Why I won't buy from a pet store

[M&NSnakeDen]

Donations aside, I'd go to the store manager & demand they supply me with not only the snake, but all the things I would need to nurse him back to health. If they didn't agree, I'd raise hell & threaten to not only call the ASPCA & have them investigated, but to also post on every forum in the reptile community exposing them for their incredibly poor treatment of their snakes. Guaranteed they'd roll over & agree to give you what you need. No employee in that store that are in their right mind would say that that snake "just missed a few meals & will eat soon." I'm willing to bet that poor thing hasn't eaten much at all in it's short little life.

[wilomn]

Donations aside, I'd go to the store manager & demand they supply me with not only the snake, but all the things I would need to nurse him back to health. If they didn't agree, I'd raise hell & threaten to not only call the ASPCA & have them investigated, but to also post on every forum in the reptile community exposing them for their incredibly poor treatment of their snakes. Guaranteed they'd roll over & agree to give you what you need. No employee in that store that are in their right mind would say that that snake "just missed a few meals & will eat soon." I'm willing to bet that poor thing hasn't eaten much at all in it's short little life.

Were that my store I'd toss your rude ass out on the street.

We have NO idea what the story is here. Maybe they've done a lot to help it and it just isn't responding. Maybe they didn't. Before you all go shooting off your yaps try getting some facts. Running to the ASPCA or anyone without know what's really going on is just irresponsible.

If it's an import, it simply may have come in that way. We don't know. New management or no, facts NEED to be known before people go making a fuss.

And, if you were to buy that snake and they were responsible for it, you will simply be encouraging them to do the same again. Sad as it is, in the long run it is better for them to eat the loss than for someone else to pay and then lose it.

Use your brains folks, not just your emotions.

[bcr229]

Were that my store I'd toss your rude ass out on the street.

We have NO idea what the story is here. Maybe they've done a lot to help it and it just isn't responding. Maybe they didn't. Before you all go shooting off your yaps try getting some facts. Running to the ASPCA or anyone without know what's really going on is just irresponsible.

If it's an import, it simply may have come in that way. We don't know. New management or no, facts NEED to be known before people go making a fuss.

I'm sorry, but if that's the case then the snake shouldn't be on the sales floor with a price tag on it. Every shop I know has a back room where sick or unthrifty animals are taken so that they can be treated, kept in a quiet environment so they're not stressed by the flow of humanity wandering by, and they are away from the healthy animals on the floor so that diseases don't spread.

And, if you were to buy that snake and they were responsible for it, you will simply be encouraging them to do the same again. Sad as it is, in the long run it is better for them to eat the loss than for someone else to pay and then lose it.

Very true. Paying the store anything for that animal will only encourage more of the same poor behavior if it's the store's fault the animal is in that condition.

[M&NSnakeDen]

Were that my store I'd toss your rude ass out on the street.

We have NO idea what the story is here. Maybe they've done a lot to help it and it just isn't responding. Maybe they didn't. Before you all go shooting off your yaps try getting some facts. Running to the ASPCA or anyone without know what's really going on is just irresponsible.

If it's an import, it simply may have come in that way. We don't know. New management or no, facts NEED to be known before people go making a fuss.

And, if you were to buy that snake and they were responsible for it, you will simply be encouraging them to do the same again. Sad as it is, in the long run it is better for them to eat the loss than for someone else to pay and then lose it.

Use your brains folks, not just your emotions.

There's absolutely no reason for any pet store to have a snake (or any animal) in THAT bad of shape. I'll gladly be called a rude ass for sticking up for the care of ANY animal and you bet your ass I'd make a fuss if I came across something like that. No hesitations.

Maybe it did come in that way. Totally possible. But you either A) take it to some sort of rescue society knowing it could get proper MEDICAL care whether it be tube feeds, IV fluids, antibiotics, mite treatments or B) if you're confident enough nurse it back to health in the store, do your company name a favour & DON'T put it on sale display.

If they've tried & it isn't responding to any feeding attempts, I second my previous comment. You don't let an animal get like that. Take it somewhere where someone can give it far more attention.

[sho220]

Running to the ASPCA or anyone without know what's really going on is just irresponsible.

Isn't that the ASPCA's purpose? To find out what's really going on?

Unless that snake has had medical care, it's animal cruelty.
From the ASPCA website:

What constitutes animal cruelty?
Animal cruelty occurs when someone intentionally injures or harms an animal or when a person willfully deprives an animal of food, water or necessary medical care. Here are some signs that may indicate abuse or neglect:

• Tick or flea infestations
• Wounds on the body
• Patches of missing hair
• Extremely thin, starving animal <<< I'd say it's starving. How about you wilomn?
• Limping
• An owner striking or otherwise physically abusing an animal
• Dogs who are repeatedly left alone without food and water, and often chained in a yard
• Dogs who have been hit by cars—or are showing any of the signs listed here—and have not been taken to a veterinarian
• Dogs who are kept outside without shelter in extreme weather conditions
• Animals who cower in fear or act aggressively when approached by their owners

There's an animal in my community who isn't being cared for properly—is that cruelty?
Yes, it is. You don't have to hit an animal to be cruel to him—depriving an animal of food, water or necessary medical care is neglect, which is a form of cruelty.

If the ASPCA doesn't handle this kind of incident, what the heck do they do?

I didn't see anything on their website that mentioned the value of the animal will determine whether it's cruelty or not.