upsetting Situation

[Tapahtyn]

Saw something in the local pet store when buying crickets last night. Grossed me out and made me mad, I always go and look at the few Ts that they carry and to my horror, an Avic was dead with crickets and flies next to it and it had been eaten to the point the it's guts were gone. I told the guy and he was like "Oh I'm glad you saw that" "I'm not going to touch it" LOSER. Poor little guy. Why can't people be educated!?! As soon as I start my roach colony, I won't be going back to ANY pet store unless it involves dog toys

 

[Ariel]

Thats awful!!! I'm so sorry you had to see something like that, i get distraut just seeing them cared for wrong but that...I can't even imagine.

 

[Mack&Cass]

And third depressing thread of the day. That is horrible, I mean there's not knowing what you're talking about, and then there's not knowing anything at all. Do these people not realize that it hurts their business when customers walk into the store and see a dead animal? Even if it is "just a spider", and even if the customer hates spiders, seeing that a pet store doesn't care enough to at least keep something alive really looks bad on them.

Cass

 

[maitre]

This happens in many pet stores. I mentioned in another thread that at a LPS, they shoved between 30-40 leopard geckos in a tiny enclosure and 4 of them were lay there dead. The rest looked emaciated and extremely unhealthy. The tank was full of feces and it looked like no maintenance was ever done to the enclosure.

It's sad but if you think about it, most LPS employees probably only make minimum wage so what can you really expect?

 

[Tapahtyn]

This happens in many pet stores. I mentioned in another thread that at a LPS, they shoved between 30-40 leopard geckos in a tiny enclosure and 4 of them were lay there dead. The rest looked emaciated and extremely unhealthy. The tank was full of feces and it looked like no maintenance was ever done to the enclosure.

It's sad but if you think about it, most LPS employees probably only make minimum wage so what can you really expect?

I expect even if I made minimum wage, I'd at least work in a pet store out of love for animals, but what do I know. You don't have to love them but at least be respectful of life

 

[maitre]

I expect even if I made minimum wage, I'd at least work in a pet store out of love for animals, but what do I know. You don't have to love them but at least be respectful of life

Yeah, in the perfect world, every employee would love their job, sport a smile, and do the best they can, regardless of the pay. But in reality, some people just need a job. I'm not ripping on all LPS workers here... but we hear LPS horror stories ALL the time on this board so who's to blame? Is it the animals who kill themselves or decide to live crappy lives? No. It's the employees.

If I wanted an animal, I would ALWAYS choose to buy it from a breeder vs a pet store.

 

[Billru]

Buy your dog toys online at Petedge. They are great and cheap.

Bill

 

[Tapahtyn]

Buy your dog toys online at Petedge. They are great and cheap.

Bill

yeah but after shipping, ya know, we've got a great place for horses and such where we buy our doggie stuff

 

[Teal]

That's horrible I would have ranted on the guy if I had seen that.

And no, it's not the employees who "just need jobs" that are to blame, though they are part of it... it's the crappy pet stores, and T dealers, that become involved in having Ts at all. It goes all the way down to people who are in charge of mass wind catchin' Ts and importing them - it's marketing a PRODUCT in their book, nevermind the product is alive

 

[Xian]

4,700+

There are over 4,700 active members here at arachnoboards, if we all went and worked/voluteered at the LPS, these threads would virtually go away.
What would it take, an hour a week?
I just get a little tired of reading these stories. Trying to make a difference.

 

[keithb]

It's sad but if you think about it, most LPS employees probably only make minimum wage so what can you really expect?

Hopefully management would make proper care of the animals part of their responsibilities

 

[thumpersalley]

As a rescue, we really know about this very subject. I dont patron any pet store that sells live animals so its mostly online or at the feed stores where we get our feed for the animals. I even have 2 private suppliers for mealworms for our wildlife rehabbing & Im starting a roach colony. The pet stores dont want to take the time & money to better themselves & their employees. Someone will come in & buy whatever doesnt sell quickly eventually & more people than not will not say anything like you did about the dead avic. Thats the reality. Its sad. Kim

 

[BrynWilliams]

You brandish that banner sir.

There are over 4,700 active members here at arachnoboards, if we all went and worked/voluteered at the LPS, these threads would virtually go away.
What would it take, an hour a week?
I just get a little tired of reading these stories. Trying to make a difference.

 

[Xian]

You brandish that banner sir.

HOOAH!!!!!!!!

 

[flamesbane]

I hate to say it...but a most all petstores are retail stores first. They have a bottom line just like any other store, and as much as we hate to see it if it weren't for petstores we probably would not have this hobby.

I am not condoning what they do, but I can see why these things happen.

 

[Mad Hatter]

There are over 4,700 active members here at arachnoboards, if we all went and worked/voluteered at the LPS, these threads would virtually go away.
What would it take, an hour a week?
I just get a little tired of reading these stories. Trying to make a difference.

What about Arachnoboards flyers or something?

I doubt the LPS would go for something like volunteers (maybe, but I don't know) and they tend to be set in their ways and not very receptive to criticism - even if it is helpful criticism.

With flyers, you would at least be making sure that any future owners of Ts knew where to go to check out care sheets. My LPS (PetCo) does NOT carry care sheets for tarantulas - it doesn't carry any books on Ts either. However, they always have Ts for sale.

If there were flyers available, at least their customers would know of AB and if they knew about other T keepers, I bet they would definitely check out this site. Perhaps an appeal to the 'myspace-esque' side of AB? Like a lure of: "Share your new pet with other Tarantula keepers in the Photo Thread section!"

Just a thought. And I don't know if Debby and Scott would be okay with flyer distribution. We would have to talk to them about it first.

 

[Aschamne]

It's sad but if you think about it, most LPS employees probably only make minimum wage so what can you really expect?

The fact that they make minimum wage has nothing to do with the work ethic that they possess. I don't think its wrong for employers to expect that their employees do the job that they are hired to do, regardless of the pay provided. If you don't want to work for minimum wage, then don't take a job making minimum wage.

My wife works for a pet shop and she does the best she can to care for the animals. No, she can not make everything perfect as the pet store's policy is flawed with some of the care. Like I said it comes down to work ethics, there are some that will do all they can for minimal wages and some that will try to avoid doing as much as they can even with high wages.

Art

 

[MissChelly]

Poor T It always blows my mind that they don't seem to care if the animals are dead or dying... even if they don't truly care for the animals, it's also bad for business. If I see dead or dying animals, obviously I'm not going to want to buy from there. Simple common sense.
And Mad Hatter, that's a great idea!