Debate - Pet Shops, Good or Bad?

[Emma]

I thought it might be fun to have a bit of a debate! Feel free to voice and discuss any opinions either way but please play nicely :)



What is your opinion on pet shops - should they be allowed to sell live animals at all? How should they be regulated? How should staff be trained? Should they be allowed to sell unsuitable items - like barred wheels or fluffy bedding?



On the whole I'm pretty much against pet shops selling live animals, UNLESS there are suitably trained and experienced staff there. That's the tough part though, how do you ensure that? How do you ensure animals are given proper veterinary attention when necessary?



At the end of the day pet shops want to stock animals, as that's what draws customers in. But having small pets available on such a whim just reinforces the idea of disposable pocket pets.



I try and buy my supplies from shops that don't stock animals, but sometimes convenience wins out and I buy from the local garden centre (which has a pet concession) or even a certain large chain pet shop :evil: that is very close to my flat.



I haven't yet taken the iniative to talk to pet shop owners when I see them stocking unsuitable items such as fluffy bedding. Has anyone done this with success?



Debate away :)

[carefresh]

I think they should be allowed to sell live animals if the employees are knowlodgable. A way to ensure that would be that any employees that are applying would have to take a crash course in animal care, in their specific departement.

[SnuggleHam]

I guess I have mixed feeling when it comes to animals being sold in pet shops. I think my conclusion is that I can’t judge them all as a whole. Not all pet shops act the same. I have seen pet shops that were in my opinion not well kept, I have often times stumbled in on new pet shops and thought to myself how I would have set up the store and managed the animal enclosures and care. But then there are many things I felt I could make better then someone else :P



I really have no clue what it must be like to manage a pet store and worry about finances and all of that stuff. But I cant help but feel that if I did go to school and learn about business and opened my own pet store that it would be a great pet store and all the animals would be well kept and if I didn’t breed the critters on my own I would only take animals from select breeders to insure the quality and health. So in that case I wouldn’t be happy about people bashing pet shops knowing that I take good care of my animals. I’m sure there are many great pet shops out there where the people genuinely do their best job.



There is one pet store near me that when I first saw it I was appalled. The store looked awful and I was really unhappy with the way they kept their animals! But now this same store has made many big changes, they have renovated their store around a bit, made better living conditions for their animals. The cages and rooms look more clean and healthy and now there is more hired staff to help and the owner is actually quite nice and seems to know what he talking about. Eventually I ended up buying my two roborovskis from them! And I often stop there to buy supplies.



I also don’t feel bad with large commercial pet stores like petco and petsmart here in the US. Petsmart in particular I know that all employees go though training to learn about the animals they work with before being hired. Both Petco and Petsmart only take animals from specific breeders, so you know it’s not just anyone who brings them in. Petsmart also has a veterinary office in the building, (at lest where I am) a veterinarian treats any sick animals there. To me that shows that they do have concern for their pets.



There can be just as many irresponsible breeders as pet owners and pet shop owners. I think it’s unfair to place negative judgment on either one as whole. I think the best we can do as concerned animal lovers is to report anything that is definitely below the care standard for keeping those animals, pet shops or breeders to try and keep those kinds of people out of the crowd and away from animals.

[Emma]

I know the chain pet store near me says that it takes animals from breeders it knows etc - but then I also know people who have had pregnant animals from there and they have taken the babies back (what were the animals doing being sold pregnant in the first place, if they are being sourced from reputable breeders?). I also know of a situation when they ran out of guinea-pigs, so quickly got some babies in from a local breeder they happened to find in the store and sold them the next day. They hadn't checked out the breeder at all.



Some of the chains here have vets attached to them now. A friend bought her guinea-pigs there, and was told that the employees couldn't sex them but she could pay £6 to have the vet sex them. (Guinea-pigs are the absolute easiest animal to sex by the way - and you can sex them from about an hour old too, so none of this "it's too youg to tell" nonsense!)



I *know* not all pet shops have problems like this, but I'm still yet to meet my perfect pet shop. I know several that are pretty close, but all of those specialise in either dogs/cats or horses, (probably why they don't stock livestock) and don't stock everything I would like for small pets.



I just think there are so many ifs and buts, how do you ensure you are giving your custom to a pet shop you really want to support? I only know most of the behind-the-scenes horror stories that I do because I worked at the vets that had to deal with the fallout. How is an ordinary customer to know?



I'm pretty sure P@H claim their staff are trained too - but it depends on the training. From my experience the majority still can't tell a Campbell's from a Roborovski at the end of it, are unable to sex anything, recommend keeping guinea-pigs and rabbits together (as they are displayed in the shop) and happily sell fluffy bedding.



(I don't mean to sound angry and ranty cos I'm not - it's just all points in this argument. I'm not sure what the answers are though - apart from seeking out good pet shops and supporting them, and not giving your custom to those you don't approve of, and letting them know why).

[amnerisryn]

I share the mixed feelings sentiments when it comes to pet stores. In my ideal world (Walgreen's Perfect) all pet shop employees would have thorough knowledge and respect for the animals they sell. Unfortunately most places aren't.



I think that any pet store that decides to sell live animals is under the obligation to ensure the proper, healthy treatment of their animals. They are also under the obligation to ensure that their staff are well versed in all aspects of care for each animal that they sell and that they communicate their knowledge to their prospective buyer. One of the pet stores in my neighborhood will actually give you a booklet (home printed) with proper care for each species that they sell. Included is a list of necessary and recommended products as well as a list of dangerous materials. I've commended them for doing this and I wish more places would do the same.



I guess my response to the original question is if the pet store shows that they are responsible for the livelihood of their animals, then yes they should be allowed to sell them. However more careful monitoring should be implimented to ensure that all stores do treat their animals properly.

[SnuggleHam]

The place that I mentioned in my post that I bought my robos from also gives out home printed care sheets to people that buy an animal from them.

[Emma]

That's good. When I got my robs they wouldn't even suggest what sex they were. I went to a chain pet shop as I knew they were supplied by a breeder I'd seen online from Essex. The staff were awful though - no advice or after-care offered. Even the little commentary on the cages about animal's needs was the same for Campbells, Winter Whites and Roborovskis.



If (when!) I do breed, if I ended up letting pups go to pet shops, I think I'd ask that a care sheet I'd written be given to new owners, with my contact details if they ever had any problems or questions or couldn't care for the animal any more.



Oh to live in a perfect world eh!

[SnuggleHam]

Ya thats a great idea Emma :)

[peanut25]

I don't like to go into a petshop and see the employees afraid of handling the rodents or any other animal. I think pets that don't have human contact can become mean. I like when the employees are able to answer my questions and are knowledgeable. I like the breeder that I get my hammys from. All of them have been lovable and kind. I also know everythng about them. :D

[Vizth]

The pet shop I go to is excellent... The cages are clean, they bother to up skirt the hamsters to make sure they have seperated male and females correctly, and they don't try to rip you off either. All Syrians are $5.00 US. I forget what the dwarfs (spelling) are. Oh and they have a good toy selection as well :oops:

[carefresh]

One petshop i went to (it was in a chinatown), all of the animals were in poor condition, all of the hamsters, male and female (syrian) were all caged together in a ten gallon tank (about 20 hamsters) and sevral of them had hair loss. The dogs were all cramped up in these tiny dark cages, and basically everywhere were cramped up cages with way to many animals ! It was horrible ! My mother talked ot the manager (she doesn't like to see any animal being mistreated, though she isn't exactly an animal lover) and he didn't do anything, he just offered us a 50 % discount on anything in the store ! IT was the most disgusting thing i have ever, i mean ever, seen !