Stupid Pet Shop

[MarSea222]

So my fiancee and I went to a LPS here for dog food today. While we were there I figured I would take a look at their other small animal section when I see a lable that reads "Pink Toe." Now given some of the other threads that have popped up about T's in horrible conditions, I went to take a look. Sure enough, their was this poor A.avic. in a terrestial set up, swampy cocco fiber, and a DRY water dish, with a billion crickets in there!! The poor thing was crammed as far in the top of the terrarium as it could get, above a wooden hide they provided for it. I was so mad about it, my fiancee offered to buy it for so I could get it out of there. I know that by getting it they will just replace it with another poor victim but I just could not leave it. So we waited for some on to be called to help us, and when he got there it turned into a nightmare. This guy comes up and rips back the top, jamming it back (note the T is in the back corner with legs holding on to the top of the lid upside down) and proceeds to look under the hide for the T. Then he says "oh where did it go?" looking a t me. I was worried about lost legs at this point and I said it was on the back corner of the lid before you ripped it back. So he bends down and say "Oh yeah." Then he proceeds to take the lid off completely and rip open the T's hides and prodded it out with his finger till it came running out onto the top of the table.:wall: He picks it up and is holding it while it is running on his hands and up his shoulder! Mind you this is all done while he is standing and the floor is tile over concrete. I can also see now that it is out that it is in heavy premolt mode. HE then asks me if I want to hold it. I was so angry I just looked and him and said "No I do not want to hold it as A. It is ready to molt, B. The floor is so far down, and C. It's an Avic and they like to jump, and before you decide to let my T commit sucicide by your stupidity, I suggest you put it in the box so I can take it home." That ended that pretty quick and I got to take it home. It is now in a nice TALLER set up with slightly moist cocco fiber and a water dish WITH water. I just hope it will be ok since it looks pretty close to molting. Sorry for rambling, I know that most LSP have the same T ignorant people working in them but still, if you are going to sell them, why not keep them happy and healthy? People would not go back to buy anything more from them if they received a sick animal. I know to much to ask. Just wanted to share

 

[Redneck]

Aww poor critter.. Glad to see its in a better place now.. Good job on putting that worker in its place..

 

[Shell]

That sounds exactly like how I ended up with my A.avic. I was buying feeder mice one night, and saw her (?) in pretty much the same setup you described. I didn't buy her then, as I didnt want to support that and have them replace her. I went back the next week and they were going out of business, so I bought her on the spot.

I rehoused to an arboreal setup, with a water dish (same as yours, mine didnt have any water in hers at the LPS.) It took mine about 3 weeks to finally eat after I brought her home, and even longer to make any kind of webbing, but she is doing great now.

Congrats on the new addition I hope she molts successfully for you.

 

[Avicularia Man]

You know, I wouldn't be surprised with how many of you buy these T's to save them, if the store keeps them that way just to get somebody like you (or many others here) to buy it.

 

[Teal]

You know, I wouldn't be surprised with how many of you buy these T's to save them, if the store keeps them that way just to get somebody like you (or many others here) to buy it.

Pet stores don't think that far ahead.

I think we are all entitled one "LPS save" tarantula, but no one can justify making a habit of it

 

[Shell]

Pet stores don't think that far ahead.

I think we are all entitled one "LPS save" tarantula, but no one can justify making a habit of it

Agreed I have no intentions of ever buying another one from an LPS, I know a great breeder only 45 mins away lol However, I don't regret buying my A.avic either.

 

[MarSea222]

The employee was genuinely stupid. He looked like he was stone and had the vocabulary of a five year old. When I was telling him why I did not want to hold it, he took a full minute to respond. The store hardly ever has anything more than a few snakes and tortises, and the only T's that I have occasionally seen were B. roseas that were not kept as badly. I would not buy a T from them again, but I hope that the stupid I gave an ear lashing to won't try to do that in the future. I can dream right? And like Teal said many people have one LSP rescue survivor in their collection at one time or another.

 

[Avicularia Man]

Agreed I have no intentions of ever buying another one from an LPS, I know a great breeder only 45 mins away lol However, I don't regret buying my A.avic either.

45 minutes away huh, lucky you. I did a search here with the word "Ohio" and discovered that Tarantulainc comes to my local reptile expo (10 minutes away) every month. That will make things a lot easier for me as well.

 

[Avicularia Man]

The employee was genuinely stupid. He looked like he was stone and had the vocabulary of a five year old. When I was telling him why I did not want to hold it, he took a full minute to respond. The store hardly ever has anything more than a few snakes and tortises, and the only T's that I have occasionally seen were B. roseas that were not kept as badly. I would not buy a T from them again, but I hope that the stupid I gave an ear lashing to won't try to do that in the future. I can dream right? And like Teal said many people have one LSP rescue survivor in their collection at one time or another.

What's a B. Rosea? :?

 

[Shell]

45 minutes away huh, lucky you. I did a search here with the word "Ohio" and discovered that Tarantulainc comes to my local reptile expo (10 minutes away) every month. That will make things a lot easier for me as well.

45 mins is nothing here. I live in TINY little village in the middle of nowhere. Getting groceries requires a 30 mins drive (unless you want to spend $10 on milk) lol so 45 mins for good quality T's is fine by me.
Good to hear you were able to find something close to you

 

[shypoet]

I'm glad you took it in

I'd report that shop.

 

[MarSea222]

What's a B. Rosea? :?

Oops my bad, typing talking and cooking all at once not working. I meant G. rosea. Sorry

 

[Falk]

I think petshops should be avioded and all the T´s should be bought from hobbyists but that might be easier said than done.
I wish petshops wouldnt sell those animals because the petshop problem is worldwide.
I see the same thing here in Sweden to with Grammostola roseas sold under the former names and very often with aquarium sand, a heatmat under the terrarium and a ton of mealworms and crickets running around in there.

One petshop also suggested their "T" buyers to buy vitamins and calcium powder to give their T.
Some petshops also call spiders for reptiles or insects

 

[x Mr Awesome x]

This was the reason I now own a scorpion. They had a 'Red Thick Tail' scorpion, as if the common name helped at all, and I did the research there in the store on my iphone. So. It's a Babycurus jacksoni. Similar to a forrest scorp in that it prefers higher humidity and the ability to burrow and especially some bark to hide under. How where they keeping it? Hmmm, let's see. Bone dry, no water dish, a million pinhead crickets, a bunch of loose aquarium decor, and a heat lamp blazing down on it. Jeesh. I had to buy it just to rescue it. I took it home and prepared a 2.5g tank with plenty of damp sub and things to hide under. Sprayed the glass and immediately upon introducing the little guy to his new digs he goes and drinks from the wall. Poor thing was probably dehydrated. He's happy now and already ate. I now have a scorp. Seriously though. There must be a conspiracy or at least a method to keeping animals poorly just so us bleeding heart types will come along and pay too much for them.

 

[Ether Imp]

This was the reason I now own a scorpion. They had a 'Red Thick Tail' scorpion, as if the common name helped at all, and I did the research there in the store on my iphone. So. It's a Babycurus jacksoni. Similar to a forrest scorp in that it prefers higher humidity and the ability to burrow and especially some bark to hide under. How where they keeping it? Hmmm, let's see. Bone dry, no water dish, a million pinhead crickets, a bunch of loose aquarium decor, and a heat lamp blazing down on it. Jeesh. I had to buy it just to rescue it. I took it home and prepared a 2.5g tank with plenty of damp sub and things to hide under. Sprayed the glass and immediately upon introducing the little guy to his new digs he goes and drinks from the wall. Poor thing was probably dehydrated. He's happy now and already ate. I now have a scorp. Seriously though. There must be a conspiracy or at least a method to keeping animals poorly just so us bleeding heart types will come along and pay too much for them.

No. Sadly, they're just blissfully uninformed. :\

 

[Falk]

One petshop wanted to buy a spider (B. albopilosum) from me, and when i told them how it must be kept they said NO!
They refuse to keep it with peat so it can burrow.

They want the costumer to se the tarantula all the time so it must be sand or bark chips they said.
They dont even know what humidity is, and we have very dry air here aprox 30%.
No deal from me

Another petshop in the same town kept one iguana and a chinese waterdragon (2 males) in the same tank, and by tank i mean a medium size aquarium dont know if one of them died after that because i never went back.

 

[Arachnoholic420]

Very Sad to say... That all of us one day or perhaps may already had experienced this type situation.... it occurs all the time... needless to say we cant save all the T's that we see in a lps that are neglected and living in poor living conditions... it's obvious thats not alot of ppl see spiders as pet's in general, that even goes for petstore employee's they are just not informed enough about them..... i know how we care about or pets and want others to just do the same.... unfortunatelly life just doesnt work that way....

 

[violentblossom]

It would be nice if there was a big group who could fine these people who don't care for their animal correctly. I mean, the U.S Global Exotics ordeal was a big victory, but someone should take on these little businesses. They may not be letting their animals die off like the aforementioned company, but they still SUCK. If you can care for your animals properly, then you shouldn't be able to sell them.

 

[pouchedrat]

yeah I notice the poorly cared for tarantulas more and more lately. The mislabeled Haplo lividum (labeled as a "stripe knee") at our LPS that had a sponge soaking in the water dish, severely dehydrated with a tiny shriveled up abdomen, and on a very thin layer of dry bark chips, has finally kicked the bucket there. They have a mysterious other "stripe knee" (with actual striped knees this time) who's on it's way out, as well. leg's curling under and shriveled abdomen.

 

[violentblossom]

They have a mysterious other "stripe knee" (with actual striped knees this time) who's on it's way out, as well. leg's curling under and shriveled abdomen.

How much are they asking for it? Do they know that it's dying?