Petsmart?

[Eric Alan]

As far as improvement in conditions go? I think petsmart specifically needs a bigger reptile display. The entire thing is pretty much a 4 foot wide by 6 foot tall display, with the snakes and chameleons on the top squeezed into tiny enclosures that are only a little bigger than a 5 gallon tank, usually with 2 or 3 animals sandwiched in. It's an endcap display converted to a caging system. It's not like they couldn't do bigger, the small mammal and bird sections are both more than twice the size of the live reptile section even though the total numbers of animals in each section is about the same. It isn't a huge change, and a store could use a large singular reptile display to a stunning advantage.

Imagine an elaborate reptile enclosure the size of the bird endcap, which is just a single cage? Some pretty tropical setup with some brightly colored chameleon or python would grab my attention without a doubt. Heck, even if you took one the size of the double small animal ends, a desert setup for beardies on top and a tropical setup for the water dragons on bottom? More room for the reptiles that could use it, and a stunning display to draw in attention and sales, win-win.

Does making a reptile setup larger and more elaborate make it easier or more difficult for a hobbyist to care for it properly and efficiently? Now, transfer that thought to the retail store environment where time is your biggest expense. In order to make a larger display, you would also have to remove space from another area - would the lost sales there be made up for as well? In a cost/benefit analysis, would this be a productive use of funds for a company?

[Daigga]

Does making a reptile setup larger and more elaborate make it easier or more difficult for a hobbyist to care for it properly and efficiently? Now, transfer that thought to the retail store environment where time is your biggest expense. In order to make a larger display, you would also have to remove space from another area - would the lost sales there be made up for as well? In a cost/benefit analysis, would this be a productive use of funds for a company?

I'm just throwing out some ideas, and the thing that struck me first was seeing two or three ball pythons in an enclosure I wouldn't keep a single snake in. As I'm sure everyone here knows, husbandry errors sometimes require wallet-clenching responses. My two cents is also that reptiles, which eliminate with less frequency than birds or small mammals, are easier to clean and care for and a larger habitat doesn't make much difference in the time it takes to care for them. A glass tank with substrate is a glass tank with substrate no matter how you look at it.

[Eric Alan]

I'm just throwing out some ideas, and the thing that struck me first was seeing two or three ball pythons in an enclosure I wouldn't keep a single snake in. As I'm sure everyone here knows, husbandry errors sometimes require wallet-clenching responses. My two cents is also that reptiles, which eliminate with less frequency than birds or small mammals, are easier to clean and care for and a larger habitat doesn't make much difference in the time it takes to care for them. A glass tank with substrate is a glass tank with substrate no matter how you look at it.

I completely hear what you're going for. Personally, I would love to see these kinds of displays more often. The reality, though, is that the current set-ups in the store aren't meant to serve as long-term homes for the animals in them, which is what a larger display would imply. I don't think anyone working there would recommend keeping the animals at home in set-ups exactly like the ones you see in the store (size, etc). Their purpose is to serve as temporary housing and put the animals inside of them on full display, which they do quite well of when the people taking care of them do their part.

[slithering_BP]

Personally; I think these big chains should go back selling fish, rodents, and supplies. They don't teach their employees, about the animals they're supposed to care for. I also think, they stand to loose a lot less money!

I have only ever spoke to one employee, that new what she was talking about; when I was looking for something for my gfs conure. I don't go into the reptile section; when I need to be In one of these stores.

[Joe balls]

[QUOTE=slithering_BP;2320458]Personally; I think these big chains should go back selling fish, rodents, and supplies. They don't teach their employees, about the animals they're supposed to care for. I also think, they stand to loose a lot less money!
If a animal is sold at a lost stock won't be replenished as they slow the flow of that particular animal to judge demand in an area. The caged stays empty longer before it's filled automatically or at managers request. In my area they also have a very large parakeet display huge round tower with perches and every thing toy mirror ect. the birds like. That display is empty 99% of the time and when I saw a bird it it it was a sick parrot in QT. it's always been that way sence I've visited that store the first time.
when it comes to reptiles they don't even get the horrible care described in there Care Sheet! they get the temp and humidity for what ever animal was in the cage before it and that's even if they have light heat and humidity controls.that works at all! over crowding animals in one cage and stressing to the point of starvation. Even live reptiles thrown in the TRASH! because the minimum wage staff who could not care less, didn't check the net bag. By the way the rep bags are net and see threw and he still didn't see it.
they are counting the minutes till they are off so they can leave.we have all seen it first hand (as in with my own eyes) and there is nothing to debate.
Off on a rant using posters questions for your own verbal vomit. Go sing in the shower if you wanna hear yourself blow steam!

[earthwormjim]

Just so everyone knows, I have determined that the rat was too big. I am going to wait a week and not handle him at all and try a smaller rat and see how that goes. Fortunately I have found another well reviewed breeder. He was striking it but then would move away, the first rat I fed him was half the size and he took it with no problems. I euthanized the rat with vinegar and baking soda to see if he would take it but no luck so I disposed of it. I would tell everyone not to buy from petsmart. I feel bad as it was a waste of an animal as well as fifteen bucks, a beginner mistake on my end. Both breeders I now have own ball pythons and are very informed on them. They also only charge three bucks for a rat. Definitely something I would recommend to any beginners is securing reliable food source before buying a snake, sometimes getting appropriate food can be a pain.

[slithering_BP]

[QUOTE=Joe balls;2320563]

Personally; I think these big chains should go back selling fish, rodents, and supplies. They don't teach their employees, about the animals they're supposed to care for. I also think, they stand to loose a lot less money!
If a animal is sold at a lost stock won't be replenished as they slow the flow of that particular animal to judge demand in an area. The caged stays empty longer before it's filled automatically or at managers request. In my area they also have a very large parakeet display huge round tower with perches and every thing toy mirror ect. the birds like. That display is empty 99% of the time and when I saw a bird it it it was a sick parrot in QT. it's always been that way sence I've visited that store the first time.
when it comes to reptiles they don't even get the horrible care described in there Care Sheet! they get the temp and humidity for what ever animal was in the cage before it and that's even if they have light heat and humidity controls.that works at all! over crowding animals in one cage and stressing to the point of starvation. Even live reptiles thrown in the TRASH! because the minimum wage staff who could not care less, didn't check the net bag. By the way the rep bags are net and see threw and he still didn't see it.
they are counting the minutes till they are off so they can leave.we have all seen it first hand (as in with my own eyes) and there is nothing to debate.
Off on a rant using posters questions for your own verbal vomit. Go sing in the shower if you wanna hear yourself blow steam!

Im not defending them at All, but I hope you feel better now that you got that out of your system!

[Eric Alan]

Go sing in the shower if you wanna hear yourself blow steam!

What did I just read?