Now petco does it too!

[Miss Tuniwha]

I managed at a petco for a few years. Back then, they were even labeled FEEDER MICE. AND we had a separate cage for "fancy mice".

I remember going to a petsmart once for feeders.. and they told me how horrible I was for feeding live to a snake.. (I had a non eater)..

so I asked for frozen... they said they did not carry them..

So I nicely told them how horrible it was for them to not care about hungry snakes. LOL

[kb1290]

ive never understood this policy at all, in the same store they sell frozen mice and rats as well would they not all end up in the same place?

It's corporates belief that it is upsetting to the customer to know that the mice/rats will be food. The f/t are kept in a cooler labeled "Reptile Food" that way only "reptile" people will see/ know of the f/t food. All other customers go along oblivious to this and see that we sell "fancy pets".

lol....corporate cares so much about the pets that the mice are contracted to be pets and not feeders....but won't spend any extra money to educate their employees, update their care sheets, and correct their husbandry. Interesting...

kb1290...just pointing out nothing against the employees, but the corporate end of those chains are rediculous. As we've talked about this before, not all employees are like you BUT that's because most aren't educated on specific animal care requirements.

It is true that employees are given limited training on animal care, but I think it comes down to each individual employee to do the work. If your going to sell an animal to people I think it is your responsibility to do the research and make sure you know proper care and husbandry. Otherwise you shouldn't be talking to customers and selling animals. Like I know nothing about birds so, I don't sell birds! In a corporate business like this it can't be blamed on the top officials when the employees as the base aren't doing the work to stabilize the pyramid.

It's all about image. Have you noticed how many pet adoption days they have? They make more money on food and supplies than they ever would on animals. People adopting kittens and puppies may not appreciate that cute little mouses are being sold as snake food.

Plus, I would imagine that hsus and peta donate significantly to their advertising campaigns to help get those future pet owners in the stores. Can't bite the hand that feeds you if you're corporate.

Bingo! Petco's policy is to feed f/t to all snakes in the store. If we get in a "picky eater" I have to go buy rats/mice from another local pet store so that I can feed live. I cannot just take a mouse off the floor. They are "pets" only and not food. Do they become food, yes all the time, but Petco doesn't want to know that.

[Highline Reptiles South]

Petco doesn't give a rats patooty about rats or mice...look at where they buy them from. They care about corporate image and being a victim of a PETA smear campaign. I hate its this way - but I guess it is what it is.

Thank goodness I have a "real" local pet store that has FEEDERS, PINKIES ETC if I'm running short. They will even buy my extra rats.

I love the 99% of the folks that work at my local Petco...just don't care for corp policies...

[Miko]

I find it funny that my local reptile shop usually has prettier feeders than pet co's pet mice. I mean, I felt bad for feeding my bp some of the mice from that shop, they had some pretty tan ones and orange ones... they had a lot of different colors and patterns. Pet co mice are just... white, usually.
Also, doesn't pet co normally sell feeder goldfish, crickets, etc? Just because it's fuzzy it deserves better? What?

[mommanessy247]

i ran into that problem when looking around for a feeder rat supplier. i called petsmart and petco to get their prices and when a guy answered at petsmart i said "hi i was calling to find out what your prices are for live feeder rats?"
and i got this snappy response...
"[tone of shock and disgust] we dont sell our rats as feeders." and then the guy proceeded to lecture me on his moral beliefs on
"...feeding animals to other animals."
yes he actually said that bit.
i was polite and quietly listened to him ramble on for a while but when he said those words my patience with him had run out and i was not appreciating his condescending tone.
i asked him if he was a vegetarian and when he said
"psh! no. what's that got to do with anything?"
i said "cuz if you dont believe in animals being fed to other animals then how the hell can you sleep at night knowing some poor little cows, chickens and pigs got chopped up to fill your freezer?!"
he had the balls to gasp then i hung up on him before he could pick his jaw up off the floor and argue with me.
i got the "we dont sell our rats as feeders." response at petco too but that person hung up pretty darn quick after saying that.
whatever.
i found a hole in the wall pet store that sells feeder rats and mice and for a little bit there the guys were good about understanding my need to buy the smallest of their smalls when i provided the explanation that my bp wont eat anything bigger even though i know she can. now though, i'm feeling a little bit of impatience from them. i dunno, maybe i'm imagining it but i swear i think they're getting tired of showing me different sizes. it's not my fault though, i have to go with what my snake will eat, simple as that.

[771subliminal]

It's corporates belief that it is upsetting to the customer to know that the mice/rats will be food. The f/t are kept in a cooler labeled "Reptile Food" that way only "reptile" people will see/ know of the f/t food. All other customers go along oblivious to this and see that we sell "fancy pets".

If they just labeled them "mice" or "rats" then it wouldnt matter. the avg person that would go to petsmart or petco to buy feeders is only going to buy one or two same as the avg person going to buy pet mice. if you were buying a couple "mice" and a customer that corporate is trying to not upset were to walk by they would only see you buying "mice" they wouldnt know what you were going to do with it when you got home and the odds of them asking are slim anyway.

[kb1290]

If they just labeled them "mice" or "rats" then it wouldnt matter. the avg person that would go to petsmart or petco to buy feeders is only going to buy one or two same as the avg person going to buy pet mice. if you were buying a couple "mice" and a customer that corporate is trying to not upset were to walk by they would only see you buying "mice" they wouldnt know what you were going to do with it when you got home and the odds of them asking are slim anyway.

I agree completely with you and have actually pointed this out to higher ranking managers and was given a look of shock and disbelief and then they changed the subject without so much as even trying rebuttle my point. I sell any mouse/rat to any customer that wants to come in and buy them. If they say the word "feeder". I inform them of the policy and have them just ask for mice/rats from then on.

[wilomn]

I agree completely with you and have actually pointed this out to higher ranking managers and was given a look of shock and disbelief and then they changed the subject without so much as even trying rebuttle my point. I sell any mouse/rat to any customer that wants to come in and buy them. If they say the word "feeder". I inform them of the policy and have them just ask for mice/rats from then on.

Which is all well and good for the snake and customer but not so good for you.

Businesses run for profit. Don't you think if there was more profit in selling feeders than the negative press it could bring that they would still be selling feeders.

You guys are making it too personal. It's not about any one person or store, it's a nationwide image.

If someone can't follow policy, no matter how good the reasons, well, this isn't about that now, is it? Or is it? No, not really though the two are rather tightly intertwined.

Why must they change their policy to suit any of us, or anyone else for that matter? Do you go into stores that only sell fish or only birds and complain at them about not selling the feeders you need? They could. Easily. But there's either not enough profit in it, they don't want do sell feeders or they don't want to deal with the buttdarts like peta and hsus and the puckered targets, er members, that make them up.

I'm pretty sure that no one posting in this thread has ever owned a store and had to make these decisions from an owners point of view. Without the impetus of making money, paying the rent and power and all the other bills that go with staying open, profitable, you guys are missing some really important motivation, information, and real life dos and don'ts.

[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

The negative press is much more, but only because of the massive amounts of animal rights people like pita and HSUS. Which are both entirely overplayed. They both lie and misuse funds right in front of the oblivious public. Those people are mostly against pet ownership completely. The reality of the rodent trade however, is clearly geared towards feeders for reptiles much much more than for pets. Reptile stores and mom n pop pet shops can't keep enough in stock for feeders in many places. While rodents in chain stores which are only for pets, sit there and get old or sick because they are rarely purchased. They are also not socialized.

The rats that we reptile enthusiasts are often treated better, with pet quality fancy colors. Many of us also choose to socialize favorites for pets. It bothers me that these other organizations have so much undue power over the public, that they refuse to see how we care more for our feeders than many people do for "pet" rodents. The hypocrisy is unbelievable.

[kc261]

I just called my local petco and asked "do you have feeder mice" and they said yes.

Maybe it is just a regional thing instead of corporate policy? Either way I don't like it.