Is it just me?

[megan8706]

So I have to buy my BPs mice from petsmart, and every time I go in there I browse the snakes mainly BPs, they usually only have normals (I got mine from there and vowed I wasn't buying another from a pet store) but todsy they had 2 normals and a pastel, I held the one little normal and she was tiny. The pastel was in shed and very very defensive and looked horrible (maybe a previous stuck shed idk) but does anyone else feel bad for those snakes in pet stores? I can't help but want to buy them all when I'm there.

[JOKERMAN]

I feel like that when i go to my local Petco. They keep the corn snakes and geckos in horrible conditions, and they never clean it from the looks of the cages. They don't even follow basic husbandry for any of there reptiles.

[Cyndymei]

Well it's a common thing but not much we can do about it. My point or view is this. Every time you "save" one. That just makes them get more stock. Saving them doesn't really make a difference to those stores. Each snake purchase rewards the bad business practice. So nothing changes. Most employees however do try their best, at least at the petsmart I am at.

The only healthy snake I have seen at a petsmart however was a lesser butrer that came in last week.

Sent from my Galaxy S5

[dek593]

I see that kind of problem every time when I stop by Petco to buy bedding for my feeder rodents.
Baby leos which lost their tails and horrible stuck shed on baby ball pythons. Actually, it`s so ironical. We keep animals in limited area and they don`t have freedom that they really want to have..but we think we`re offering best condition and best care for our animals....anyway, what I want to mention is most of petco and pet`s mart employees don`t even have enough knowledge about their animals for sale..so they leave crickets in baby corn snakes vivarium and don`t even know what kind of morph corn snake they are selling..

[alan12013]

Big time breeders making money too...

[Kamerick]

At one pets art i was at, the one ball python they had was very skinny, and had retained skin, no water, and the humidity was way down. I went to my local petland, and that so far has been the only pet store that I know of that is good with there BPs (although it could be better), and they have a lot of ball pythons there.

[megan8706]

I just feel so badly for them, I used my better judgment and moved on. I know I can't help "save" them all because they will continuously be getting them in, I just hope they get a lovely home with someone who can and will give them proper care.

[laurelamo]

If you see a herp at a pet store in unacceptable conditions, tell someone. Since animals can't talk, you have to be their voice. It's not that the pet store employees don't care, they just don't know any better. A few months ago I noticed the BPs at my local Petco were waaay too dry, covered in stuck shed and soaking in their bowl. I told one of the clerks and the next time I came in the humidity was spot-on and the snakes looked so much better. Your results may vary but really the worst they can do is nothing.

Now if only they could fix their mite problem...

[megan8706]

If you see a herp at a pet store in unacceptable conditions, tell someone. Since animals can't talk, you have to be their voice. It's not that the pet store employees don't care, they just don't know any better. A few months ago I noticed the BPs at my local Petco were waaay too dry, covered in stuck shed and soaking in their bowl. I told one of the clerks and the next time I came in the humidity was spot-on and the snakes looked so much better. Your results may vary but really the worst they can do is nothing.

Now if only they could fix their mite problem...

I will say something next time. I couldn't tell temps/humidity because they don't keep anything in with the snakes. And knock on wood I've never seen a mite there, my Lil beauty came from there and has had no problems with mites or anything else. The girl that I spoke with there said she knew nothing about the snakes and was even scared to get the one I did hold out.

[alan12013]

I feel bad for them too. Growing up in a tiny tub were they can never stretch out and don't have a proper hide. Then they end up in a pet store with mediocre care and only with good luck do they end up in a good home. Wish it didn't happen but sadly that's the way it works. I've seen pet stores refuse to do anything about chameleons with MBD and one case was so bad I know the Cham would've died soon but they just got super defensive with me like I was in the wrong for questioning it's health. This sort of thing happens all over though with every species even humans so I just try to do my part.