Quote Originally Posted by mainbutter View Post
I feel the same way, I know of a handful of specialty pet stores, and in fact all of them specialize in reptiles(along with a couple other "exotic" mammal species), that take good care of the animals they have for sale.

For example, every time I go in twin cities reptiles to buy feeders, I feel happy knowing I am supporting a store that knows what the hell they are doing and keeps the animals healthy. Even the teenagers/20-some-year-olds that run the registers know about the animals they are selling, and if one doesn't know they own up to it and find someone else in the shop who does. On top of that they don't try to sell you useless items you don't need or want. I can't imagine how many people have been pressed into buying heat rocks for BPs or corn snakes at other stores, only to have the rock burn and/or kill the new pet.

[rant]I hate how some of the "reptile experts" in some of the bigger stores pretend to know everything there is to know about every single reptile species. It's ridiculous. I'm sure there are plenty of professional reptile breeders out there who aren't well versed in one species or another, and would never pretend to know, and if asked about a species they have no experience with would advise someone to go research on the internet and ask someone else..[/rant]

-Laughs.- Tell me about it. I go to PetCo for my feeders(they're RIGHT NEXT TO MY APARTMENT) and I've applied multiple times for the reptile specialist position. Of course, they continue to tell me that they have someone who's qualified. I'm waiting to see this someone. I haven't yet. The only person who's even remotely knowledgeable comes to ME when she has questions about some of her snakes. Gotta love that.