Why do people do this?

[ShaunaLynnA]

So I will admit I caught the bug and before buying my baby panther was searching for either a veiled or panther in the local area of Jax. Well turned out I bought my baby panther and had him shipped to me as I have posted in previous posts. Wouldn't you know though that yesterday someone local answered my ad and has a veiled there wanting to place who is about 8mo old she said. She sent me a pic of him and it was him in his cage! His cage can't be anymore then about 18x18x18 it's so small. The light he had on him was red and there was no vines or anything in the cage with him just pine straw and things. I didn't say anything to the lady but it made me feel so sad for the little guy. I think, no I know I am now getting a veiled to add to my little home so he can get in to a larger cage and be cared for like he should. She wanted 125.00 and I told her I would be willing to give 100.00 for everything just so he can come home to a place and be properly cared and loved. Ugh, it upsets me sometimes the way people do things!

 

[meganm85]

i was just recently at a pet store last week....it made me sick as well....when you first walk in your like "wow"...they had monkeys alligators birds ect....then i went to the other side of the store and seen birds (a couple blue and gold macaw) (my favorite) in the smallest cages ever...i dont see how they even got them through the door of the cage...some had their tails lost and all mangled....it made me so sick...i went their looking for supplements and of course they didnt have any nor did the lady know what i was talking about....thank god they didnt have any chameleons.....i just wish i had a lot of money so i could save them all.....its funny how you see all these shows on Discovery channel with those animal cops saving dogs and cats....they need to start going to pet shops and saving those animals....

 

[pssh]

If you think it's wrong then don't pay 100 dollars. Tell her he is being incorectly housed and you will take him off her hands minus the cage.

 

[dragongoddess]

Buying animals to save them from petshops that don't take proper care of them only encourages the petshops to purchase more animals and keep them in the same deplorable conditions. Purchasing the animals only continues the cycle.
It's a nice thought but best to advise them of proper care (though they will ignore you) and not purchase any animals from that shop.

 

[pssh]

In fact it's best not to purchase ANYTHING from a pet shop that keeps their animals in not so good conditions.

 

[meganm85]

what is really messed up is they charge outrageous prices for animals that are all beat up and not healthy....it is down right sick.......i think the only reason ppl buy from pet shops is because they feel bad for them....its a viscous cycle....

 

[ShaunaLynnA]

I agree with each of you on the pet store issue. I haven't bought from and won't buy from a pet store for the exact reasons mentioned. My posting and searching was done on craigslist and local classifieds. My baby was bought from someone who breeds in FL and then the one one I am talking about getting is from a local women who has him. I may just do what Kara suggested and let her know that he is not bein cared for properly and that I will take him off her hands. I still will need to get him a cage and stuff though if I don't pay her a little something for the supplies she has since I only have the one cage of mine on hand. I don't know still have lots of thinking to do about it and what I am going to do for sure.

 

[OldSkoolxReasons]

I say save the chameleon and after tell the lady the only reason you are buying it is because she was giving a horrible life and you thought it deserved to be care for properly. Megan you are right about them being over priced, I saw a pair of nearly dead WC jackson's at the local pet shop about a week ago for $400 dollars. I told them the female was about to die because she was just sitting on the bottom of the enclosure, a few days ago she wasn't there and it was just the male. I asked them how long they had her and they said 3 weeks, she was also carrying young very close to birthing as they said when they tossed her into the garbage out back one popped out, they checked to see if it was alive but it was still premature. it was horrible. good luck with the veiled if you get it shauna, I know you will give it a much better home than some lady with a tiny cage and pine straw and a red light. thats just wrong!



Justin

 

[pssh]

If you get the lights really quick you can free range on a plant for a couple days (supposing you get him for free) and lay down a tarp for the water from spraying until you get his cage.

 

[ShaunaLynnA]

I made my choice and am going to go ahead and get this guy tomorrow. I have told the women he would need a bigger cage and everything and all she told me was she agrees and is glad he will be going to someone who can care for him properly. She agreed to take $85.00 for everything and for now I will temp use the cage he is in for my babypanther and give this guy his adult cage since he is about 8mo old. This buys me a bit of time before I have to buy another adult cage and I can feel better keeping an eye on the little one knowing where he is and then letting the poor guy in the small cage get his larger cage. I am so excited and can't wait to meet him tomorrow

 

[CleaTheChameleon]

I made my choice and am going to go ahead and get this guy tomorrow. I have told the women he would need a bigger cage and everything and all she told me was she agrees and is glad he will be going to someone who can care for him properly. She agreed to take $85.00 for everything and for now I will temp use the cage he is in for my babypanther and give this guy his adult cage since he is about 8mo old. This buys me a bit of time before I have to buy another adult cage and I can feel better keeping an eye on the little one knowing where he is and then letting the poor guy in the small cage get his larger cage. I am so excited and can't wait to meet him tomorrow

Glad to see that you will take him in and give him what he deserves. I like people like you you put a smile on my face for making me know that one chameleon more is added to this happy, healthy community

 

[DJ Richey Rich]

My parents are animal rescue they deal with horses but if u call an animal rescue and report a problem they have to look at the animal and deside what the best way to deal with the problem its kinda like a health inspector if they dont shut the biz down they site a ticket and the pet shop will have to change their ways or get another ticket after so many tickets the animals go to a rescue center so when ever u see mistreated animals call ur local sheriff and an overlook of the shop will be handeled

 

[Hilikus311]

As an owner of a petshop i would invite any and all of you to come and take a look at how we keep our animals including chameleons! So far we have received numerous compliments on how we keep our animals and of how healthy everyone is. We also have a certified vet come and inspect our animals for any signs of deterioration that we may have missed. Obviously in certain cases we receive animals that any self respecting herper would be furious about. We stopped doing business w/ the company and are currently pursuing legal action for the way the animal was upon arrival these included two Jacksons, and a eastern collard lizard. Not all pet shops are harbingers of death for reptiles and amphibians. It is because of the conditions mentioned prior to this post that i opened this tore in the first place. there are two other locations near mine that are in the same business and since we opened one has closed and the other is fixing to. We clean and maintain the health/environments of all our animals several hours a day and we only have about 150 animals ranging from birds to tarantulas and chameleons. I personally see the health of all the animals and treat them like they are my personal pet because in a way they are till they are sold. People are coming to my store because of how clean and well treated the animals are. Don't let the bad image of irresponsible shop keepers ruin your taste for shops like mine.

 

[Psychotic4mb3r]

You should post a picture!

 

[DJ Richey Rich]

As an owner of a petshop i would invite any and all of you to come and take a look at how we keep our animals including chameleons! So far we have received numerous compliments on how we keep our animals and of how healthy everyone is. We also have a certified vet come and inspect our animals for any signs of deterioration that we may have missed. Obviously in certain cases we receive animals that any self respecting herper would be furious about. We stopped doing business w/ the company and are currently pursuing legal action for the way the animal was upon arrival these included two Jacksons, and a eastern collard lizard. Not all pet shops are harbingers of death for reptiles and amphibians. It is because of the conditions mentioned prior to this post that i opened this tore in the first place. there are two other locations near mine that are in the same business and since we opened one has closed and the other is fixing to. We clean and maintain the health/environments of all our animals several hours a day and we only have about 150 animals ranging from birds to tarantulas and chameleons. I personally see the health of all the animals and treat them like they are my personal pet because in a way they are till they are sold. People are coming to my store because of how clean and well treated the animals are. Don't let the bad image of irresponsible shop keepers ruin your taste for shops like mine.

Thats what it takes to run a good biz and be a leader for others I like the most that a pet shop owner is on here learning all he can about reptiles

 

[ZippiesPal]

...and the pendulum swings back.

Well, not completely.

It hurts to think about. All of the injustice in this world, children being abused, earthquake victims, famine, and animal cruelty. There is so much that it becomes overwhelming. Its much easier to slice all of this strife into tiney thin slices.

The Chameleon purchased at a petstore slice:

I got Zippy at a pet store, and he is very healthy and in good spirits. I am very glad that I found this site. If I had not done research on here, I would never have had any appreciation for how well my pet store cared for my pal before he came to me.
Now, knowing what I know, I could not easily tolerate a petstore who does not care for their animals properly. The female who died with babies on board just makes me ill inside (WHAT A HORRABLE STORY!!) !! I hope its only ignorance, but even then, it still costs these stores money to 'get right', and they may not want to pay that price. Then its business as usual, another sick one out the door, and two dead in the trash can. Getting $350.00 for the sick one pays for the two in the can, when all three costed $60.00 anyways. All we can do is educate, and become activists, and demonstrate our humanity by persistance.

To buy, or not to buy, is a kind of logic loop that I cant get out of. If I dont buy, then an animal dies right before my eyes, and that is bad. If I do buy, then the next one dies, and that is bad.

 

[pssh]

If you buy from bad petstores you are supporting the killing of chameleons and the breeding of chameleons by people who don't care.

Fortunately for the chameleon comunity, it is easier to sway pet stores from buying chameleons as opposed to hamsters. A dead Cham discourages the store from buying more, so one dead is better than a hundred more that will just end up in the same place. Without demand for poorly treated chameleons there is no supply. Just turn your head and walk away from a poorly treated chameleon. You can try to educate the store politely, but do not buy it unless conditions improve.

If you want to see more on a simmilar subject, read the pet shop threads in the 'kitchen' section of guineapigcages.com there are plenty if reasons why you should just walk away, and the same idea applies to chameleons in pet stores.

 

[ShaunaLynnA]

So i went ahead and bought the guy. Still need a name for him. He is in wonderful health and very friendly! She just didn't have the proper cage size for him and that was upsetting. Anyhow he is home here with me in a larger cage and loving it! Thank you to all the earlier support and advice on the topic earlier I appreciate it. Pics will be posted as soon as I get them uploaded.

 

[OldSkoolxReasons]

and yes I realize not all petshops are bad. There is one about 20miles from me that breeds their own chameleons and has them in perfect health. But in general the majority of them in my area are dealing mainly in nearly dead wild caught or diseased animals. I personally do buy animals from the other pet store because they are always in good condition. I would just like to reiterate that I do not dislike all petstores. Some are good and these are tech ones we should support, not the chameleon killing ones like the one down the street from me good luck with the veiled and good luck to the pet store owner who actually cares for their animals.



Justin

 

[Carlton]

When I move to a new area of course I start checking out the pet stores for supplies. When I find one that seems to know what they are doing with herps I support them by buying or ordering good supplies. Get friendly with the staff too, chat, find out what their interests are, learn about their animals, etc.

I once worked with a herp shop that got interested in chameleons. I offered to put together a display setup, found the plants at a local nursery, got the cage, lighting, misting, and a good cbb cham. We really enjoyed it. It was a fun partnership. Two days later a customer who had seen it set up bought the entire display...right down to the hand sprayer.

If you become a trusted client they are more likely to listen when a problem with a herp (that you can help with) comes up. It is much harder to walk into a pet shop cold and try to tell them what they are doing wrong with a cham (even though you are right!). After all, why should they listen to someone they don't know? To support my concerns I always come back bringing a reference from a good book, this forum, a good caresheet, to back up what I am telling them. Otherwise, it is just the opinion of some unknown crackpot.

If the shop won't listen at all after a good try, I tell them publicly (in front of other customers) I won't ever buy anything there, and if they don't improve their care I will report them to the local Better Business Bureau, local animal control or whatever agency looks into neglect or abuse cases in that particular place. Then, follow up with a copy of my report to the agency.

It can work!