment call on employee knowledge between the two here, PetCo would win, however I found that most of them in other locations around the country were masters of misinformation.

Then again, I am a bit of an elitist when it comes to pet shops in general... :Wink:

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## Kurt

Aren't we all?

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## Johnny O. Farnen

> Aren't we all?



The wife claims this is my main interest in this hobby:

"You just like going to pet shops and making the poor _idiotas_ that work there look stupid in public. You also enjoy watching them squirm when you ask to see the manager/owner."


She is right...I guess... :Fight me!:

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## Kurt

Yes, that is fun! The other half of the coin is when you get employees that worship you like a god. I think those ones are the caring ones, as they seem to want to learn everything you can teach them.

I do like shooting down the ones that think they are better than me just because they work there and they are the "expert". There was this one employee at Petco that comes to mind.
Their hermit crab enclosure was overly wet, I mean it was really swampy. There was so much water in the substrate that you could pour it like gravy. Anyway, there was the unmistakable smell of rotting flesh emitting from the enclosure. I told an employee and he said they had a new guy that doesn't quite what he was doing yet and he had taken care of the animals the day before. Other cages were screwed up too. He then went and got the "expert". She came over looked and at told him and I that's just the way that hermit crabs smelled. I have never kept hermits before, but I have been around quite a few and I know the smell of rotting flesh, so much so that I can usually tell what kind of animal it is down to class.
I argued with her over it she was having no part of it. Even after I told her who I am and what my credentials are. My friend who is a wildlife educator/science teacher was with me. She has kept hermit crabs and she was even arguing with this pinhead of an employee. I should've asked to see the manager, but I just walked away in disgust. Its a shame she had to hide behind her arrogance to cover up her lack of knowledge and the fact that an employee and ****ed up and they had not fixed the problem.

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## jclee

I would love to know where she got the idea of "swampy" for a hermit crab enclosure.  The tropical beaches they come from can't really be classified as "swamps."  They need water/humidity to keep their gills wet, but a bog isn't really their thing.

I don't even think of it as arrogance any more: just insecurity.  When someone is factually wrong, and fighting with made-up or inaccurate facts, I often think it's just not having the sense of self to admit it.  It's scary to be wrong.  Yeah, sometimes we get old or bad information, but what ever happened to, "I have never heard that.  Let me look into it."  Is that really so hard?  If I could get that sentence out of more clerks' mouths, that alone would be enough to send me home with a smile on my face.

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## Kurt

When I worked at the Museum of Science in Boston and the Museum of Natural History of Harvard University, we were told if a vistor was ask a question for which we had no answer for, we were to say "I don't know". We were also that we should take their contact info and get back to them with an answer when we had one, but that was optional and not a single visitor ever took me up on that offer. We were never to make stuff up to look smarted or to cover up our short comings. To do so was a good way to get fired.

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## John Clare

Kurt, that's the scientific approach.

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## JeffX

That is the way everyone should go when asked about something they don't know.  There really is nothing wrong admitting you don't know something.  I worked with a kid who supposedly was going to be working at our local zoo who used to tell customers he could tell the sex of our Bearded Dragons before they even came close to maturity.  I loved the guy that told me that if you feed Lionfish live food they'll never take frozen food like in the wild.  He honestly said that.

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## jclee

I once walked into a petstore just as they were sexing and separating juvenille hamsters that were just old enough to be sold... and I wound up taking over and sexing them, because they were getting it wrong more often than not.  (Imagine being the 8 year old who gets a "boy" hamster for her birthday, only to wind up with a full litter to raise/rehome.)

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## Chel

Yesterday I went into my local Petsmart and I found a few things that totally disturbed me. For one, they had some sort fo toad, a pacman frog, and a chubby frog in the same enclosure. Not to mention, the enclosure was way too small for that many animals. Then. they have their FBTs in pretty much all aquatic enclosures with a turtle landing for them to sit on outside the water. I was horrified and actually considered purchasing all of them to save them from all of it.

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## Kurt

By purchasing them, you reward their them for their bad husbandry skills/policies.

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## into

> By purchasing them, you reward their them for their bad husbandry skills/policies.


true.  Though you have to consider that most of them will get bought up by children and uneducated people that see them as novelty $5 pets that are seen as disposible by many. ... like goldfish.  

I've been to pet stores where a clerk was chasing frogs around to get one for a child requesting one. Recently, I overheard a kid ask his mom if he could get a frog and she told him "no, you keep killing em... maybe next time".

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## Chel

It breaks my heart that people think of frogs and toads as disposable. They are just as alive as any other pet and deserve the same amount of care as any other pet.

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## into

> It breaks my heart that people think of frogs and toads as disposable. They are just as alive as any other pet and deserve the same amount of care as any other pet.


 
I have to admit that before owning them, I never gave much thought to frogs.

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## Chel

> I have to admit that before owning them, I never gave much thought to frogs.


 
Even though I recently just got into frogs and toads, I stil felt bad for them at stores when they weren't being treated right.

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## Kurt

> Recently, I overheard a kid ask his mom if he could get a frog and she told him "no, you keep killing em... maybe next time".


My mom used to say that I kept on killing things all the time, still does occasionaly. That maybe have been true when I first started keeping fish and herps, but it hasn't been true in a long time. I had a moray eel that lasted for ten years, when every thing I read said that the captive life expectancy was only eight months. I lost it in the mid-nineties. I always have to throw these things back at her when she makes those kind of statements.

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## cvBon1

Ugh, Petsmart.. dont get me started. My best friend used to work there and she would tell me horror stories, the stupid people looking to buy animals. It should be illegal for people to buy animals if theyre uneducated, at least.. like.. for example to put a fancy goldfish in a bowl?! Omg! thats ridiculous! Its like putting a dog in a closet! Its cruelty!! I remember she came home one day infuriated. A customer wanted to buy a chameleon for his sons school project. Just to sit in a little habit he built... thats it!! She said no, they went to another employee and they were able to buy hermit crabs. Petsmart doesnt care, nor do they care enough to train there employees about proper animal care! 

And its not just the big companies either! I have a few shops around here called Petworld... and its horrid. I was told that one of the employees my best friend currently works for (a natural foods pet store) went into there and noticed the Chameleon that was for sale was COVERED in Mites, to the point it probably couldnt be healed. And she asked the woman nearby if they were treating it, she said no! She said NO!! And that infuriated this person and she asked the woman to speak to the manager cause that was animal neglect, and the petworld employee replied.. "I am the manager" .... ... then she just walked out, cause that was just... too much

I think she should've called someone.

That or people need to crack down harder on Licensing people to sell pets.


Uhhh... sorry for the rant. It just drives me CRAZY...

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## sschind

> I have found that both Big Name "Pet" retailers in the US to be very, very, touch and go both on cleanliness and knowledge. I often purchase supplies for my pugs and our snakes at them, however I would never buy anything live from them, other than fruit flies. Here in Omaha, PetSmart is better stocked, but PetCo has better prices.
> 
> If I were to make a judgment call on employee knowledge between the two here, PetCo would win, however I found that most of them in other locations around the country were masters of misinformation.
> 
> Then again, I am a bit of an elitist when it comes to pet shops in general...


Why wouldn't you buy anything live from them?

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## Rat The Unloved

About two years ago I walked into a Petco in the Dallas/Fort Worth area of Texas. I explained that I was looking for a job, and gave my laundry list of experience with everything from commercial rabbit raising, to rats, to iguanas, turtles, snakes, frogs...etc. The Manager seemed really eager to hire me, and handed me an application.

I asked : "So, is there any specific training for the reptile area or..." - he cut me off "Oh, you won't be handling the animals, you'll be working cashier."

Through a few minutes of conversation it became abundantly clear that they do not hire people with ANY kind of knowledge for the special care areas, because those people "cost too much in supplies". I.e. medication and treatment for the animals. 

I said a few very vulgar words to him, and did not return.

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## John Clare

Sadly, that sounds like what I would expect from them.  I try my best not to buy things from the big chains.

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## Kurt

Except Wal-mart.

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## bshmerlie

Everyone is knocking the big box pet stores but you have to realize Petsmart can't be going out paying top dollar to hire experts for each department (frogs, fish, snakes, birds, dogs, cats, rabbits, ect.)  For stores that size they have a "HUGE" corporate overhead to pay for and still try to be profitable in a major recession like this one.  If it was your business you too would find yourself having to pay entry level wages for sales positions in such a store.  Next thing you know your hiring some 17-18 year old and I'm sorry but the kids of today are just not that bright.  Any training you do with them they just say, "yeah yeah" and it goes in one ear and out the other.  I don't know about the rest of you but I started in the frog hobby buying a couple of firebellies at Petsmart. The saleman didn't really know anything about them, but as a repsonsible pet owner I did my own research to make sure I cared for them properly as they were to become "my" pets.  The real problem is people don't take responsiblity when purchasing a pet to do a little research.  With today's internet there is no excuse for the uneducated.

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## Rat The Unloved

There's no need to hire "experts" when they have perfectly good advanced hobbyists walking in the door begging to work for minimum wage (so that they can feed themselves... which is always fun). Hobbyists like myself. 

When a store actively turns down placing the appropriate person in the appropriate section of the store, because they use stock to treat/care for the animals (and using stock costs money), that is absolutely ridiculous. They wanted to stick me on cashier, and have all of the uneducated kids run over to ask questions rather than placing me in the reptile department and risking that I might open a UV bulb for the Iguanas. - Ridiculous -. 

I refer specifically to one of the PetCo's in the DFW area. And also to one in Oklahoma. I have not named locations but if a friend asks I'll say "Yeah, don't." Other stores? Who knows.

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## Deku

> I know how you feel about that one.
> 
> Its not just the employees but some of the customers as well.  I had many customers come in and I'd refuse to sell them an animal due to them not having the proper setup.  They wouldn't even care and even some would actually say it's only 5 dollars.  I don't really care.


Agreed not all petstore employees are bad. There are rare ones out there that are genuinly good. Both my friends are good employees. One of them is extremely smart reguarding animals, the other one not so much. BUT STILL cares alot about them to learn and to tell the customer to look them up. I used to work in a petstore I had alot of frikkin ignorant people come in. 


I had this old lady come in about a 4 year old red eared slider that was stunted and was put in a 2.5 gallon tank. I actually flared at her and told her "why dont you atleast get them a rubbermaid? Its less expensive than a tank". Then she told me she didnt had  room that it was her sons who went off to college. I mean my mom is ignorant about animals but even she isnt that retarded. It makes me so angry when I hear about these people. I had this guy report me to my boss because I gave him 5 crickets extra. He was all mad that I didnt give him enough I actually took one cricket by cricket. The guy appeared like a cheap jackass infront of his family. Just because he wanted to save some money. I understand that in this economy its bad. But thats just it. If you cant take care of them dont frikking buy the animal. It makes me so mad when people do that. I actually had this guy trying to give me his painted turtle half a year ago. He bought it on a reptile expo in pa. Which means he must have gotten either a western or a southern. Because easterns are illegal in pa. The guy wanted me to take it off his hands. So me liking painted turtles I agreed. When he came back he told me that his wife released it into the lake.  A CAPTIVE BRED ANiMAL! you know how furious I was? Because his kid was bored of the animal. Because the kid actually said "I want to switch of reptiles to some fire bellied toads". I had to held my tongue. But had it been offf work I would have told him:
So what will happen when you get bored with the toads? You're going to release it? You probably think you love animals and all. But if you did you wouldnt be a little jerk and release a captive bred animal. An animal who may or may not thrive in outdoor conditions. An animal who will carry parasites and bacteria unfamiliar to those in our local ecosystem. Because you just want these animals because you think they're cool."

Its one of the reasons I had to leave my job. Day after day more and more ignorant people would come in. Asking me really stupid **** like if a certain animal can go in a smaller enclosure. I mean what kind of question is that? Its why I flare at people when they go around asking stupid questions and dont follow them. Its not just the employees. I mean I dont like most store employees but for the most part its the customer. In every forum people complain non stop about employees. But have you ever worked there to see whats going on? I know ALOT of employees are ignorant about animals. But guess what? Any of that wont change. WHy dont you sit around in the fish department  or small animal department and listen in to customers. You will be shocked. Some of these people who dont even care; dont care because customers themselves fail to listen. Id rather see an animal die than the animal living under bad conditions throughout its life span. Would YOU like to live in a prison? No right? Would you rather die than live your life in prison? Assuming yes same for these people. But I totally agree alot of employees dont care about their animals. But its not just the employees its also the buyers. Because Iam pretty sure if they hired people like me and you to a petstore they would not make any business. Chances are I would flare at them. But for the most part I tried guiding them to other things. Mothers who have kids bugging them to buy them a goldfish. The moms are stupid enough to comply and end up buying those tiny extremly expensive kits. Had they bought something like a 10gallon with the supplies it would match up to that of a kit. But no they have to buy each kid a 4inch goldfish to put in a bowl or in some stupid dora the explorer kit. Those are death traps for fish. Only the labyrinth fish COULD survive in there. But wont be happy. 


Again. Each and one of you SHOULD visit alot of petstores including those "bad" petstores you talk about and stay there for the whole day. Listen at what the customers talk about. Then you will also understand. I personally had to keep my mouth shut or I would have been fired. In the end I had to leave. Most of these people end up leaving too.

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## Deku

> There's no need to hire "experts" when they have perfectly good advanced hobbyists walking in the door begging to work for minimum wage (so that they can feed themselves... which is always fun). Hobbyists like myself. 
> 
> When a store actively turns down placing the appropriate person in the appropriate section of the store, because they use stock to treat/care for the animals (and using stock costs money), that is absolutely ridiculous. They wanted to stick me on cashier, and have all of the uneducated kids run over to ask questions rather than placing me in the reptile department and risking that I might open a UV bulb for the Iguanas. - Ridiculous -. 
> 
> I refer specifically to one of the PetCo's in the DFW area. And also to one in Oklahoma. I have not named locations but if a friend asks I'll say "Yeah, don't." Other stores? Who knows.


A true hobbyst would get mad at the things the customers say. Been hired to one I know what Iam talking about. For the most part you CANT argue with a customer because you will get fired. Most customers will bish at you for very stupid things. You WILL end up frustrated. Its not just me, I know alot of hobbyst being hired into stores some which are my friends and they are frustrated. Most end up leaving. The rest they're mind is being battered by their own thoughts and opinion against what the customers and the boss say. Its not because they cant afford to hire experts. Thats just stupid anyone can be an expert as long as they keep the animals t hemselves they can speak. What Iam talking about is customers 85% of the customers that walk in everyday are as clueless as a 5 year old about the opposite sex. If you tell them the appropriate care it doesnt matter they will argue with you alot. I actually spent 2 hours trying to explain to a few people  how to care for a certain animal. I got screamed at by my boss. Again its not just that. They wont hire you because they CANT hire you. Unless you will keep your mouth quiet and your feelings inside. MOSt people who work in a petstore that are TRUE hobbyst will get mad and frustrated. I cannot stress this enough. There is alot of contraversial about this. I used to be one of them. One of my friends even got fired because he got mad at a lady who was trying to purchase some tree frogs.

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## Rat The Unloved

I'm a big boy - I know how to behave appropriately with customers. I've run a small business since I was in my early teens and worked with my family on a production-scale rabbit ranch, mostly dealing with buyers. 

Here's what the Dallas store manager said: "It's store policy to use product from the shelves to take care of the animals, and we've found that experienced people tend to pull more product, so we don't hire for specific areas. The kids can come over and ask you questions, though."

That blew my mind so hard I never went back. :P

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## Deku

> I'm a big boy - I know how to behave appropriately with customers. I've run a small business since I was in my early teens and worked with my family on a production-scale rabbit ranch, mostly dealing with buyers. 
> 
> Here's what the Dallas store manager said: "It's store policy to use product from the shelves to take care of the animals, and we've found that experienced people tend to pull more product, so we don't hire for specific areas. The kids can come over and ask you questions, though."
> 
> That blew my mind so hard I never went back. :P


This doesnt make any sense. But at any rate. Anyone who actually cares for the lives of the animals(any animal) doesnt matter what part you are expert in. If you care about it you will protect it. Just like if you see someone hurting a dog you would get mad right? Same thing.

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## 1beataway

It surprises me he was so honest about not putting you in that department for that reason. Most of them would at least lie and say, "There's no position available over there." lol. 

When it comes to pet stores, there's always going to be good and bad. That situation in Dallas is not something I've ever come across. When it comes down to it, the big pet stores are paying very little for very crappy work. My pay isn't worth what I have to do everyday, but I need the job, and it's not as bad as other places. 

I know my manager prefers to hire people with at least some experience with animals, but sometimes she doesn't get those applicants. She went a while without hiring anyone when we needed another person because she wasn't pleased with the few people who had applied. But truthfully...when I started working, I had no experience with animals. As a child, I had dogs and a rabbit, and that was it. Now I can talk for hours about reptiles and amphibians and fish. So sometimes those uneducated workers learn some things on their own.  :Frog Smile: 

I know that in my petstore, when an animal is sick, it's immediately pulled off the floor and taken care of. If it is something more than just a broken tail on a lizard or bit wounds, etc, it's taken to the vet. I've never seen my managers express a problem with that. 

So...in summary...each individual pet store is different, if you know what to look for you can easily spot which ones to stay away from, the situation in Dallas sucks (I hope you at least got a job soon after somewhere else!), and I didn't read all of Deku's posts because it made me think of some of my annoying customers, and I truly don't wish to think about them. :P

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## Deku

> It surprises me he was so honest about not putting you in that department for that reason. Most of them would at least lie and say, "There's no position available over there." lol. 
> 
> When it comes to pet stores, there's always going to be good and bad. That situation in Dallas is not something I've ever come across. When it comes down to it, the big pet stores are paying very little for very crappy work. My pay isn't worth what I have to do everyday, but I need the job, and it's not as bad as other places. 
> 
> I know my manager prefers to hire people with at least some experience with animals, but sometimes she doesn't get those applicants. She went a while without hiring anyone when we needed another person because she wasn't pleased with the few people who had applied. But truthfully...when I started working, I had no experience with animals. As a child, I had dogs and a rabbit, and that was it. Now I can talk for hours about reptiles and amphibians and fish. So sometimes those uneducated workers learn some things on their own. 
> 
> I know that in my petstore, when an animal is sick, it's immediately pulled off the floor and taken care of. If it is something more than just a broken tail on a lizard or bit wounds, etc, it's taken to the vet. I've never seen my managers express a problem with that. 
> 
> So...in summary...each individual pet store is different, if you know what to look for you can easily spot which ones to stay away from, the situation in Dallas sucks (I hope you at least got a job soon after somewhere else!), and I didn't read all of Deku's posts because it made me think of some of my annoying customers, and I truly don't wish to think about them. :P


Agreed. Iam not fit or qualified to work in a petstore because I do have patience. But I dont have tolerance to carelesness and selfishness. Once you work in the petstore industry you will know what Iam speaking about. So dont get frustrated if you dont get hired. Truth be told depending on your tolerance for the many people who want to take the easy way out most of us would get frustrated. To be very honest I get very frustrated trying to work with those people. Most parents leave t he care to the child. Thats the first mistake. Then they wonder why the animal has either died, become ill or attacked the kid. Buying animals like hamsters, turtles, lizards, rabbits, guinea pigs, and pretty much any small animal to be taken care of by a mere child who does not understand the concept of being gentle, and has the attention span of a squirrel. 
Small furred animals: Not good childrens pet due to the fact most can die out of fright(rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters), most die out of inproper care, most bite because are mishandled, and not given chew toys.
Reptiles: Having specific requirements, needing lamps that produce heat, heaters(for aquatics and undertank heaters), live foods, etc. Is certainly not good for a child. I mean common the light is a fire hazard. They cant go to the store and buy foods and supplies weekly. Chances are the animals will suppress the illness and kids wont be able to tell its sick until its late and die. Iam not saying all children will be  bad with reptiles. But for the most part they are. 
Amphibians: Not a touch pet, which kids like pets they can touch. Die out of stress easier than any other animal. Some could harm the child if its toxic. Some need heat lamps which is a fire hazard. 

In fact any animal out there shouldnt be taken care of by a child(anyone under 13-14years of age). Animals should be researched before purchased to know what you're getting yourself into. Which alot of people just dont do. Where I used to work I had alot of people drop their animals onto us saying we didnt warn them this and that. Which we did but they were so far up their butts they never listen. 
Its very true its not just the petstore. Some petstores are genuinly good. While others are bad. Agreed. But its also part of the customers fault. Alot of coorporations make their money off of ignorant people. Its business jungle. Coorporations are the predators and the ignorant consumers are the prey. Fact is bad service wont change unless action is taken care of. Unless you go out infront of every petstore and educate each and every customer then you will not be able to do anything. Sure alot of people are into reptiles. But guess what? The rest dont give a squat about them. Which is why they arent being taken care of very well. Funny thing is. People also get scammed by petstores. My petstore used to buy 5cent goldfish and then sell them off to the customers for like 10-30bucks a piece. Sometimes we would get rare fish dropped in bad shape in our doorstep.We would take it in. Try to cure it. Then we would just sell it to the customer for 3-4 times its original price. If you see a rare animal for the most part its a drop off. This is true because a petstore wont just order some random animal and expect it to sell.

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## goreptiles

The problem is ignorant and uninformed employees create uninformed and ignorant customers who buy the animals without proper knowledge or care to do further research.

I used to work for a pet store. Our reptile specialists knew nothing about reptiles. Well, one did but she got fired. One of the other two thought she knew info and care but knew nothing. the third person didnt even have a reptile; she killed her bearded dragon bc she didn't do proper research. I was stuck in small animals, but had more experience with reptiles. I was chastised everytime I walked in the fish/reptiledepartment to help a customer.

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## Deku

> The problem is ignorant and uninformed employees create uninformed and ignorant customers who buy the animals without proper knowledge or care to do further research.
> 
> I used to work for a pet store. Our reptile specialists knew nothing about reptiles. Well, one did but she got fired. One of the other two thought she knew info and care but knew nothing. the third person didnt even have a reptile; she killed her bearded dragon bc she didn't do proper research. I was stuck in small animals, but had more experience with reptiles. I was chastised everytime I walked in the fish/reptiledepartment to help a customer.


No you can talk to the customer for hours. You can give them places to look into. You can even try giving them discounts. They will still remain ignorant and uncaring. I'ved delt with alot of these type of customers. You can try showing them the way. Most will just want to hear themselves talk and if you tell them they are wrong they will snap at you and will just go to another petstore that will suck up to them. I know what you mean though. But again its both parts. Customers because they dont give a crack about the animals enough to study them. Employees because they just give up and dont inform them. I know what you are talking about. I had to deal with that. But when I got chastised I would always make the other employees sound unintelligent.  Also for the most part a petstore is a landmine of drama. You can't avoid it. So we adapt and try to deal with it the best way possible. But like I keep restating its not just the employees fault its also the customers. If companies hired "experts" the experts will not sell anything to anyone because most people that come in a petstore are dumb as a sack when it comes to animals asides from a dog or a cat. 
I once had a customer call my petstore very angry because his newly bought rabbit and parakeet died. I asked him "how'd it die?" and he responded that it died two days later. That he kept them together next to each other but as well let them play together. Thats a nono. You do not put a rabbit with a bird to play. Rabbits can die out of fright very easily. I explained to him that and then he tried to save his toosh with "some employee told me I could" but indeed I was the only one working that shift that day. Infact I pretty much "Bagged" it for him(not really bag but like a box). Normally I would believe that because a few of my fellow workers tend to say untrue things. Theres also been many cases where the customers come in and want to buy their child a pet to shut them up. They don't give a squat. I remember having this one guy who mounted a 3gallon aquarium in his daughters bedroom. The guy wanted to put in some fish in that tank. I even butted in my friends sale just to inform them better. They were planning on a goldfish. I told them they couldnt do that. SO I tried to get him to look at betta fish and labyrinth fish(paradise fish) in general. The girl didnt want just one fish. SO I tried to stray him to minnows. To keep a minimum of two. In the end he bought 5minnows and 1 crayfish. I told him that the crayfish will eat the minnows the guy looked at me "better for me, then shell stop asking me".

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## 1beataway

It's both sides, and it's something you'll find anywhere retail. Unfortunately, at a pet store you're dealing with living animals, and there's a lot more to lose. I've had lots of customers who will argue with you and want you to sell them the animal regardless of what sort of home they are providing. But I've also had plenty who have said to me, "No one has ever told me that before. Thank you." And they follow all my advice and recommendations. 

Likewise, I have worked with people who are ignorant and remain ignorant, with people who think they know and end up giving really bad advice to customers (And this sucks even more when it's one of those customers who are truly trying to learn and follow the information given), and with people who, like myself, try to learn as much as they can on their own to give the right information. 

Employees and customers both should research more. I believe that most of the responsibility lies on the pet store employees. Obviously, it would be fantastic if every pet store employee was able to give out a lot of good advice, but we have those who will refuse to learn and those who really, truly believe they know the answers to questions and just get it wrong. Some stores will consist of managers that support ignorance, and some will consist of managers that push their employees to be intelligent. And sometimes, employees do get frustrated when so many of their customers just argue with them about the best care. You have to fight yourself to not just give everyone an oscar for a 10 gallon tank.

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## Deku

> It's both sides, and it's something you'll find anywhere retail. Unfortunately, at a pet store you're dealing with living animals, and there's a lot more to lose. I've had lots of customers who will argue with you and want you to sell them the animal regardless of what sort of home they are providing. But I've also had plenty who have said to me, "No one has ever told me that before. Thank you." And they follow all my advice and recommendations. 
> 
> Likewise, I have worked with people who are ignorant and remain ignorant, with people who think they know and end up giving really bad advice to customers (And this sucks even more when it's one of those customers who are truly trying to learn and follow the information given), and with people who, like myself, try to learn as much as they can on their own to give the right information. 
> 
> Employees and customers both should research more. I believe that most of the responsibility lies on the pet store employees. Obviously, it would be fantastic if every pet store employee was able to give out a lot of good advice, but we have those who will refuse to learn and those who really, truly believe they know the answers to questions and just get it wrong. Some stores will consist of managers that support ignorance, and some will consist of managers that push their employees to be intelligent. And sometimes, employees do get frustrated when so many of their customers just argue with them about the best care. You have to fight yourself to not just give everyone an oscar for a 10 gallon tank.


I know an  it sucks. :/ You wouldnt  like to know the horros ived seen at petstores. :/ its terrible and gross.

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## 1beataway

> I know an it sucks. :/ You wouldnt like to know the horros ived seen at petstores. :/ its terrible and gross.


You know I work at a petstore, right? I've probably seen some of the same things. :P

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## Deku

> You know I work at a petstore, right? I've probably seen some of the same things. :P


Hmm my friend bought this hamster from the store. Its missing the two middle fingers on one paw. This hamster was being kept in the bathroom and it was called "bathroom buddy". Hamster who was used for breeding. Its very sad. I think the male bit her fingers off. :/ Also the same people keep fire bellied toads with bullfrog tadpoles and crayfish. See what I mean? Which all is connected to one sump. 35-40 fish die per day. Excluding feeders. They clean the walls of the tank with bleach. :/ When they grab a bird they use a glove and they have to hold the bird very tight. Most of which the bird is injured. They keep a tokay gecko with a snake in bark bedding. A few snakes got out and 3 of them died. One died out of cold. The other one when the old manager saw it put it in a box with a LIVE rat. The snake was covered in blood and the rat was dead which the workers wondered how they died.

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## 1beataway

I take it back.

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## Deku

> I take it back.


This is why I hate petstores. But at the same time I dont hate them. I buy their animals because I have no other choice I cant order online anymore. Not allowed.

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## 1beataway

> This is why I hate petstores. But at the same time I dont hate them. I buy their animals because I have no other choice I cant order online anymore. Not allowed.


Not all petstores are like this though. I have worked at mine for 3 years and have never seen anything like what you've described. I've seen animals get sick and I've even seen some die, but this is rare and those that do get sick get taken care of. But I think often it's not that hard to figure out what kind of pet store you're walking into.

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## Rat The Unloved

Horrible experiences in the pet-industry aren't really a competition, you know. 

I worked on a production-scale rabbit ranch. What I did in the course of my job would probably curl toes here (as it does in pretty much any polite company) - _which is why I don't discuss it._

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## Deku

> Horrible experiences in the pet-industry aren't really a competition, you know. 
> 
> I worked on a production-scale rabbit ranch. What I did in the course of my job would probably curl toes here (as it does in pretty much any polite company) - _which is why I don't discuss it._


We never said it was.  But its disgusting and appaling so we were sharing our concerns. I do admit you're probably right. Ived heard things about the rabbit industries. I keep one myself. I find it appaling what they do. Lucky for me I dont work in any of those places. I couldnt handle it. Its just sick and cruel as its cruel to harm any animal of any  species. Heck. I dont like cats, but Iam not going to hurt them. Its just pointless and inhumane. But I keep hearing that word "inhumane", it seems to me if alot of "humans" do it. Its pretty humane to me.... right???? There should be a different word for that meaning.

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## 1beataway

I did not mean to support a competition, if it appeared I did. I was simply defending the idea that some pet stores are good, and some are bad; some employees are knowledgable, and others aren't; and some customers are willing to listen while others refuse.

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## Deku

> I did not mean to support a competition, if it appeared I did. I was simply defending the idea that some pet stores are good, and some are bad; some employees are knowledgable, and others aren't; and some customers are willing to listen while others refuse.


No, I seriously don't think you did or any of us for that matter. We just stated facts and experiences. I also agree on you about what you just said and had been saying. It goes on both parts.

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## Rat The Unloved

1beataway - No, it didn't seem as though you were supporting any such thing. The point I was attempting to make, very subtly/politely, is that some of us see/have seen enough horrible animal-related stuff to last a lifetime, and pretty much the last thing we want to do is see horror stories dragged out, and given a shiny new coat of awful on a forum. You did not post any such stories.  :Smile:

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## Deku

> 1beataway - No, it didn't seem as though you were supporting any such thing. The point I was attempting to make, very subtly/politely, is that some of us see/have seen enough horrible animal-related stuff to last a lifetime, and pretty much the last thing we want to do is see horror stories dragged out, and given a shiny new coat of awful on a forum. You did not post any such stories.


Thats supporting a point. Unless someone randomly drags out a story for no reason. Otherwise to anyone comming in here as a new member seeing all these posts about petstores being bad they'd ask themselves "How? they dont even show any points/examples".

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## goreptiles

> Not all petstores are like this though. I have worked at mine for 3 years and have never seen anything like what you've described. I've seen animals get sick and I've even seen some die, but this is rare and those that do get sick get taken care of. But I think often it's not that hard to figure out what kind of pet store you're walking into.


The pet store I worked at was brand new. I helped build the layouts and all. After treating too many sick animals, the boss said not to treat unless its really bad. He said none get to go to the vet for diagnosis unless its bad. Odd how it was promoted that all animals are vet checked...

I agree it's not always the employee, but if a customer asks for help and ab employee who doesn't know anything gives bad info, that customer is relying on that info to care for their new pet.

Now, yea some customers don't care, but you can't help that even if you try to give the best info you can.



Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

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## Deku

> The pet store I worked at was brand new. I helped build the layouts and all. After treating too many sick animals, the boss said not to treat unless its really bad. He said none get to go to the vet for diagnosis unless its bad. Odd how it was promoted that all animals are vet checked...
> 
> I agree it's not always the employee, but if a customer asks for help and ab employee who doesn't know anything gives bad info, that customer is relying on that info to care for their new pet.
> 
> Now, yea some customers don't care, but you can't help that even if you try to give the best info you can.
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk


I agree. It just goes both ways. I just wish I could do something about it. But chances are I could make petitions, I can try getting laws passed and nothing will changed. Animals are and will be mistreated because of ignorance.

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