Ugh...PetCo

[DM1975]

Sounds about right. For the record though, I have never been in a pet store that all snakes were in seperate cages.

The Petco down the road from my house has ball pythons in a cage with a humidity level around 15-20% but they were spot on with their bearded dragon display.

The Petland in Topeka actually has a great reptile section, even though some snakes are still housed together (not mixed species) the person that takes care of them is a well known Boa Constrictor breeder and was the first in the world to produce moonglow boas I believe.

I know that one store I go to sells about 5-10 ball pythons a week. Could you imagine the housing to keep each individual snake in their own cage for the short periods of time they have them in there? And that is just their Ball Pythons. Not condoning bad husbandry, but it is what it is.

[TimmyG]

I think after todays experience I'm goign to have to disagree that chain stores are bad. The important thing to keep in mind is that all stores are owned and operated by individuals and therefore any store is only as good as its manager.

todays experience: I've been working to set up a new tank for my BP which is on the brink of outgrowing his current home. Last week I stepped in and bought a new tank that was 3.5ft X 1.5ft, the manager herself helped me to find the best deal (one that was slightly smaller was mroe expensive) however the lid dint fit sunggly so they said they would order a better lid for me and it would be in this tuesday and that I could have it. Today I go in to buy 2 heat pads, a ceramic lamp for bulbs, and a new hide and they give me 10% off no problem. They know how to take care of their animals, and usually don't put animals together when its a problem (the worse Ive seen is maybe 2 BPs together or maybe 2-3 emperor scorpions (which usually isnt a problem if there are enough hides anyway); given that space is always limited this is easily forgivable. Bottom line dont live soley on the believ that all chains are bad, they are definatly worth exploring. On a side note our local small pet store fails epically and smells like dog poos

[azpythons]

i dont go to petco but my local shop i went to to get feeders have no idea what african soft fur rats were, which was mildly suprising. i was kinda confused when i saw a 20 gallon tank a heat bulb and like 20 paper bags, when i asked what wa in the bag they told me it was their colombian boas. i dont know how good or bad of a setup that is but it was kinda weird looking and i know i wont buy one of those.

[Neal]

I haven't been to my local petsmart in quite sometime, but last time I went they weren't too bad. I mean I could of setup the tank better, but everything was clean.

[4theSNAKElady]

Patricia, I think you missed my point. I am saying not all Petcos are bad...I used to work at one. Cause i knew our reptiles were taken care of. And if someone who had a preconcieved idea about Petco came into our store, I'd be just a little offended if they told us we didn't care for our reptiles, nonetheless feed them!

[_Venom_]

Petco is cool here.

[TRL94]

Yea the petco near me is huge and is very clean their reptile section is huge the have a ton of selections of everything you need and they have tons of reptiles for sale all in healthy condition they have right size tanks and temps and humidity are all right. Though its the only pet store ill buy a reptile from all the others I don't trust they reptiles are all sick.

[Deacon240]

The PetCo here usually takes pretty good care of their reptiles. Although their BP tank has about 8 balls in it. But what more can you expect from a company like that?

[cheryls]

I work within a few miles of two Petcos. One does a decent job caring for their reptiles...the other is horrible. I once spoke with them about a bp who was extremely uncomfortable due to a terrible shed. I then went on line and filed a complaint. The next day, the regional manager called me and indicated that he was going to check the reptiles the next day.

Once in Petsmart, I talked with them about how they were keeping one small bp. It's enclosure was clear and it shared a wall with another reptile. The crickets from the other kept jumping into the bp enclosure and there was no hide. When I spoke with the manager, he immediately set up a new enclosure - I was still there! - and moved the bp. He said that the snake hadn't been eating and they were concerned and didn't know what to do with it as none of them knew anything about snakes. Unfortunately, a couple of weeks later the poor thing died - but they clearly cared.

I personally think if a pet store is going to sell reptiles, they should have to hire someone who knows how to care for them! That should be a law or something...otherwise it's just cruelty! If it were a puppy being kept in deplorable conditions, folks would surely put up a fuss!

[bamf64]

I haven't been to my local petsmart in quite sometime, but last time I went they weren't too bad. I mean I could of setup the tank better, but everything was clean.

ya the petsmart where i live is actually really sanitary and healthy. i buy most of my supplies from there and always can fit in time to look at the reps