What should I do?!?!?!?!?

[misfitsfiend]

There is a pet shop here at the avenues mall in jacksonville called pet emporium and they sell over priced T's and Emp scorpions. 90$ a 2.5'' red knee and 30$ for an emp!! anyways They keep their T's about 3'' under a huge bright white light with no retreat or deep enough substrate to burrow and the spiders look so dehidrated. The emp scorpions are keep in a sandy aquarium with one water dish to high for them to reach and no retreat and they keep 10-15 scorps in the same tank. And in both tanks the cricket parts are pileing up! This is horrible inhumane torrture and I even told them every thing they were doing wrong and they said ''There just bugs''. Man I was sooooo pissed off!!! What should I do?????

 

[MyNameHere]

If they're independently operated, talk to the owner. If it's a chain, talk to whoever is in charge of overseeing animal care in all the stores. Refer to your experience keeping inverts and then let that person know why these setups are unacceptable. It may help to have some articles from ATS with you in case they just don't want to believe you.

When you're talking to that person (whoever they are), it would also be a good time to apprise them of the store employee's reaction when you tried to share information w/them.

Good luck, hope you can help get some better care for those guys!

 

[cichlidsman]

if they are "just bugs", why are they cost so much? if i were you i would go in there and tell them if they dont fix the probelm, that you will get the local paper to do a stroy on them and the way they treat there animals

 

[misfitsfiend]

All very good Ideas, Thanks alot

 

[Immortal_sin]

if you go to the ATS website there is a button you can click to download a basic caresheet for tarantulas. I'd print it out and take it to the store with you. I'd also be as nice as possible, since most people don't like being told they are doing something wrong.

 

[misfitsfiend]

I'm going tomorow to try and deal with the situation calmly again. Hopefully I can get something accomplished this time!

 

[cichlidsman]

sometimes to get something done you have to use force.

 

[MyNameHere]

:inserting tongue in cheek:
Mr Cichlid, for the last time: it is not OK to raid pet stores just cuz you want something and you don't wanna pay for it...unless you're Jane's Addiction, but I'm guessing you're not... ;P

If they don't respond to the "hey I'm a nice guy who knows what's going on" routine, then contacting local press and animal care advocates might be a good way to go.

 

[Pheonixx]

SPCA? fish and game? i bet between the press and ASPCA you'd get them shut down, or out of buisness.

if you go the route of the press, tell them to do a suprise visit, you dont want the store owner to be too prepared if he acts like a jerk when you talk to him...

 

[scorpman]

along with the care sheets and a friendly word offer to show them how to set up the area . dont be upset if they dont put alot of substrate in they want customers to see what they are selling but they should have the basics food water a clean cage. good luck

 

[rob]

If you are riled up now, just stop by the House of Reptiles on Beach Blvd and see how their T's are treated. You'll really be upset. Usually you can talk till your blue in the face to pet shops, but rarely will it accomplish anything. Not saying it isn't worth the try though. Good luck.

 

[sansoucie]

SPCA? fish and game? i bet between the press and ASPCA you'd get them shut down, or out of buisness.

if you go the route of the press, tell them to do a suprise visit, you dont want the store owner to be too prepared if he acts like a jerk when you talk to him...

I cant speak for all organizations, but the aspca usually wont get involved in "bug situations" unfortunately. The paper is probably your best bet and even then... I dont see a big outcry for our much maligned buddies.

 

[luther]

I don't know who's responsible for animal welfare in the US. In the UK it's the RSPCA, although they have very little practical knowledge of invertebrates. If the pet shop is treating their inverts with open disrespect, it's likely that they are not doing so well with any of their species. I wouldn't hesitate to call in an RSPCA inspector. In the UK that's what they're for. A visit might be enough to persuade them to make a little more effort.

One thing I wouldn't do is buy from them, even out of pity. Good luck and be polite.

 

[misfitsfiend]

along with the care sheets and a friendly word offer to show them how to set up the area . dont be upset if they dont put alot of substrate in they want customers to see what they are selling but they should have the basics food water a clean cage. good luck

well the reason the T needs to hide some is because its directly under(about 5 or 6 inches below) a huge white light, and that deffinately causes it alot of stress!

 

[MyNameHere]

as far as the hide sitch...the pet shop where I worked would usually offer one of those half-log hides. Those can be situated against the front glass so people can still see whatever's hiding in it, but the critter feels secure because it's under something.

 

[misfitsfiend]

Well Im excited b/c I went in the day before yesterday to talk to the maneger and told him how he should keep the inverts and he said that he would try and fix it asap, and when I went back in today to check on them the T had his own little piece of cork bark set to where you can see what is under it and the scorps were now sitting on bed-a-beast bedding that was nice and moist with a more shallow water dish and a large piece of beach wood with plenty of room for every one to hide under. I dont think i'll sleep any better but its nice knowing that at least they are a little more happy.

 

[Randy]

cool ! Great job you did~*

thank goodness the store manager didnt tell you "it's just a bug"

did you complain bout they guy who told u that?

 

[David_F]

That's good to know. IME pet stores listen to you for a while, tell you how they understand and will try to fix things, and then flip you off as you leave.

 

[cichlidsman]

if they are "just bugs", why are they cost so much? if i were you i would go in there and tell them if they dont fix the probelm, that you will get the local paper to do a stroy on them and the way they treat there animals

Sometimes im just a hot head.

 

[pitbulllady]

I don't know who's responsible for animal welfare in the US. In the UK it's the RSPCA, although they have very little practical knowledge of invertebrates. If the pet shop is treating their inverts with open disrespect, it's likely that they are not doing so well with any of their species. I wouldn't hesitate to call in an RSPCA inspector. In the UK that's what they're for. A visit might be enough to persuade them to make a little more effort.

One thing I wouldn't do is buy from them, even out of pity. Good luck and be polite.

In the US, there is no one national entity that deals with enforcement of human laws, except for the Dept. of Agriculture, which regulates farming. The Humane Society of the United States is just a large, well-funded Animals Rights organization that is working through lobbying to end ALL animal keeping in the US, and the far-less extremist American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is also primarily a lobbiest group and "watchdog" group, but do not enforce any laws. Enforcement of humane laws are up to the individual states and local governments, and most do not even include invertebrates in the list of animals they protect. Only a few places have even began to include reptiles in their laws geared towards protecting animals. Unfortunately, the papers here probably won't help, either, since it is difficult enough trying to generate any public sympathy for snakes or lizards, but it would be downright impossible to bring in any sympathy for spiders and scorpions.

pitbulllady