Horrible Petstore…..Is it against the law?
Category: Cockateil Health Q&A
Question by PERFECT POMS: Horrible Petstore…..Is it against the law?
Ok, I went to my local Petco about an hour ago to get some bird toys and kuttle bones for my Cockatiels.
And was disgusted by the conditions of some of the animals.
Most of the animals were in good health, in clean pens, with fresh food and water ( I.g. the cats, guinea pigs, mice, rats, hamsters, rabbits, ferrets, and chinchilla ). And seemed fairly happy.
I went to go check out the fish because I love looking at all their beautiful colors. But, what I saw disgusted me.
There were dead fish at the bottoms and the tops ( floating ) of the tanks being chewed on by their tank mates. Dying fish in cornors wiggling around fighting to breath. Sickly fish that were obviously dying too. Dead frogs, stuck onto the filters because they obviously cant move. Dying and Dead fresh water shrimp. The dying ones were struggling against the filters.
Dead hermit crabs laying out of their shells ( I actually only saw once of these ).
I was absolutly disgusted.
So, I went over to the birds ( cockatiels, parakeets, finches, canaries, and some sort of conure ) since I have a soft spot in my heart for birds.
Well, all but one of the cockatiels were in a cage together. And one was totally separated and totally freaked out. Its tail feathers had been cut very short. And obviously it was not happy.
Then I went to look at the finches. And most seemed happy and healthy. But, there was one with not a single tail feather. And the bald area was red and looked extremely sore. And the other finches in that cage were all picking at it.
And it was just sitting there. Shivering.
Not even trying to defend itself.
Before, I have seen a dead lizard with half a tail.
I asked one of the employees what was wrong with the Finch. And they just said ‘oh, that little guy. He is ok.’ and walked off.
This must be illegal.
Isn’t it?
What can be done?
Dont worry. After we saw the states of those animals. We left the store. We didn’t buy any supplies.
We have another pet store that is a bit farther away.
But, thats the one that we will use from now on. Even though it supports puppy mills. At the very least, their animals are in healthy enviroments. And they dont have dying animals!
I will never buy a puppy from this other pet store. But, I feel fine with buying supplies from them.
My neighbors have complained about the services of the employees there.
I am going to the other petstore today.
But, I think I am going to go check on the conditions again.
I think its just horrible.
I will report back after.
Best answer:
Answer by Mutia A
In my country that is illegal and every petshop must have a license. To find out that whether Petco is illegal look up at your country’s laws.
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It is animal cruelty, and therefore is illegal.
Immediately pick up that phone and call Animal Care & Control and report EVERYTHING you’ve seen.
Legally, you can’t display a sick or injured animal for sale, nor can you house it near or with other animals for prevention of disease spreading.
well im not very sure but i really think it should be becuz they just cant let animals die lik that! tell someone!
Call animal services in your area and have them drop by for a look. If conditions are as you say, the palce needs to be shut down ASAP?
That is sick. It is animal cruelty and that PetcCo should be reported. Animal cruelty is a serious problem and I don’t know why people insist on hurting animals that way.
You report injured or abused/neglected ‘stock’ in pet stores to the health department and the animal shelter.
That is indeed illegal. You can complain to the health department & are able to shut them down. You should have complained to the manager & demand he/she stops this! That is horrible and disgusting. poor things….
I would say it’s illegal and someone should report them and have them shut down.
You also shouldn’t support this store by buying supplies from them!! Isn’t there a Petco or PetSmart near you that you could go to?
When I worked at PetSmart, we took any comments like yours about the finch, and would look into it. By that I mean we would quarantine and give meds to the sick ones. As far as the fish, we cleaned our tanks out in the morning at the start of shift, and at the end of shift. The stress from others being caught sometimes killed them. What you were seeing shouldn’t happen. I’d take PP’s advice. That’s just awful.
The petcos and petsmarts that I have been to have all been very attentive to the health of their pets. This one must have very poor management. I would immediately contact animal control and the corportate offices regarding this store. The store number should be on your receipt. The management there needs to be dealt with.