petsmart rat question

[mgt1216]

Anyone know if petsmart get any other kind of rats in beside the hairless and dumbo?

[tomfromtheshade]

At stores like that they either have a "par level" inventory set by the corporate office where they get the same stuff all the time, or the store manager or department head orders the animals manually.

Just ask the manager next time you are there.

[Tidus10]

Petsmart gets dumbos? I might go get me a male...

[Jay_Bunny]

Petsmart usually sells Dumbos and occasionally hairless (my store doesn't get hairless or dumbos). I've heard of people finding rexes there too. Other than that, colors are pretty standard. Blues, beige, blacks, agouti, albino, etc. Patterns are usually berkshire or hooded. Occasionally you'll find capped or blazed.

[jasbus]

Pet stores get their inventory from different sources, depending on where they are located. Some will even buy from local breeders. I don't know how PetSmart does it though. I sell to several smaller chain petstore around my state and a little beyond.
Petco buys mainly from sources that sell dry goods as well and fish and animals, thus their expensive pricing.
I sell to a wholesaler in a neighboring state, that serves the central US. I sell them rats for $xx, they double the price on their wholesale sheet that goes to petstores. Petstores in turn, usually double or more the wholesale price.
That's why you see $10 rats in chain stores, and $5 rats in mom and pop shops, they cut the middle man.
Same with other animals. You see Sun Conures in Petco for $599, I sell them for $250 both in my store and to wholesalers....etc etc...
Long story short, buy local, you save in both dollars, and you're supporting a community, not a bunch of stock holders and rich investors.
It's tough when people just go to the box stores, especially when you know how much they pay for their stuff, and what they turn around and charge for it. But, people want "pretty" stores.

[Ladybugzcrunch]

I got a group of mice from Petco. One female was sterile and the other two produced one litter each before they died. One of the litters all died before weening and the other litter all died after weening with obvious head tilt. I gave the sterile female and the male to my daughter as pets and got a new group elsewhere. I will never buy from a box store again. I am convinced those mice had a horrible start in life.