I got a important question

Im not sure but I was shopping for cat stuff on the web and was not sure if this is true.

Despite the numerous reports of negligence and animal abuse in Petco stores across the nation, people continue to purchase supplies from Petco and hence, support Petco’s continued mistreatment and sale of live animals. We will no longer contribute to that support.

We have seen Petco stores where birds, small animals, reptiles and aquatics are kept in filthy, overcrowded environments, often without adequate shelter, food, water, or mental stimulus for their species.

We have seen Petco stores where sexually mature rats and mice are housed in bins with the opposite sex because “Petco can’t guarantee the sex of a rodent”, resulting in the overpopulation of these small animals.

We have seen Petco stores where rats from “Fancy Rat” bins are sold as snake-food, with Petco associates giving the ultimate customer service; stunning the rats with blows to their heads so they may not injure the snakes while they are being eaten.

We have seen Petco employees leave sick or injured animals to suffer and die because the Petco designated veterinarians were not available to treat them. We have also heard testimonies from previous Petco employees who claim they were instructed to kill sick or injured animals by freezing them.

We have seen Petco employees sell cages, habitats, food, and accessories that are inappropriate for the type or size of the customer’s pet.

If Petco truly believes, as their Company Info claims, “We understand that our customers are pet lovers, not just pet owners. They view their pets as members of the family and believe they deserve the same level of care and comfort”, then Petco should well understand that we believe that each animal is a valuable living being, not a piece of merchandise.

Petco claims “We have instituted many policies and procedures intended to provide for the health and safety of the animals in our stores… each Petco employee is trained in animal care via an extensive and thorough series of videos regarding animals and their care…Educating prospective pet owners is the primary responsibility of our store associates”.

However good the intentions may have been, we have seen first-hand that Petco’s corporate policies and procedures are not adhered to at the local levels. For these reasons, we refuse to do any business with Petco Animal Supplies, Inc. or Petco.com until such time as the company ceases the sale of live animals entirely. We will purchase our pet supplies elsewhere.

 

Hi KittyTales. Yes, all the stories you hear about Petco are true. That's why I don't go there. Petsmart is a good place to go.

 

Oh thanks!
Just wondering.

 

Wow I didn't know Petco was like that. The only reason why I shop there is b/c it's the closest petstore. They've closed all the pet stores around me and that Petco is still about 15 minutes away.Me not having a car makes me to rely on people who are willing to take me. The other stores are further but I'll look into a Petsmart. There used to be a Petsmart really close to me about 6 or 7 years ago but it closed down. Such a shame. I hate to support things like that. I'm looking into it now.

 

I think I shop at Pet Supplies Plus the most...sometimes Petsmart too. I never shopped at Petco much just because their prices are so high.

 

I was thinking about shopping online with Petsmart but the don't carry Friskies for Kittens :cry: Petco does

 

i only shop at petsmart..but it is the only place i like..i was unaware of any of that stuff going on..

 

I can vouch first hand that the fish (tropical or cold water) at petco are very very un-suiteably treated and have also seen alot of the birds and reptiles in more then disguesting enviroments. As chessmind said petsmart is a really good alternative.

 

I also heard about this practice but unfortunately I don't have a Petsmart anywhere within driving distance - the one little family-owned pet store carries only Wellness food (2 lbs. bag of kitten food is $14.00) and not much of anything. PetCo is a 1/2 hour trip so if I need anything (like doggie diapers which I can't get around here) I go to PetCo. Don't like it...but shopping here is very limited and I don't like to spend 1/2 of the day in the car.

 

I have to say, I don't know anything about their animals except for the cats. The cats are brought and taken care by local animal shelters. I have never seen the cats in a poor environment or poor condition. But, the cats in the Petcos here are from Animal Friends (or possibly Animal Rescue League or The Humane Society)... they are all reputable and well-respected shelters.

I would hope that the fish, rodents, birds... etc. would all receive the care they deserve. But, I would be surprised if they weren't treated as they should be.

I would think that this could be a problem depending on the store and its staff. I will say that everything at the Petcos I've been to seems sanitary and the animals appear well cared for. But, then again, I'm not always there and I don' t see what happens.

 

I agree wholeheartedly. All stores are different depending on its staff. There are many pet stores here in Buffalo and shopping for supplies is no problem. Petsmart seem to have cheaper supplies than Petco.A few months ago at Petsmart, I saw live fish lying on the floor and the employee did absolutely nothing about it after I mentioned about the fish. I forced my hubby to place the fish back in a tank and they looked ok although we might have contaminated the tank. Oh well. It's better than watching them die in front of us. At Home Depot, we saw a dead rotting carp that's almost a foot long in a indoor plastic pond and the other carp were afraid of it. On top of that people threw coins in it. Coins are filthy and poisonous. Poor carp. There's no maintainance and no one seemed to care about them.

I believe the Petco lawsuit/controversy originated in Buffalo a few years back. All the stores here do not allow for cats and dogs. Only smaller animals are sold here. What we need are people that work in pet stores etc. to care about what they are doing. It makes me wonder if these people are the same at home- that they don't care about anything.

 

wasn't this mostly the PetCo stores in California? The article I read stated that

 

Mary, you're right. Hubby said that it started in Buffalo and he grew up here. That's my source of info.