No you can't trust what most pet stores tell you about the care of pretty much anything they sell. Remember they aren't in the business of keeping animals, they are in the business of moving them out the door (making a sale) as fast as possible and most have corporate offices that set very poor standards of care that good employees struggle under. There are some wonderful stores out there but sadly most of the big chain stores just aren't that great.
KJ, it's always hard to hear something you don't want to hear. That's just us humans being human. It's also hard when all you have is the written word with no cues like body language, tone of voice, etc. to guide you on the full intent of the message.
I'd ask you to look a bit closer at the care and concern expressed for you and the animals you keep and less about the word choice a member might make. I'd also ask our experienced members to always remember that our newcomers may have been given very poor advice, may well have bought the animal on impulse, whatever.....if your good message is lost in a terse tone....the greatest damage won't be to someone's ego...it will be to that animal you are striving to help.