[tattered_teddy_bear]

OK i feel really upset that i see how much people hate pet stores, because i work in a pet store, we probably hate petco and those oversized stores more then anyone. so i feel so let out when i those pet-store hating thingy's. *sob* I work in a small pet store where their family has worked for generations.... Only now the owners (wonderful people) and they dont have kids and it seems like these small petstore that are really good will disapear beacuse there's not people their to continue it.

8O

I love animals and i would say something if i thought conditions were poor.

=(

SORRY i went on ranting i think...... :roll:
~Sarah

 

[ladylady]

I think you'l get some support here too
Are your animals well bred?

 

[Forensic]

I think most petstore rants are because they're overpriced, underbred, and many of the large chains treat their animals poorly.

There's the rare exception, but they are just that... rare.

 

[tattered_teddy_bear]

Well as far as they can be, there's no rattery's in Connecticut or near hear but we don't have more then we can take care of. a lot of the litters we get in are from people who bring them to us because they have no way to take care of them, a lot of litters are from people i know, pet's. the only complaint i'd have is more playtime. which is why i brought a litter home to socailize. when people rant about pet stores they don't always think about the good ones. =( human nature.

 

[Kimmiekins]

there's no rattery's in Connecticut or near hear

http://www.ratpile.net/
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~mjp39/WhiskerKissin/

 

[chrisstrikeagain]

I UNDERSTAND YOU! i work at a small store too. we ove our rats...especialy the hairless ones.

ii agree, petco and big ones are the ones that suck. but small shops CAN be good. depending on the individual one.

 

[OnlyOno]

it's true, i think that in most cases, when people say "i hate petstores", they mean petsmart and petco most of all. i really haven't seen many small petstores around, but i do know that mall petstores are just as, if not worse than petsmart and petco a lot of the time, and i've seen one where the puppies were in awful conditions but everything else looked okay. don't take it personally, it's just a generalized thing, but really, we're twice as excited about a good pet store than we are upset about a bad one!

 

[tattered_teddy_bear]

yeah, i can't stand those stores with puppies, they all look so sad.

 

[lilspaz68]

There's a small petstore near where I work, and I was going to pop in there to buy a waterbottle or 2. At the top of the stairs was a sign that said no pictures allowed in the store... 8O 8O

Then I went online and found out the horror stories.

I had one small petstore that I got a few amazing rats from, but most petstores do not treat their rats well at all.

I have a fish store down the street (a stinky smelly one) that I just found out are breeding/selling feeder rats. I try not to think of them. In Canada the feeder rats are usually discreetly tucked in the back.

 

[reachthestars]

I'm glad to hear that you're at a good petstore, but unfortunately they're few and far between.

Three of the 4 petstores in my town sell animals; one of those is a chain and the other two are owned by a local family. They are DISGUSTING, especially the family run ones. 20 - 30 rats is not uncommon to see in a 20 gal. tank in the local stores, and the cages are ALWAYS filthy. It stinks from the second you open the door. The chain store is not ideal, but they do keep their cages semi clean, and the smell of the store doesn't overpower you. Still though they have overpriced puppies from mills ($1200 for a pom x chi? I know that they didn't spend more than $400 on it).

I LOVE the store that doesn't sell animals. It's clean, there's friendly staff and no animals at the store (with the exception of when the regional manager visits and brings his dog). They don't have the same selection for small animals, but it gets better everytime I'm in there. They get my buisness over the other stores any day.

 

[twitch]

reachthestars-- i know who you're talking about. i agree the conditions of the pets in either store isn't great but the puppies are not supplied by a mill. we've been through this before. the farm is large but the dogs are in good condition for breeding stock. they have their own vet and groomer and the buildings are all heated. every pen is kept clean, they have good outdoor runs and adequately roomed kennels. the females are brought inside the house the have the pups and even the males get to visit for attention on a rotation basis. really they aren't any worse off then my mother's breeding dogs. probably a bit better cause the kennels on the farm are larger. i do have to agree the the pet store over prices them though (i'm amazed they actually get the money they are asking for them at that ridicoulsy high prices but they do) and the kennels they're in there are small and cramped. but they did not come from a mill. not every breeder that sells to pet stores is a mill. some can be quite large and still run well.