Kayroxyoursox
New Member
I was just at petco and for the first time I've seen, they have a couple of panther babies. Living in the same tank as the veiled babies. 
. I just want to rescue them all!
. I just want to rescue them all!
Another rant about petco
- Thread starter Kayroxyoursox
- Start date
Fireofmarajade
New Member
Oh eek! I would feel the same way. And more so if I had seen it!
mvad
Established Member
People should not "rescue" anything from these places. They will just restock their "shelves". I felt bad every time I went in to get my fish tank filters and saw how they keep the chameleons. I started ordering my filters directly from the company so I don't support Petco.
Swiftchameleon
Member
My chameleon is from Petco and he is fine. I agree that they should not house them together but I didn't get mine to rescue him. It was the only place I could get one near me without ordering online.
jcarlsen
Chameleon Enthusiast
I was just at petco and for the first time I've seen, they have a couple of panther babies. Living in the same tank as the veiled babies.
Ugh... I only found out recently that other Petcos carry panthers and even jacksons. Fortunately, the reptile guy at mine does what he can and stops his particular store from ordering anything but veileds. If he'd had his way, they wouldn't sell veileds either, but since they became legal here in MA not too long ago, I'm sure corporate has been pushing them to sell.
Trillian
New Member
I also dislike Petco, I want to throw out all their packaged reptile foods, they're incomplete at best, damaging at worst. No crested gecko has ever eaten tiny orange cubes!
In their defence, when I was seeing my reptile vet for the millionth time this month, he had a small female panther, she was taken to him BY Petco to have an abscess removed from her eye turret. I'd always assumed they just sold sick reptiles or let them die. I was so glad to know that on this occasion someone made a good decision. That surgery would have cost around $300, and they sell them for $200.
In their defence, when I was seeing my reptile vet for the millionth time this month, he had a small female panther, she was taken to him BY Petco to have an abscess removed from her eye turret. I'd always assumed they just sold sick reptiles or let them die. I was so glad to know that on this occasion someone made a good decision. That surgery would have cost around $300, and they sell them for $200.
Matteo
New Member
I just got hired at petsmart as the fish and reptile guy. The manager said they have a really quick turn over for their reptiles. Their sections seems clean and right, they look pretty healthy for the most part. I'm actually excited to work there so I can assure the animals are in well being
AESara
Member
I just got hired at petsmart as the fish and reptile guy. The manager said they have a really quick turn over for their reptiles. Their sections seems clean and right, they look pretty healthy for the most part. I'm actually excited to work there so I can assure the animals are in well being
My first cham was from a PetSmart, because I worked there and fell in love with the little guy. It stinks that they don't have better enclosures, but the amount of knowledge you can expect varies from location to location. I worked in three different locations and found that in those locations, my coworkers were knowledgeable or at least eager to learn. The policies we had in place for cleaning, feeding, and misting were actually quite good considering, and animals were always taken for veterinary care as soon as a problem was suspected. Customers were always glad to hear my insights as well - people actually started asking for me specifically when they came in for fish and reptiles.
Point being, you should take advantage of this opportunity to educate your customers when they purchase animals from you, Matteo.
Funny story I've just remembered: I once had to give a Chinese Water Dragon an injection and the little guy wiggled away at last second, so I accidentally poked myself. I had hoped to turn into an Argonian but no luck!
Last edited:
FrenchChameleon
New Member
I just got hired at petsmart as the fish and reptile guy. The manager said they have a really quick turn over for their reptiles. Their sections seems clean and right, they look pretty healthy for the most part. I'm actually excited to work there so I can assure the animals are in well being
Some Petsmarts aren't great... the enclosures they keep them in are terrible. Still, our local reptile places are even worse/super shady, so I ended up getting my veiled from Petsmart, and he has been great. Got him at 3 months and he is now 2 years old. Couple of issues in the last few days, but none that are Petsmart's fault.
However, the people there had no idea what they were talking about. This was my first chameleon, and I knew more than they did. They couldn't even tell me if it was a boy or a girl, I had to google how to check while I was getting him.
Lovereps
Avid Member
Sad indeed.
Perhaps a complaint to the manager with the threat of corporate HQs involvement if they don't improve, would help.
Of course there's also the local SPCA.
Fortunately, my local chain pet shops don't sell chameleons but stick to Beardies and other hardier types.
Lack of reliable cham info is more the rule than the exception, nationwide
This forum was a blessing for me to have accidentally stumbled upon years ago--and you can be absolutely certain that many cham lives have been saved because of fellow forum members generously sharing their knowledge.
Hi Lasen72. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention as animal care is of utmost importance to us. Please email your name, phone number, store location, and the date of your visit to [email protected] so that we can look into this. We look forward to hearing from you!
Wowbango
Established Member
Kayroxyoursox
New Member
Matteo - I hope you can help keep the little guys happy and healthy until someone buys them. Also I love your name , my youngest son is Mateo
Matteo
New Member
Matteo - I hope you can help keep the little guys happy and healthy until someone buys them. Also I love your name , my youngest son is Mateo
Haha its a good name (Italian)! Yes I do hope I can provide the best care to them all.
Lauren Stern
New Member
I was just at petco and for the first time I've seen, they have a couple of panther babies. Living in the same tank as the veiled babies.
Ahhh I agree! Every time I go in there I just want to set them all free
fester2226
Member
i recently saw a gravid female veiled i mean you could see the individual eggs and no dirt one branch in a 12x12 glass box with the temp at 99
I understand that animals for sale in pet shops will not be in ideal enclosures. I just wish that the stores would carry the products that actually would be suitable for the animal. The employees are put in a situation where they have to suggest items that are not ideal for the specific species and have no way to drive sales with the correct items.
