Pet Supermarket...WOW!

[Nate]

Tanya where was this place? I'm always on the lookout for pet shops in central FL.

[intermission]

It's nice to see big box stores that care about animals. I have a fish store, and truly appreciate knowledge. I never go to Petco or Petsmart for anything if I can help it. I know how bad they are with fish, I can't imagine what they do to reptiles. that's why I only go to specialty shops for my animals.

[TanyaL]

while i cant speak for their reptiles, i know i wasnt too impressed with their selection and temperament of the birds we saw at pet supermarket. Its possible that my store is one of there "lame duck" stores. But i do know that the store itself is very clean, and everyhitng is organized nicely

My son was petting some of the birds and one of them did strike at him...but that was one of many. All the others were fine.

I loathe that store, and its chains.. they don't teach their employees how to properly care for the animals. The enclosures are ususally too small for any animal.
I saved these two ball's from the one near me for free after talking to the manager/co owner. They were CH, and still not shed their hatching shed. PLUS had never eaten for them.


I got this updated photo last week of one of them that I rehomed.

Now the store near you may be the rare exception. I hope so.

Just as I thought...too good to be true for it to a company wide policy to care for their animals. I'm glad you were able to rescue the poor little guys and give them a chance at life. hats off to you!

Tanya where was this place? I'm always on the lookout for pet shops in central FL.

If you are in Orlando it would be a good 2+ hour drive for you since it's in Pasco County...somewhere. We were all over the place today so I don't remember exactly where it was. If you took 50 all the way over and then headed south on US 19 you would eventually run into it.

When we were first looking into getting a snake we found a petshop in Ocala that seems to be pretty good and knowledgeable but found out shortly after that they closed down. In fact, that was the only pet shop I've been in since looking for a snake that had a dark room for their reptiles. It was too bad that they closed!

[Mochelem]

The pet supermarket in Pensacola is not very good, they dont have a very good selection of reptile supplies, they only sell mice not rats. I went in there once and they had some BP's in there and they were very skinny looking and there was 3 of them in a hatchling sized enclosure. The enclosure also had small air holes in the sides connecring to other tanks on the same rack, so if one reptile gets sick they all get sick.

The one you went to may be the exception though, it really does matter who works there and what they know.

[blackcrystal22]

The pet supermarket in Pensacola is not very good, they dont have a very good selection of reptile supplies, they only sell mice not rats. I went in there once and they had some BP's in there and they were very skinny looking and there was 3 of them in a hatchling sized enclosure. The enclosure also had small air holes in the sides connecring to other tanks on the same rack, so if one reptile gets sick they all get sick.

The one you went to may be the exception though, it really does matter who works there and what they know.

Just an add to this.. most racks have airholes that are on the sides of the tubs and are usually right next to eachother. That part doesn't really make a difference because that's what it's like even at a breeder's rack.

Edit: According to that site most snakes do well at room temperature! Wait why did I buy all this equipment to stabilize heat then?

[Myenia]

You have to keep in mind that many stores, pet and other alike, are incompetant and don't stand up to the normal standards they're asked to. In my hometown, Petsmart is in much better shape than Petco...partly because petco is so incredibly old there. Here, Petsmart is HORRIBLE, and our petco does pretty well with having animal specialists who know a ton about the animals in their department, and taking good care of them. I think for any store, it all depends on the individual location, because I've seen a ton of variance. It has alot to do with management and who they hire...some people care about animals and some are just in it to make money and get the opportunity to touch the animals.

[Mochelem]

Just an add to this.. most racks have airholes that are on the sides of the tubs and are usually right next to eachother. That part doesn't really make a difference because that's what it's like even at a breeder's rack.

Edit: According to that site most snakes do well at room temperature! Wait why did I buy all this equipment to stabilize heat then?

This wasnt a breeder rack, it was a rack of tanks, and it was thier entire reptile tank, think of it like this 15, 10 gallon tanks stacked 5 wide and 3 tall.... there were holes connecting each tank to each other. The other tanks had bearded dragons, water dragons, colubrids, scorpions, tarantulas, geckos.... I just saw that and I thought that all those animals could transfer things to each other very easily....

I have a rack this was not like a breeder rack...

[halfwaynowhere]

never heard of pet supermarket... guess there isn't one around here...
Anyways, chain stores have the same basic husbandry rules they have to follow, whether they are right or wrong. But each individual store does things a little bit differently. My job requires me to travel to many different petco stores. I cover about 20 of them on a regular basis, and occassionally a few others. Some know more than others, it depends on the individual employees... One store I was at let the ball pythons and red tail boas live together. I pointed out that they were mixed. There was a divider between the two enclosures, but it wasn't secure, and they kept pushing past it and ending up together. I was told that they do it all the time, and it was okay because in the store, the animals don't have enough space to establish their individual territory, so they don't fight. Um, okay. Even if that made sense, what if someone came into the store and saw them living together, and then tried to do the same at home? Big trouble.
Other stores I've been to do a pretty good job. That was the worst I've seen. Except for maybe the guy that tried telling me that bearded dragons were the perfect childrens pet, because if the kid forgot to feed it for a few weeks, it would be fine.

[Mochelem]

never heard of pet supermarket... guess there isn't one around here...
Anyways, chain stores have the same basic husbandry rules they have to follow, whether they are right or wrong. But each individual store does things a little bit differently. My job requires me to travel to many different petco stores. I cover about 20 of them on a regular basis, and occassionally a few others. Some know more than others, it depends on the individual employees... One store I was at let the ball pythons and red tail boas live together. I pointed out that they were mixed. There was a divider between the two enclosures, but it wasn't secure, and they kept pushing past it and ending up together. I was told that they do it all the time, and it was okay because in the store, the animals don't have enough space to establish their individual territory, so they don't fight. Um, okay. Even if that made sense, what if someone came into the store and saw them living together, and then tried to do the same at home? Big trouble.
Other stores I've been to do a pretty good job. That was the worst I've seen. Except for maybe the guy that tried telling me that bearded dragons were the perfect childrens pet, because if the kid forgot to feed it for a few weeks, it would be fine.

The things you have stated here are why most people on this site dont have much trust in pet stores. Most of the people that work in the stores dont really know what they are talking about. They are like the used car sales people of the reptile community. Im not saying everyone who works in a pet store doesnt know anything.

This is just an example, the first ball python I owned was back in 1996 and I was told by the person who sold it to me that it should only be fed once a month, and all i needed was a 20 gal tank and a uth. I didnt have a thermostat also nothing about humidity was ever told to me. After a year of owning that snake it was under 300 grams. I ended up moving to a place that didnt allow pets and a guy I knew who had many reptiles took it off my hands... But pet stores are not known for healthy animals or for advise on keeping them...

[pythontricker]

my petco seems to take great care of its animals too. the temps and humidity are all correct too. I ask the guy why the place has so many bp's in one cage, and he said, "you know, i completely hate the policies this place has! if it was up to me I would have them all in one individual tank" So I guess its just the employees that happen to work there. And they make sure is better than policy says it should be.