I know we arern't supposed to bash businesses, but I had to share this.

[Nafun]

I went to an *unnamed* pet store in fort wayne indiana yesterday. It was the same one that had a 10+ foot RTB in a 30" x 12" x12" enclosure the first time I was there....

This time they had...

Corn snakes and iguanas in the same tank.
An adult blood python and a juvenile burmese python in the same 30-40 gallon tank.
kingsnakes together in the same tank.

And the piece de resistance... a ball python. He was way under weight and undersized in the middle of the worst shed I've ever seen. He had no substrate except a bone dry paper towel under a nearly empty water dish. The only other cage fixture was poop so dry and dessicated it looked weeks old. I don't know if that's attributed to them not checking or cleaning him up or to how dry it was in there.

I contacted the local spca, didn't know who else to contact. I don't figure they'll care since snakes aren't cute or cuddly.

[Lankyrob]

B*******!!! Report report report!! I have done the same with a shop over here - went in couple of days later and still no report so "mentioned it" to a newspaper about the RSPCA and the shop not caring - within two days new vivs and substrate etc - the shop is now visited regularly. Story never made the paper but i reckon they contacted both the shop and the RSPCA for their views and that was enough to kick start the process. May be worth doing the same??

[shaunyboy]

B*******!!! Report report report!! I have done the same with a shop over here - went in couple of days later and still no report so "mentioned it" to a newspaper about the RSPCA and the shop not caring - within two days new vivs and substrate etc - the shop is now visited regularly. Story never made the paper but i reckon they contacted both the shop and the RSPCA for their views and that was enough to kick start the process. May be worth doing the same??


nice one rob,its still a bit much that you had to go through all that to get it sorted.ive found the rspca are pretty clueless when it comes to snakes and their individual needs.that said though you would think regardless of what kind of life was being treated badly they would react guns blazing to a report of neglect.glad your shop got they're act together even if it was after a big push from you mate.
cheers shaun

[emseeKAY]

unfortunately there are so many people here that should not have animals in general, i know many adds on classifieds show enclosures which are sub standard, animals which are underfed, and many of them dying. its sad that some shops are allowed to operate with their animals in less that sub-standard conditions and receiving animals from mills and such... i think marvel posted a news article on here about a guy in florida leaving his snakes they basically turned to liquid after decaying for so long

[infernalis]

Since your rant is generic in nature, the thread is allowed. ;)

My thoughts...

http://to55er.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/angry_man.png?w=271&h=351

[emseeKAY]

i'll never understand why people always seem to want to have a ton of different species in the same tank like they'll befriend each other and live happily as neighbors... albeit there are some exceptions but really? i heard a woman once scream at a sales associate because she wanted to buy a beardie and a skink and throw them in the same tank together, needless to say they wouldnt sell it to her which got her heated! i dont get people...

[Azzarth]

I don't know too much about snakes (yet) but I do know that you NEVER EVER put Kingsnakes together. They get...hungry.

[Freebody]

The fish store i was forced to buy rats from time to time was terrible. i went in their one day and they had what looked like 4 clutches of red tail boas in the same 30 gallon tank, litterly about 25 snakes in their all about 1 foot long give or take piled from wall to wall stacked up on each other,they had a 9 foot + boa in its own 30 gallon tanked coiled wall to wall so it could not even move at all and it looked like it had been in mud and then left to dry the list goes on and on, the shop smelt like rat droppings so bad, a few years back they tried to sell a baby one of these to my folks to surprise me as a gift as a oscar tank mate which they promised they will get along very well,they live in the same waters.It just to bad when my snakes got to eat, my snakes got to eat so i have no choice but to spend money here before i got a steade rodent breeder :) never again will they see my $ athough they are shut down for what the sign said shop flooded re-open soon.

[marvelfreak]

What kind of fish is that?

[Lankyrob]

Looks kinda like an Angler fish??

[emseeKAY]

thats one scary lookin fish :|

[Freebody]

its a vampire tetra, their main food source are pirahana. they follow the schools around and eat them up as they get hungry lol ya you could only imagine the look on my face and how fast i made that phone call back to my folks when they told me about my gift which was almost on the way home after seeing what it looked like lol NOOO dont get it lol good thing my folks know i lik to know everything about any pet i get before it comes home as to not just surprise me with pets like that. the store also carries a no return policy even if it dies on the way home they dont care. i have seen many blogs about how bad the store is.

[ssssnakeluvr]

check with the local animal control agency...they can generally make contact and educate the store owners and employees. they are the ones that generally enforce the animal cruelty laws. I work as an animal control officer for the county. we do yearly inspections on all pet stores in our jurisdictions and respond to complaints and take what ever action is necessary. we like to educate them on proper care, but there has been a store owner charged with animal cruelty.

[infernalis]

Hey Don!

A good case in point, I turned in a local pet store directly to animal control.

Within a month's time it was a whole new store.

Take action, it works.

[shaunyboy]

thats some set of teeth on that fish :eek: