pet-co slowly killing chams

[Jeremy l]

I bought my veild from pet-co ( actually rescued ) hes about 3 months old and is a cricket disposal. hes getting bigger every week and is an awsome cham. the other 3 that were in his cage at petco are still there and they are still the same size that they were a month and a half ago. he is twice their size and he is the same age as them. i got a hold of the store manager and gave him some pointers on how to take care of them but he didnt seem to interested in my opinions and advice. actually his words were " we have company policies on how to take care of them " so i said well then let me change your policies because they are going to die if you dont ! he didnt really seem to care. i wanted to whip his a$$ right there ! ! ! he said that they take care of all the reptiles the same, i informed him that these chams were not like all other lizards. the cage was full of poo, and no drip systed, no misting, too big of crickets, too hot, not humid enough and a small water dish full of crap and dead crickets! ! thats the low down. i wish i could buy them all but i just cant. i refuse to even shop there for my dogs now. these little guy look so poor and not good health at all.

 

[TylerStewart]

Even the brand-name dog foods they sell are not that great if you look into the ingredients. Just like with chameleons, you're better off shopping online or buying from specialty stores.

 

[Jeremy l]

well thats what i decided. i bought my panther from mike at flchams and i am only going to buy my future chams from breeders ! !

 

[FrostyTeCham]

I bought my veild from pet-co ( actually rescued ) hes about 3 months old and is a cricket disposal. hes getting bigger every week and is an awsome cham. the other 3 that were in his cage at petco are still there and they are still the same size that they were a month and a half ago. he is twice their size and he is the same age as them. i got a hold of the store manager and gave him some pointers on how to take care of them but he didnt seem to interested in my opinions and advice. actually his words were " we have company policies on how to take care of them " so i said well then let me change your policies because they are going to die if you dont ! he didnt really seem to care. i wanted to whip his a$$ right there ! ! ! he said that they take care of all the reptiles the same, i informed him that these chams were not like all other lizards. the cage was full of poo, and no drip systed, no misting, too big of crickets, too hot, not humid enough and a small water dish full of crap and dead crickets! ! thats the low down. i wish i could buy them all but i just cant. i refuse to even shop there for my dogs now. these little guy look so poor and not good health at all.

wow we have two very difrent pet-cos the one where I live has a dripper some fake vines one fake plant a day/night heat lamp a uv lamp and one guy who works there almost every day who knows how to take care if camelmeons very well. If it weren't for him my chameleons should have died the first night.

 

[WAMBO]

I saw an absolutely gorgeous veiled at Petsmart yesterday. I wanted to rescue it so badly, but everybody has made it known that it will just be replaced as soon as it is sold. It was in such a small glass enclosure, but was so beautiful. What a depressing thought.

 

[Peachypink]

wow we have two very difrent pet-cos the one where I live has a dripper some fake vines one fake plant a day/night heat lamp a uv lamp and one guy who works there almost every day who knows how to take care if camelmeons very well. If it weren't for him my chameleons should have died the first night.

Just be careful to always double check the things he tells you, even if it seems he knows. And he may very well, but there is more experience on this forum than anywhere.

I don't know what you meant by day/night heat lamp but there should be no lamp on at night that puts off any light. Light will disrupt their sleep, they need the day/night schedule of light and dark to regulate hormone levels and other things in the body. You may already know this and I misunderstood what you meant but if he's telling you that you need a night heat light then he is mistaken.

 

[ZacharyLeesWife]

I'm guilty of "rescuing" from a petco. I did save 2 beautiful babies, and they are both my absolute best friends! I lost one and it broke my heart. But you have to understand, they are little more than squirming merchandise to most management at those stores. And they are literally used as impulse shopping bait. You love the animal? Awesome! Here's 300.00 worth of garbage that you HAVE to buy to take care of it... In all reality, the stuff they sell you to take care of that animal is ultimately horrible for their health. And the poor animals are mass produced and terribly unhealthy 95% of the time. That being said, every now and then you will find a store that takes really good care of their herps, but that's almost always because the hired a good employee that is actually knowledgeable in their own right and cares about them.

 

[WAMBO]

I'm still a little unhappy that I had to leave that beautiful veiled. It was the cutest little guy in the store. It's friggin' heart breaking to think of it's lack of future if he's not rescued soon.

 

[ZacharyLeesWife]

If you have the resources to take him home, take him home! Yes, another will take his place but that's going to happen regardless. At least you'll know he's well cared for.

 

[WAMBO]

If you have the resources to take him home, take him home! Yes, another will take his place but that's going to happen regardless. At least you'll know he's well cared for.

I got plenty resources, but not enough time. I'm a busy doctor.

 

[FrostyTeCham]

Just be careful to always double check the things he tells you, even if it seems he knows. And he may very well, but there is more experience on this forum than anywhere.

I don't know what you meant by day/night heat lamp but there should be no lamp on at night that puts off any light. Light will disrupt their sleep, they need the day/night schedule of light and dark to regulate hormone levels and other things in the body. You may already know this and I misunderstood what you meant but if he's telling you that you need a night heat light then he is mistaken.

I would take off the heat lamp at night but it can get down to 40 degrees in my house and he has a shaded bush that he seems to like to hide in

 

[Peachypink]

I would take off the heat lamp at night but it can get down to 40 degrees in my house and he has a shaded bush that he seems to like to hide in

Chams need the dark to sleep. They have a "third eye" that detects the light and they set their internal clocks and hormone levels based on their light schedule. If they have a light, even a dim one, it disrupts all of that. It may not seem like it bothers them, but it is on a cellular level. A drop in temps is perfectly fine and actually good for their metabolism but I can see how 40 degrees Fahrenheit would make you want to add heat. There are ways of doing that without it being a light. You can get a ceramic heat bulb, it puts off no light(only heat) and screws into the same socket as a light bulb. Or you can get a space heater for the room.

 

[FrostyTeCham]

Chams need the dark to sleep. They have a "third eye" that detects the light and they set their internal clocks and hormone levels based on their light schedule. If they have a light, even a dim one, it disrupts all of that. It may not seem like it bothers them, but it is ina cellular level. A drop in temps is perfectly fine and actually good for their metabolism but I can see how 40 degrees Fahrenheit would make you want to add heat. There are ways of doing that without it being a light. You can get a ceramic heat bulb, it puts off no light(only heat) and screws into the same socket as a light bulb. Or you can get. A space heater for the room.

Ok but I have a dim bulb that gives off a red glow and the thing sleeps in a bush even when I forget to turn on the night bulb so will that really cause problems (also it's all petco had)

 

[Peachypink]

Ok but I have a dim bulb that gives off a red glow and the thing sleeps in a bush even when I forget to turn on the night bulb so will that really cause problems (also it's all petco had)

Yup, even the red. Like I said, it may seem like he's fine now but over a period of time it could cause illness. You can get one on Amazon. Or you can ask them at petco to order one.

 

[FrostyTeCham]

Yup, even the red. Like I said, it may seem like he's fine now but over a period of time it could cause illness. You can get one on Amazon. Or you can ask them at petco to order one.

Ok I'll see but I don't have a job so that's really up to my parents

 

[Peachypink]

Ok I'll see but I don't have a job so that's really up to my parents

Is there a room that stays warmer than 40 in the house that you can move him to? Honestly, if it's not too cold for you, then it's not too cold for your Cham as long as they can warm up under a basking spot in the morning. there are just too many health risks to keeping the light.