This really bothered me...(Ignorant pet shops)

[emseeKAY]

I'm all for having pets and whatnot since ive had my share of random animals but I do the most research I possibly can on the animal prior to purchasing, if i run into problems i ask professionals and/or anyone with experience. to get to the point i saw an ad on a classifieds website that stated "I have always loved snakes and reptiles, but i dont have any money and have never had one so if there are any people out there looking to get rid of their snakes than i will take them and give them a happy home."

Not so happy when the snake dies because of poor husbandry or anything really... these people make me so mad when they see something and say "oh thats cool... ill buy it and if it dies, ill just get another one." I saw one employee at a pet shop attempt to jack up the price of absolutely everything so that a customer would think again about buying a beardie... it didnt work and the beardie died the next week, the same person came in later asking if he could feed his gold fish vegetables and tablescraps... so they had to ban them from the store (they also asked if they could put a emerald swift or veiled chameleon in the same tank as the beardie...)

sorry for the rant everyone, i just thought id bring up the topic of poor animal care and see what everyone else has to say...

[JustASnakeGirl]

I completely agree with you. I work full time at a pet store and the amount of people that come in looking for a "cool pet that no one else has" is ridiculous. I had someone come in looking to buy our Ball, I told him what he would need and about the snake and in the end he goes "Well when he gets big can just give him back to you? He's just so cute right now!" I told him probably not a good idea and after about almost an hour with him convinced him against the idea.
There are plenty of people that do do the research and come in just to ask questions and learn, I am more than thrilled when a customer buys themselves a beardie or a ball after coming in and chatting with me and doing their own research online or through books. However there are those who make the purchase on impulse, I've had to help way to many people find new homes for their beardie who all of a sudden grew to the size of their arm or a corn who lost the cute factor it portrayed when it was only a foot long at the store.

There you have a rant back to read :P

[emseeKAY]

lol much appreciated, and i know what you mean. its absolutely ridiculous i knew a kid through school that got bored with his leos and joked that he hadnt fed them in over 2 months and they were still alive and even went so far as to suggest he was going to spray assorted aerosol cans in the enclosure until they died so he could get rid of them... its nuts what people will do with animals... this sort of stuff gets me so rattled... lol

yet another rant haha :P

[Hillsberry]

Wow dude what a jerk. I sware sometimes I was to.....Breath! Lol. I hate people like that with any animal makes me so mad I was to like scream!! Lol

[Feebo]

Yeah it really pee`s me off to hear about stuff like this. :( Unfortunatly there`s no shortage of these people in the world and you don`t need any qualifications or even a little intelligence to buy an animal. It`s really upsetting isn`t it? Especially when we consider how we treat and worry about our own animals. The animals whole world depends on you, everything. If you don`t have the knowledge, or even the basic bloody intelligence to spot and sort out problems you shouldn`t be in charge of that animals care/life. I find stories like this as upsetting as I find hearing about child abuse upsetting. Even so, I`ve been asked far too many times, "can I put my Royal python in with my iguana?" Type questions. I`ll always offer sound advice and try my best to make them understand my answer to thier rediculous question, all be it through clenched teeth. I`ve done my absolute best to study and understand my snakes needs and habits. Over the years, each time a vetinary procedure has been needed I`ve learned all I can from the vet performing it, in order to be able to take on as much of it as is feasible. I do my own injections when they`re needed, I`ve unfortunatly needed to tube feed, all sorts. I want to be as hands on and informed as I can possibly be with my snakes and I`m constantly learning. Unfortunatly, plenty of people are far from interested in being thier snakes "keeper". It`s a novelty to them, a disposable one at that. They can watch it kill, they can show off with it, they can taunt it with a broom for a youtube video (I could have cried at that one) but they can never ever call themselves a responsible snake keeper, that title belongs to the people that care for thier snakes properly and have made the bloody effort to understand what they are getting into by becoming a snake owner. Yeah.... it breaks `ol Feebos heart to see stories like that...... :(

[infernalis]

I see it all the time.

When I got Kane, our Python regius, He was living in a home where the people just neglected him bad.

I threatened the lady I would call animal control if she did not give up the snake, I could tell the "novelty" wore off, his water bowl had green slime in it, there were sheds laying in there and feces everywhere.

They would buy 3-4 live mice and just leave them in there!

[marvelfreak]

:mad:What worst yet is when one ask a question about a reptile trying to learn more about the animal first, and the shop worker lies just to get the sell. Heard a worker tell a lady once that it was ok to keep boas and ball python together.The lady had a boa and wanted to get a ball, but only had one tank. Would it be ok to keep them together? The worker said yes. At that point walk up and told her it wasn't, and that half the stuff the worker been telling her for the last 15 minute was wrong. At that point i was asked to leave a not return. About the only thing worst that poor care, is poor advice.:mad:

[Will0W783]

Earlier this week when I went to my pet store a guy was trying to sell a ball python his son had left him with for months. I ended up taking it from him and wouldn't you know, the next day the kid starts calling me saying he wants his snake back. The poor thing was so dehydrated its eyecaps were dried and crystallized and it looked lumpy and had shed hanging off it all over the place. I told the kid I wanted to take care of it and just leave it with me and he said he had to have it back (where was he for 4 months while his snake wasted away?). We refused to give it back and he called the cops and I had to give it back. I was soo pissed off because the poor thing was obviously neglected and underfed and I'm so afraid it will just be neglected again. This was Tuesday and I'm still furious!!!!

[marvelfreak]

I turn him into animal control for negleted. Did you get your money back?

[shaunyboy]

i bought a coastal jaguar python from an established reptile centre that boasted 25 years of reptile experience.the shop was over 400 miles away from me ,so we agreed to meet at a reptile show i'd be attending down their part of the country.i got the jag then bought a further 5 various types of carpet python from different breeders at the show.i was in the car park a few hours later getting ready to leave the show and head home.then the person who sold me the jag walked up to me and asked if i had any money left.i asked why to which she replied "i met a guy at the show i sold a snake to 2 weeks ago and he's returned it"." its a diamond,jungle,jaguar sibling a female ,i'll sell you it cheap".she then tells me the guy didnt look after it properly and it had a slight r.i..just crank the temp up and it will be fine she says.i told her i had no money left." ok then i'll give you it for free ".i examined the snake and found it infested with mite's and a severe r.i. i took the snake and classed it as a rescue.my vet confirmed the snake had very bad pneumonia and one of the worst mite infestations he had ever seen.he said the pneumonia was that bad he wasnt sure the snake would live.also there was NO WAY it had got in this state in 2 weeks as the breeder had claimed.it was obvious the breeder had sold a very sick snake to the guy who returned it.all it took me was £46 and 3 months of care and the snake had a clean bill of health (it was a fighter).the breeder also lied about the sex as the vet got sperm plugs out of what was meant to be a female when he examined it.the person who gave me the snake was the girlfriend of the reptile centres manager who happened to be the centre owners daughter.so the whole shop MUST have known the state this snake was in when it was originally sold to the other guy.THEY PUT A SALE AND CASH IN THEIR POCKET WAY BEFORE THE WELFARE OF THE SNAKE.in my book that makes them COMPLETE SCUMBAG'S who dont deserve to call themselves a 25 year experienced reptile centre and should be charged with false advertising and animal neglect.
there you go emseekay another rant for you to read mate.
cheers shaun
p.s.feebo i will pm you the name of the place,just incase you ever come across them.

[Palor]

This was just posted on another forum I frequent

"don't know where to post this so here goes. Who has named ther reptiles or amphibians? Me i have about 15 lizards,snakes,frogs and turtles and have had many more in the past and I have never named a one of them. Does anybody here get attached to your reptiles/amphibians ? Maybe a little, I might get upset for a day or so if one dies but other than that I do not get attached, I had a real nice red tail for a couple of years and one day I was at the pet store and saw a monitor and traded didn't even give it a second thought. As a matter of a fact I still have that monitor and am thinking of getting rid of it to change up the tank. heck i had a turtle collection at one time. I had a red ear slider,a softshell, a snapper, and a mud turtle. One day i was cleaning the tank and decided I did not want to clean the tank again so I drove down to the local pond and released them back into the wild. ( they were wild caught and from the same area) although i did have them for several years."

It aggravated me so much. Pets are something you have for life unless terrible circumstances force you to give them up. This guy is just getting bored with his critters and passing em off for something new and exciting.

The part about dumping his turtles really put me over the edge, if wish there was a way to report him to his local animal control or something for that.

I have also done a lot of rescue and rehab. I have seen people with honest reasons why their animal was in crummy conditions and cases of pure neglect. Mostly just neglect :(

There are so many people who should not be allowed to have pets.

[Hillsberry]

Earlier this week when I went to my pet store a guy was trying to sell a ball python his son had left him with for months. I ended up taking it from him and wouldn't you know, the next day the kid starts calling me saying he wants his snake back. The poor thing was so dehydrated its eyecaps were dried and crystallized and it looked lumpy and had shed hanging off it all over the place. I told the kid I wanted to take care of it and just leave it with me and he said he had to have it back (where was he for 4 months while his snake wasted away?). We refused to give it back and he called the cops and I had to give it back. I was soo pissed off because the poor thing was obviously neglected and underfed and I'm so afraid it will just be neglected again. This was Tuesday and I'm still furious!!!!

I wouldnt have givin it back!!! I would have said its mine now! Mawhahaha! I am so evil. LOl. The snake was in bad shape! Call the ASPCS!!:eek:

[infernalis]

:mad: About the only thing worst that poor care, is poor advice.:mad:


That's why I am a big fan of forums like these.

We can collectively work together, I never take the advice of just one poster, unless it is a well known respected expert.

[marvelfreak]

That's why I am a big fan of forums like these.

We can collectively work together, I never take the advice of just one poster, unless it is a well known respected expert.
Same reason i join to learn form other and maybe even help other. You can never learn to much. I learn a long time ago i don't know it all. But if i keep a open mind an learn form others maybe, just maybe someday i will know it all. And then i will rule the world HAHAHA! LOL :D

[Feebo]

Yep, horaay for the forum !! :) I tell you what though, I really could do with a punch bag after reading all this! lol It just makes me so angry! Thanks for the name of that place ShaunyLad, I`ll avoid at all cost. That post from another forum, that reeeeally highlights the sort of ignorance we`re talking about here doesn`t it?! Well, as we say, thank goodness for the forum, :) that`s one of the things we CAN do to combat SOME of this ignorance. We can offer a friendly forum environment, as carefully maintained as our snake enclosures, to offer help, support and a friendly chat. As I`ve said before, this forum is something special as far as I`m concerned, I`d almost given up looking for a place like this... :) At least anyone who comes here can expect to get good advice eh :)

[emseeKAY]

wow these stories get me heated lol i cant stand people who neglect their animals and cant believe some of the stories... it also bothers me as well as much as child abuse does... UGH! i hate careless ownership, if you can even call it ownership, i wish people would smarten up and treat their pets the way they deserve to be treated...

[Geckogal]

These type of things upset me for weeks, i cant sleep at night when i hear about animal abuse, 3 years ago couple of teenagers thougt it funny to buy a mouse spray it with deoderant and set it on fire, made a video about it and got caught. Seriously who does that?! Last time i checked it them serial killers that torture animals before they start killing people!

[infernalis]

it also bothers me as well as much as child abuse does... UGH! ..


Our pets ARE our children too.

[emseeKAY]

Our pets ARE our children too.

excellent point, although some people think im weird when i call a 5 and a half foot boa my baby lol

something along those lines happened at my highschool a few years back, they brought live rats into the halls and released them and stomped on them and everything... im glad i wasnt there for that, there probably would have been a fight haha

[shaunyboy]

Our pets ARE our children too.

so true infernalis,they are as helpless as human baby's and rely on us doing the right thing.
cheers shaun

[fflamingmoe]

Well i was in the pet store today in my city and a could have made some heads roll.:mad:
They had snakes and i was asking questions about heating and thermostats and he had no clue what i was talking about.
They had no Heat Mats,No heat tape,No Thermostats,And nothing to check Humidity.
The guy thought he could shrug me off but little did he know i had a temper.

[infernalis]

I have so been there done that...

However I am proud to have made a difference at one pet store..

I went in and the had a sick baby Savannah monitor, they fed it canned dog food, and gave it a dose of pancure without a professional diagnosis,,,

I called animal control, turned them in!

I was desperate for some crickets, so I stopped and just went in....

The place was immaculate, everything has been completely re-worked.

[fflamingmoe]

Thats a shame we have to do it though.:no:
I even had pet shops hang the phone on me because i was getting them all flusterd with questions.
They keep telling me call back when the boss is in.:no:
Then i call when they say call back on Saturday and the boss is a no show.
I sent emails on the 3rd of March hmmmm still no boss.:unibrow:

[PiiNKvenom]

I was at the pet store getting a few F/T rats because I don't know of any reputable breeders in my area which are in bussing/walking distance. Either way back to the story.. I was at the pet store and I decided to take a look at the reptiles and they had a poor Apricot Pueblan Milksnake in one of those mini tanks which I like to call "cricket boxes", in a tank which was decorated with vines, and branches. The snake COULD be moving about freely but instead it was stuck in that stupid box with no hide and no water. Oh and the other stupid thing is the hide was outside of the extra container in the corner of the tank...

[fflamingmoe]

Well if the person is really good with snakes they don't need water dishes.But they still need a hide box.:no:
And i doubt that they use water syringes or basters for water feeding every single day.
I use water dishes and hand feed them thier water as well so yeah that sounds bad.
And i have one rule if you can't drink out of thier dishes then it needs to be cleaned.

[PiiNKvenom]

Yeah that and the fact that when asked questions they have no clue what I'm talking about, it's really sad.

[infernalis]

Sean just got a sticky thread ;)

This topic of discussion sparks a lot of passion in all of us, so I would hate to see it fade away anytime soon.

[emseeKAY]

yeah it definitely sucks that we have to do these things, i wish shops would take the time to provide better care for their animals

and i noticed that ;) hahaha thanks wayne :D

[infernalis]

You are very welcome...

My advice is this, any time we see a pet shop that needs it, call the local animal control and plead your case.

It works.

[fflamingmoe]

Well if you seen the Deuc Bigalo the movie, I'm like that in many ways but not just with fish but reptiles as well.:freakedout:
You guys picture that and a guy that talks to himself alot and has F words before a sentence lol.:freakedout:

[Will0W783]

Well if you seen the Deuc Bigalo the movie, I'm like that in many ways but not just with fish but reptiles as well.
You guys picture that and a guy that talk to himself alot and has F words before a sentence lol.

Hahaha...good for you, flamingmoe! I am adamant about proper care of animals too. I have ripped people apart at pet stores before, and cried over animals in poor care that I couldnt' do anything for. I hate seeing any living thing suffer, no matter what it is.

[Freebody]

i have had my many bad experiences with poor pet owners,ill tell you a couple.
I had a fish tank way back with 2 full grown oscars and my folks i was living with were at a pet store where they seen this fresh water fish with teeth,knowing i would surely like to have this fish in my collection asked the pet store owner a few questions about it which they were told. oh yeah they live in the same waters as them same everything they will get along np the tank which was 150 gallons will be fine for it when i reaches full size with the oscars in it np ill give you a great price my folks were buysing it when my dad got the bright idea to call me on my phone..the fish they had at the counter was a baby vampire tetra for you who dont know what this is its a 4 foot long fish that swim behind packs of pihana and eat them with teeth about 1 inch long ....good thing he called me 1st :) no sale.
my neighboors see an add about a albino "snake" for free good home with cage,knowing i have just paid $2000 for my albino dwarf retic run over and tells me i should get it which hes seen it already. i ask him what it is he does not know and the owner does not know so i ask him what it looked like how big it is how long they had it and he leaves i do a process of elimination and conclude it could only be a albino patternless burm,or i was pretty darn sure it was from the info provided, as im getting ready to go next door and tell him what i had figured it was he pulls up with, guess what?A patternless albino burn not worth nothing but maybe $100 if hes lucky to find a buyer and he has always said he would never get a large snake like that..hell his boa hes got is housed in a 100 gallon tank if that and his corns hes got are in 50s, sad thing is he got rid of it to some short time later to im sure, another idiot :(

[Freebody]

oh yeah the breeder with snake mites i read about..
i got snake mite on my 2 boas i had when i was young, i got them from feeding live rats from the pet store, this is the only way i could have gotten them.well they were SO bad nothing i could do to get rid of them they multiplies by the billions, i did everything i could, i bathed them every other day with some soap i can remember which was costly and rare, i gave them shots to kill them at $75 a shot each for each every 2 weeks by my vet not including the $40 per visit which my vet felt bad for and started just charging for the shots, strubbed the cage all the time took out the substrate and tried varrious diff types, near the end i started blow tourching my cage to kill the eggs in the cracks n cravases, at the end i decided to gave them to a guy my vet recomended becuase i just could not afford all the shots and vet checks anymore.in the months i fought the mites i must have paid at least $1500+and at 12-13 years old.... I assure you all i did everything right from when i got them at 1 foot long to when they got might as 7 feet i had them from when i was about 7-8 to around 13/14 years old, Heart breaking to say the least. I wish i would have won that battle and nursed my babies back to health.
im not saying that breeder you spoke of was not a bad breeder selling a sick snake to an ususpecting constomer is sickening at best, but this post is just food for thought.

[Will0W783]

Wow, I've never heard of treating snake mites with shots...
The best treatment that I have found is the Nix method. You buy a 56g bottle of Nix (its' the human lice shampoo cream rinse) at your local drug store and dissolve it in a gallon of distilled water. You then pour it into a clean (preferably never used for anything else) spray bottle. You empty out the snakes' cages, and throw out any bedding and furniture that cannot be sanitized. You then spray down the cage really well, inside and out, and lay down white butcher paper or paper towels. Then spray the towels down, making sure that all corners of the cage and towels are saturated.
Then you get the snake and spray the snake down thoroughly, making sure to get really well around the eyes and face and throat. Put the snake back in the cage and spray it all down again. Take the water bowl away for 24 hours, and then put it back in.
Repeat the treatment again in a week, and then again in another week- for 3 weekly treatments. Ideally all mites are dead after the first treatment, but the 3 weeks ensures it. Nix is really the only stuff I know of that kills the eggs, larvae and adults. It is cheap ($12USD) and it smells nice and is non-toxic to the snakes.
You can store unused solution in a dark place- light breaks down the active ingredient- for up to one year.

[infernalis]

Never heard so much BS, shots for mites?? picked up from rats??

Firstly, no shot can kill external parasites, and secondly reptile mites feed on cold blooded animals, not rats.

I treat the cages with a commercial product made specifically for snake mites, Also light virgin olive oil not only kills the mites, but gives the snake a nice sheen.

http://www.houstonherp.com/DeFleaRepRelief.jpg

DeFlea Reptile Relief (http://www.houstonherp.com/DeFleaRepRelief.htm)

[Freebody]

no joke i really did have to get them shots i would not bs you
ya i cant remember the soap i used but it was pretty much the same thing as you posted

[Freebody]

i never had the cage dirty i spot cleaned it all the time i never took them anywhere other than my house so i figure the pet stores rats where house in with the snakes they had maybe a mite or 2 was out wondering around and when i took it home and gave it to my boas which sometimes would not eat there rat for days got on and did its thing.
snake mites dont live around here and they dont just creat themselves its the only logical conclusion i came up with

[Freebody]

i did everything you 2 just said i swear to god! the mites just would not go away i tried everything i could read of or was told to do by my vet.

[Freebody]

it could have been my vet sucking me dry being young and willing to do anything in my power to help my snakes....

[Will0W783]

I would imagine the vet was somewhat BSing you there. Like infernalis said, snake mites live on snakes and only snakes. They do not infest lizards or other reptiles, just snakes, and definitely not rats or other mammals. There is also no shot that treats them. My vet sings the praises of the Nix treatment. There is also Provent-a-Mite. Mites can be very hard to eradicate, especially if there is a heavy infestation, but I've always found the Nix will work if you give it enough time. I just got a female GTP and a male ETB, and when they arrived they had the worst infestation of mites I've ever seen. I had to give them nightly soaks in warm water with a bit of dish detergent and Nix sprayings. I changed the paper towels every night to keep an eye on what was coming off of them. It took a few weeks, but the mites are gone now. And when I say heavy infestation, I mean it. I could see the mites moving on them and the box they came in had black specks running all over. It was disgusting and really ticked me off.
If the mites you had absolutely would not clear, there must have been something in the cage they were laying eggs on and thriving- and the shots obviously weren't working. I'm so sorry you had to be taken advantage of like that. In the future, go with Nix- you won't be sorry.

[infernalis]

no joke i really did have to get them shots i would not bs you
ya i cant remember the soap i used but it was pretty much the same thing as you posted


Sorry you misunderstood me, I meant that the VET was bullshipping you.:confused:

[Freebody]

sweet thx this is why i love this site i wish i had found this site back in the day,so many good people with helpfull info.
the reason i had gotten for the mite shot was to poisen the snakes blood so the bugs would drink eat and die or lay infertal eggs....this inccdent scared me right of of owning reptiles for 10 years untill my neighboor which had just moved in with their 8 foot boa which looked just like mine and after a few months of pure jellousy i just had to get "bella" my new baby girl :) i still think i got the mites from a mite hitching a ride on a live rats back to my place now i feed nothing but prefrozen food just to be safe :)

[infernalis]

Never in a million years would I take this moderator thing as a power trip or a permission slip to start talking down on my friends. ;)

This is the first time I ever heard of shots when mites are so easy to eradicate, even the old method of rubbing the snake down with olive oil really works well if done properly.

Even though money can be tight, I empty out the cage and throw away everything that cannot be soaked in bleach, even if I have to put a couple old tee shirts in the cage for substrate to get by until I have some money to get substrate, it's better than letting the bugs eat my snakes.

[Will0W783]

Rubbing with olive oil? I haven't heard that one. Better hope you don't have any Italian friends coming over to visit....you'll end up with python parmegiana!

[infernalis]

The oil chokes the mites, they cannot breath and suffocate.

Makes the snake shiny too.

[Freebody]

Nice infernails at first i was thinking ,Oh no hes joined the empire and turned to the dark side lol :o
Ya i know your a good guy, thx you all now at least i know what to do if it ever happens again,well if anything happens i know i just come here and bingo problem solved :)

[emseeKAY]

lol python parmigiania how bout boa bolognese ;)

i havent had mites yet (knock on wood) but i guess its always a possibility, i have a relatively small collection at this point buuut hopefully nothing happens soon lol

saw a cornsnake on sand today... i didnt realize they were a desert dwelling reptile... :O_o:

[Will0W783]

They are not desert-dwelling snakes- it should not have been on sand. Keeping almost any snake on sand leads to impaction and vent infections/problems.

[emseeKAY]

lol i know a little sarcasm was there hahaha sorry if nobody caught onto that lol

[infernalis]

Nice infernails at first i was thinking ,Oh no hes joined the empire and turned to the dark side lol :o

http://www.thamnophis.us/ssnakess/Sith-happens.jpg

[emseeKAY]

DUM DUM DUM, DUM DA DUM DUM DA DUM!

I'm such a nerd hahaha

[infernalis]

DUM DUM DUM, DUM DA DUM DUM DA DUM!

I'm such a nerd hahaha


Nothing wrong with nerds...

http://industrialinterface.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/revenge-of-the-nerds.jpg

[Will0W783]

Which one is you in the picture? I'm a nerd too- I'm getting a Ph.D. in neuroscience! (not as bad as it sounds).

[marvelfreak]

The oil chokes the mites, they cannot breath and suffocate.

Makes the snake shiny too.
A friend of mine Savu Python had mites a few month back. he try everything and nothing worked. Lady at the pet store told him to use mineral oil. He did wait 3 day did it again just to be safe, and it did the trick.

[mommanessy247]

i have seen that jacking up the price thing too. i have also seen pet store employees that knew absolutely nothing about the animal being questioned and looked at. they were guessing answers. it really is so sad to see that. i am planning on purchasing a ball python in the near future but will spend a few months gathering supplies & doing research on their care needs. im excited and can hardly wait though.