[SnuggleHam]

This is my letter that I am going to send to the Hartz company tomorrow. It's two full pages, and I hope they write back to me. If not.. well then I certainly wont think highly of them at all... *ponders* I wonder if I could get in trouble for writing a review on their hamster feed product and adding my opinion and posting it on HC for everyone to read?



I'll wait and see if they mail me back..

To whom it may concern,



I am sending this letter to receive a refund on a product that I purchased. I bought two bags of Animal Farm LM, Premium Vita-Gold For Hamsters. On October 8th 2005 I found small bugs crawling in my hamsters food dish. I checked the opened bag that I was currently using and found it infested with small insects that appear to be weevils.



I had been using this one bag for some time and was almost finished with it when I first noticed the bugs. I am surprised that I had not noticed sooner. I then checked the other bag, which was sealed tight and unopened. There were no holes or rips that would have allowed the insects inside. I found it to be infested with weevils as well.



Since I made the discovery on a Saturday I waited until Monday to call Hartz customer hotline that I found listed on your website. I talked to a woman who was very rude to me on the phone. I cannot remember her name, but I can tell you that I called somewhere around noon on Monday October 10th, in case Hartz happens to record these phone calls and can look it up.



I would like to tell you what this woman said during my phone call. I started off and explained my complaint and how I bought the product. From the start she had quite an attitude with me. I told her about the weevils in the bag and she started talking over me immediately about how certain humidity will cause that to happen. To clarify, I asked how it could just happen from humidity, because the bugs/eggs/larva would have to be in there in the first place. She told me it was a rare occurrence, still talking in a loud annoyed tone.



After we agreed the eggs/larva must be in there first to hatch, and humidity can't manifest bugs that were not already there, I asked if Hartz had some way of making sure these things don't happen. She told me it was impossible to keep the bugs out. She made it sound as though

Hartz didn't have any system in place to keep so many bugs out of their feeds.



So I asked her what would happen if this were rice or oats made for human consumption and the bugs got in there? Would the company just tell me its impossible to keep the bugs out? Again the angered women started talking in a strong angry tone about how it's a rare occurrence and these things happen when there is allot of humidity.



I understand that insects have been known to turn up in gain foods as well as cereal products and so on that are made for human consumption. But I'm certain people with these experiences are not told by the company of that product that its impossible to keep the bugs out and leave it at that? It would certainly be thought of as unacceptable.



The woman forcefully started to tell me that I could send in the bar codes of the product for a refund. And in the conversation talked over me many times about the refund. She was very inpatient!



The women also argued with me about insects being weevils. She told me they were some kind of moth larva, but I told her they were clearly small gray beetles and that they were weevils, but she insisted otherwise. I told her beetles don't turn into moths but I then decided not to argue with her. I continued with the subject to my concern about the possibility of mites and parasites that may live on the actual bugs themselves.



She bluntly told me the bugs don't have mites or parasites. I asked how she knew and she assured me she "KNEW". She also had the nerve to tell me I shouldn't worry about the bugs because they were "nutritious".



First of all, I ask you. How do you know that the insect in the feed, that were not suppose to be there, are not mite and parasite free? And how can Hartz have to nerve to tell me these bugs are "Nutritious"? I understand that hamsters are omnivorous, eating insects in the wild. But most insects sold in stores for feeding I believe are bred for that sole purpose and are kept healthy and pesticide free. Further more, I did not see the words "fresh bugs" in the ingredients of this product.



In the woman's last outburst, she shouted to me about the refund and I paused with a simple "hmm" and told her that I had done some research about Hartz and am finding out that many people are displeased with your products. Then I heard her yell something to me (probably not very nice) as the phone line went dead after she hung up on me.



Now in my own personal opinion, no matter the customer's complaints, thoughts or questions, I feel the employee should always act calmly and do their best to want to keep the customer coming back. Especially if you work for a "Customer Hot Line" like this woman did.



I can tell you that after this experience I was feeling worse about the Hartz company. After a few moments of calming myself down from the experience I called back and asked for a manager and believe I got the supervisor. I am glad to report the experience was much more pleasant.



The next woman was actually very nice and answered my questions a bit more thoroughly. She kindly apologized for the other woman's behavior and asked for her name. Unfortunately I am not sure she gave it; and if she did I forgot. I retold my story about the hamster feed, giving her the product name.



She had said they don't usually receive calls of this nature but that it had been a bad year. She did tell me that the insects would have gotten in there during the processing of the feeds. I asked if they had some way of checking for these things to try and insure that bugs didn't get in. I was told that although it's hard to get all the bugs out Hartz does have a strict process they go through to try and keep these things out.



I would very much appreciate it if you would write me back with details about the process these feeds go through, and what measures are taken to try and keep your feeds as bug free as possible. I still find myself unsatisfied with the vagueness of my phone calls.



I also explained about how I was argued with on what kind of bug it was. I told her it was weevils and the kind woman said it would be a big help if I sent in a sample of the bugs so they could send it out to see what it was and take action on how to stop it. This made me feel a bit better.



I have frozen and enclosed some of the bugs found in the feed. I hope that I managed to freeze them and that they do not go dormant and come alive and escape when they reach room temperature again. In your letter back, please tell me whether I was right about the insects being weevils or not.



As instructed, I have cut out the bar codes of the two bags the product came in. I do not have a receipt but was told that it would be ok. I can tell you that I bought the product from PetsMart in Warwick, Rhode Island. I hope that helps you figure out what the proper refund should be.



I have also called PetsMart about this issue, but I don't know for sure if they checked the bags as I suggested. I was pretty upset with myself for not getting or remembering the woman's name that was rude to me, but I hope you are able to figure out who she was and have a word with her. I'm sure you don't want someone ill-tempered talking with any other customers who call your hot line.



I look forward to hearing back from you. Thank you for taking the time to read over my letter.