I don't really have any "horror" stories about the local Petco because the one by my house actually has knowledgable employees who I have known for quite some time, BUT I do have a somewhat funny story about the Petco I used to go to when I was in college. They had an employ there whose title was reptile specialist. Over time I became friends with the guy and he was a hobby breeder of several different species of reptiles. Well as you all know, the chain pet stores get their guidelines from corporate and God forbid they differ what what their "experts" say lol. Well he cared more about the animals well being than he did about what they told him to do so he changed everything the best he could to make sure the animals were as comfortable possible with what he had to work with. He was fired for breaking protocol and then called about 3 weeks later with an offer to take his job back because their reptiles were dying. The funniest part about the whole thing is, he was fired 3 times for doing this, and every time they would call him back 2 to 3 weeks later offering his job back lol.