Is this poor guy sick?

I am not BP owner,

Is this guy sick or shedding?

Excuse the bad picture as it was taken through the glass at PETCO. I went into Petco to buy some Aspen and I saw this guy in a tank, I did call the manager over and I was told that he's just shedding.

I picked him up and tried to place him in his water dish in his tank and he DID NOT move at all, almost dead like. Look how skinny h is in some spots.

Really? Looks sick to me...your thoughts?

For some reason I cant get a full pic,click on the box it should should up


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/...5d1785.png</a>

He is deep in shed, but also skinny. Chain stores are not known for taking good care of their animals. :/ You would do well to find another aspen supplier if you want to avoid giving this company money because of how they treat their animals.

I posed questions about eating enough and I was very politely and politically told to mind my own business

I wouldn't handle the animals at a big box store as that's a good way to bring home mites.

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Originally Posted by _Solid_Snake_

I posed questions about eating enough and I was very politely and politically told to mind my own business

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At that point I would have put the aspen back on the shelf and walked out. WalMart also carries it, usually for a lower price.

Yeah chain stores usually dont know crap about reptiles. Our petco we have a woman that is very knowledgeable in reptiles and rodents and things are taken care of. I hear they get ball pythons from oversees as imports and are never treated properly or brought up to health. I have been asked polietly to mind my own business before. I got more stern with him haha. I want the best for any animla i come across

Ya they always shed terribly in those stores, I've never seen a humidity gauge there past 15%, and its usually at 0

This breaks my heart...

At the same time, I mean, if all you have is one chain store in your vicinity, you're kinda screwed. So it's not always so easy to just say "boycott ALL the Petcos/PetSmarts/etc." - and even if we did that, they'd still be in business and selling these animals.

Personally, I'm going to try a different route this year. I applied at a local PetSmart (they aren't TERRIBLE with their snakes, but definitely need an upgrade) as a pet care employee. I specified that I'd like to work on caring for the reptiles, and that I'm a snake hobbyist and have experience.
I hope I get a job there, just so I can fix some stuff. I'd like to get my foot in the door and make changes, even if they're small.


If you see an animal that is clearly not being cared for properly, you should voice your concern as soon as you can. Even if a manager or what have you gets upset, defensive, the works, it's better than saying nothing at all. With enough complaints there is a chance that they could make some changes. I'd really like to believe that we can make a difference without simply dumping the store with the supplies, especially if it really is your only option.

Around here (NorCal), Petsmart is worse than Petco when I've always thought the opposite. The ball pythons and reptiles at petsmart always look so.. not well. Today I went to Petco to get some quick fuzzy mice (as I don't need too many so can't really order a box of them online) and noticed they made changes to their reptile department, which pleased me. The leopard geckos are on turf (solid piece) instead of whatever they had before which is usually repti-bark. The boa constrictors were on eco earth to help with their humidity (it was wround 50% the highest I've ever seen in one of those stores). The boas looked okay to me, so I was genuinely impressed with their improvements, even if they were small.

If someone gets a job and knows their stuff, they definitely make improvements - as far as I've seen.

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Originally Posted by kylearmbar

Ya they always shed terribly in those stores, I've never seen a humidity gauge there past 15%, and its usually at 0

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That would indicate a broken gauge since it doesn't get that low in a desert or the far north in the winter.

I'll admit I got my girl from a local Petsmart, and other than the tank size, she seemed well taken care of. However, the only local Petco is inside San Francisco city limits, so they can't legally sell ball pythons. If I were to buy my mice from one, I'd go to Petsmart, because I prefer the Arctic Mice Petsmart sells over Petco's brand, since they are cheaper and individually packaged. However, I've since found a local independent shop that I would rather give my money to, and has mice from a local breeder.

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Originally Posted by kilopular

Around here (NorCal), Petsmart is worse than Petco when I've always thought the opposite. The ball pythons and reptiles at petsmart always look so.. not well. Today I went to Petco to get some quick fuzzy mice (as I don't need too many so can't really order a box of them online) and noticed they made changes to their reptile department, which pleased me. The leopard geckos are on turf (solid piece) instead of whatever they had before which is usually repti-bark. The boa constrictors were on eco earth to help with their humidity (it was wround 50% the highest I've ever seen in one of those stores). The boas looked okay to me, so I was genuinely impressed with their improvements, even if they were small.

If someone gets a job and knows their stuff, they definitely make improvements - as far as I've seen.

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That's good to hear!! Makes me optimistic :)

There's no Petcos in Canada, I don't believe. We've got PetSmart and Pet Land, and a few other smaller chains. I find that each store is different. I have definitely seen some rough stuff from PetSmart (don't get me wrong), but the one nearest me isn't awful... just not really GOOD.

Aww, poor little guy. :(

I currently work at my local PetSmart as the Pet Care Lead. When I first started, the animals were taken care of pretty decently but like NH93, I wanted to make a difference even if it was for only one store and only for a handful of pets.

But ever since I was promoted, I have been given the rights to take any sick animal to the vet if I deem it necessary. My store also started to switch out a lot of the food we feed our pets to better brands and giving our new arrivals more time to settle in before they are put out onto the sales floor. Ever since those changes were made, we have been having great luck with the overall health of the animals in the store.

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Originally Posted by kilopular

Around here (NorCal), Petsmart is worse than Petco when I've always thought the opposite. The ball pythons and reptiles at petsmart always look so.. not well. Today I went to Petco to get some quick fuzzy mice (as I don't need too many so can't really order a box of them online) and noticed they made changes to their reptile department, which pleased me. The leopard geckos are on turf (solid piece) instead of whatever they had before which is usually repti-bark. The boa constrictors were on eco earth to help with their humidity (it was wround 50% the highest I've ever seen in one of those stores). The boas looked okay to me, so I was genuinely impressed with their improvements, even if they were small.

If someone gets a job and knows their stuff, they definitely make improvements - as far as I've seen.

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I saw an improvement like this at my local Petco recently. They switched all their leopard geckos and beardies from sand over to reptile carpet, and now none of them look thin or lethargic, or have stuck shed all over their bodies! I was so glad, somebody must have said something.

I've thought of getting a job at Petsmart or Petco to make some husbandry changes like NH93 and Instinct, but I've always been afraid I would get there and be told there's a company/district standard or something (when it's obvious there's not).

There's another local chain in my area called Monster Pets that's just awful. I saw them feeding ground beef to their iguanas... tell me that's not five kinds of wrong.