I'm in the process of looking for a pair of new babies to adopt, and I wanted to get from a breeder this time for reasons other than, "pet stores should never be an option." but it seems there are no available ratteries in san diego right now, and petco is undergoing a lawsuit and are not allowed to carry rats right now. this is because, a few years ago, some kid supposedly died from rat fever from a rat he got at petco. the circumstances were suspicious, though; the kid showed no symptoms until the night before he died. rat fever in humans shows symptoms MONTHS beforehand, and a death from it is EXTREMELY rare. I'm no conspiracy theorist, but I feel like there's more to the story than that, and that it might not've been the rat's fault at all.
besides that, the search for two ratties has got me thinking, "if I can't find a breeder, I will just adopt from a pet store like I always have with every single one of my pets," which have mostly been rodents. however, the "no pet store" rule bothers me. the ONLY problem I've had with a pet store animal was a hamster who had developed wet tail before I adopted it, and the poor thing died about two days later. wet tail is something only hamsters can get, and it's not fun. anyway, I know that the reasoning is that pet store pets come from mills that are trying to meet a demand. both pet store AND pets from breeders will have problems, especially rodents, but here's the thing...
THEY ARE STILL A LIVING CREATURE.
not many people know, understand, or even care about not getting them from a pet store, and no amount of spreading the information will keep mills from breeding rats to supply to pet stores. whenever I adopt an animal, I always think, "I might be saving this little creature from a real sicko." not just people who only intend on feeding the rat to their reptiles... that's why pet stores sell FROZEN rats, the live ones are to be loved... but not just that, there are sick people out there who like to torture little animals, and I'm not going to get into the horrific things that people are in to...
the point is, the demand is never going to go away, so mills are never going to go away. but animals aren't toys! some people don't like buying things that are made in china... this isn't the same. are you not going to adopt a child from a certain orphanage just because it has a bad reputation? these rats are still living beings with thoughts, feelings, and the desire for love. if you DON'T adopt from a pet store, aren't you being a bit shallow? you're either leaving that rat to go without a family so that they either die at the store, or get put down because no one wanted it... or worse; adopted to a psychopath or fetishist. the pet store rats are still someone, and they deserve to be adopted just as much as any rat from a breeder. if you do consider these living things as objects, I feel like you shouldn't be allowed to have them.
if YOU have a bad experience with a pet store, it's not the rat's fault, it's the store's. my petco takes extremely good care of these animals, and from this particular one, I've never had a problem. they make sure you're not buying them for food, they encourage holding them before adoption to see which one clicks with you, they keep them clean, feed them a proper diet, etc. yet, they're being denied a loving home because of this "no pet store" rule. I think this forum should know better than to say, "adopting from a pet store should never be an option." I say, if you can't find a good breeder in your area, or even if you don't WANT to find a breeder, yeah, adopt from the pet store. they're STILL going to have a few problems either way, right? but that shouldn't mean these fellow mammals don't deserve our love, because they're not someTHING, they're someONE.
I believe humans are too involved with themselves and don't think about the needs of another species before their own. "oh, I don't want that rat because it comes from a mill." but the rat wonders, "what makes me so different?" it's basically bigotry. we need to get over ourselves and realize we're not the top species, but are in fact intrusive to the lives that don't deserve us. but for those of us who know our place, we will love another species as if they were our own flesh and blood, because we are equals, we just speak different languages. sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who understands animals, but I know I'm not, there just aren't many of us.
that's just my two cents on the matter, and I hope it helps people understand the consequences of being picky. love is love, no matter what you are or where you come from. let's not forget that.
besides that, the search for two ratties has got me thinking, "if I can't find a breeder, I will just adopt from a pet store like I always have with every single one of my pets," which have mostly been rodents. however, the "no pet store" rule bothers me. the ONLY problem I've had with a pet store animal was a hamster who had developed wet tail before I adopted it, and the poor thing died about two days later. wet tail is something only hamsters can get, and it's not fun. anyway, I know that the reasoning is that pet store pets come from mills that are trying to meet a demand. both pet store AND pets from breeders will have problems, especially rodents, but here's the thing...
THEY ARE STILL A LIVING CREATURE.
not many people know, understand, or even care about not getting them from a pet store, and no amount of spreading the information will keep mills from breeding rats to supply to pet stores. whenever I adopt an animal, I always think, "I might be saving this little creature from a real sicko." not just people who only intend on feeding the rat to their reptiles... that's why pet stores sell FROZEN rats, the live ones are to be loved... but not just that, there are sick people out there who like to torture little animals, and I'm not going to get into the horrific things that people are in to...
the point is, the demand is never going to go away, so mills are never going to go away. but animals aren't toys! some people don't like buying things that are made in china... this isn't the same. are you not going to adopt a child from a certain orphanage just because it has a bad reputation? these rats are still living beings with thoughts, feelings, and the desire for love. if you DON'T adopt from a pet store, aren't you being a bit shallow? you're either leaving that rat to go without a family so that they either die at the store, or get put down because no one wanted it... or worse; adopted to a psychopath or fetishist. the pet store rats are still someone, and they deserve to be adopted just as much as any rat from a breeder. if you do consider these living things as objects, I feel like you shouldn't be allowed to have them.
if YOU have a bad experience with a pet store, it's not the rat's fault, it's the store's. my petco takes extremely good care of these animals, and from this particular one, I've never had a problem. they make sure you're not buying them for food, they encourage holding them before adoption to see which one clicks with you, they keep them clean, feed them a proper diet, etc. yet, they're being denied a loving home because of this "no pet store" rule. I think this forum should know better than to say, "adopting from a pet store should never be an option." I say, if you can't find a good breeder in your area, or even if you don't WANT to find a breeder, yeah, adopt from the pet store. they're STILL going to have a few problems either way, right? but that shouldn't mean these fellow mammals don't deserve our love, because they're not someTHING, they're someONE.
I believe humans are too involved with themselves and don't think about the needs of another species before their own. "oh, I don't want that rat because it comes from a mill." but the rat wonders, "what makes me so different?" it's basically bigotry. we need to get over ourselves and realize we're not the top species, but are in fact intrusive to the lives that don't deserve us. but for those of us who know our place, we will love another species as if they were our own flesh and blood, because we are equals, we just speak different languages. sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who understands animals, but I know I'm not, there just aren't many of us.
that's just my two cents on the matter, and I hope it helps people understand the consequences of being picky. love is love, no matter what you are or where you come from. let's not forget that.