Pet store Rant!

[Jimturner]

I went to a pet store to look for some decent crickets, as they are increasingly hard to get (damn virus)! Anyway I looked at the herps... not something I usually do as they are always in poor heath and/or inadequately housed. It was all that and more! Seems as though they received a shipment of WC chams! A couple of skinny jacksons, a few fischers, some oustalets miss-labeled as panthers and 6, yes six, full adult Melleri! All the chams were quite rough and beat up, looking rather dehydrated as well. Housed 2 or 3 to a tank that looked better suited to say.. hermit crabs or something! Not to mention that they were all insanely over priced. So my point being.. Although without wild caught imports we would have no cb babies. I find it disheartening to see these potentially beautiful animals get mistreated by uneducated pet stores, passing along misinformation to unsuspecting first time/impulse buyers. These wild animals stand next to zero chance of survival unless treated for parasites and purchased by experienced keepers! It is my opinion that pet stores should not be selling wild animals to the public!

 

[vegas shooby]

I went to a pet store to look for some decent crickets, as they are increasingly hard to get (damn virus)! Anyway I looked at the herps... not something I usually do as they are always in poor heath and/or inadequately housed. It was all that and more! Seems as though they received a shipment of WC chams! A couple of skinny jacksons, a few fischers, some oustalets miss-labeled as panthers and 6, yes six, full adult Melleri! All the chams were quite rough and beat up, looking rather dehydrated as well. Housed 2 or 3 to a tank that looked better suited to say.. hermit crabs or something! Not to mention that they were all insanely over priced. So my point being.. Although without wild caught imports we would have no cb babies. I find it disheartening to see these potentially beautiful animals get mistreated by uneducated pet stores, passing along misinformation to unsuspecting first time/impulse buyers. These wild animals stand next to zero chance of survival unless treated for parasites and purchased by experienced keepers! It is my opinion that pet stores should not be selling wild animals to the public!

Dam that not good..poor chameleons..do u know what pet store if u don't mind me asking...if I had the money like that I would buy them all and take them to vet to get checked out...

 

[elrojo]

Vegas, you buy those animals and it only pads the store's pockets to get more. I own a pet shop, so I'm the last to bash them all, but the vast majority shouldn't be dealing with even hardy reptiles, let alone chameleons. It's sad, really. More stores should start carrying only cb herps. But the only way for that to happen is either for the public to demand it (and stop buying w/c), or a conscientious owner/manager. Until then, you'll be seeing scenarios just like Jim described.

 

[Gensen]

AH terrible!

I personally think pet stores should only be able to carry supplies & food.... live animals regaurdless of the origin, type or breed are better left to be supplied by reputable breeders. Who can not only care for the animals properly but can also educate the buyers on how to provide proper feeding and care. (No offense to any responsible pet store owners, but lets face it that is not the rule.)
All to often in pet stores are poor quality animals with poor quaility care whom are handed over to unknowledgable buyers who do not get proper guidance from the workers at the store simply because they themselves are not eduated properly on what they are selling.