Update on Petstore find!!!!

[CrazyChameleon5]

Well the guy at my local petsmart that i have been talking with about chams is getting in their first one today. I gave him this site and he has come to learn from you all I am going in to take a look at it and see if he listened to all the great advice here I'll let you guys know what i find.

Also i am very saddened to say a local petstore here is selling the most sickly looking chams i have ever seem They have 3 veilds in one tiny glass aquarium it's not even a 10 gallon tank these are not huge but not babies prob 4 months, They have MBD so bad the one's legs are so disformed i don't know how it is surviving and their crests are so tiny it's like a bump on the head no where near what it should be They think they are experts so i can't even give them suggetions. I went in the other day and they had a Panther it's in a decent set up but it was hanging on a branch wedged in a corner and it was black, I really think it was dead so sad that they have to suffer and poor unsuspecting ppl buy these sick things just to have them die on them

 

[MattiBee]

that sounds terrible! hopefully your friend will have a nice healthy cham and listens to the brilliant help you can get on here. I got my first cham not long ago and i have learned to realise that pet shops cannot be told, just reported

 

[xoiceox]

OMG Im so pissed at the pet supermarket near my house! 2 baby veileds in a tiny lil glass cage not even a foot high!!! With a water dish... I already spoke to them and they said "oh we mist them several times a day and they are healthy... blah blah!" I explained to the guy he needed a higher cage and stuff and he said "my gm won't allow it"

Where can I go or call to report this to someone who can do something about it?!?!

 

[MattiBee]

im not sure about where to report if you live in america but in england we have the Royal society for protection of animals, or something like that lol (RSPCA) I dont suppose you have a organisation similar to this, they deal with animal cruelty. That would be your best bet to start with, it may take some time. i just filed a report on a local petshop to me in the uk and i was told they will send authorities around to investigate, makes you feel like you have helped though good luck with your case, it looks like a bad one.

 

[xoiceox]

ya we have the ASPCA , but i highly doubt they'd care, that's the sad part...

 

[MattiBee]

oh thats a shame... short of that theres not alot you can do unless you find out trading standards of exotic pets and see what you can get from that, they may be breaking laws there. But the guidelines/laws of housing exotic pets is so general it probably wouldnt apply to a small cage as long as they have the basics, so its a tricky one to get them reported on, makes me feel sick when i see things like that and the people know they can get away with it.

Matt

 

[Jeweledchameleons]

a list.

Personally I'm against the large petstores carrying chameleons

• 
  1. Their hires are not generally experienced in the care of intermediate exotics beyond the average person. Pet knowledge is an added but unpaid for benefit to the corporation. Staff are customer clerks not -animal specialists.
  2. Their hires do not stick around long enough to acquire the experience required for such care or background knowledge.
  3. The people that patron these super stores are not the types knowledgeable in the care of such creatures. If they were they would buy their animals for a speciality pet store or directly from a breeder.
  4. Animals are commonly housed for extended periods of time and under improper conditions (lack of water, humidity, light, heat, food, vitamin supplements) resulting in suffering, death and disfigurement.
  5. Any sale or "rescue" from such a store will appear as a "sale" to the corporation who will promptly re-order another animal from a bulk broker.
  6. The buyer will not get good care or advise from the stores staff (as shown in other posts).
  7. The buyer of the animal will likely be getting a already sick and stressed animal prone to death... thereby re-enforcing the myth that these animals are impossible to keep alive and will never know the joy it is to keep them.

These pet warehouse stores have stopped carrying kittens and puppies because it was very clear to the average person their inability to properly care for them. The same applies to all the other animals (reptiles and fish) that they currently carry... it's just that most people are unaware of it.

Good & well meaning intentions aside, By attempting to educate and encourage the store's carrying of these animals you're inadvertently enabling their abuse of them and keep the chain of events continuing.
You're better off applying to a good mom and pop outfit or just doing your job at XXX and your using your 15% discount.

Superstores business model is simply not set up to care
for living things that aren't bullet proof.
However, specialty pet stores that feature exotics ...
are if you can get hired at one of those.

 

[lele]

it is really frustrating that we do not have an org. that will/can give the time that the RSPCA does (they even respond to calls about improper care of stick insects in shops - MattiBee, you guys are fortunate over there). I think it is more a matter of manpower here than caring. Frankly, I would call them and ask, the more people who call to report these things then maybe the importance will become known. If we do nothing and just chat about it here then no one "out there" will know.

here are few places to call and ask them if they can help and if not who you can call

here's a vet in Miami
http://www.avianexotic.com

here is a list of Societies and Rescues in FL. I don't see one in Miami, but don't know surrounding area. Look thru and see what you find
http://www.anapsid.org/societies/florida.html

and then there are always ARAV vet in FL
http://www.arav.org/Members/FL.htm

good luck

 

[MattiBee]

yeah well i as it goes have made my first call to the rspca today regarding a shop, they handled the call well and seemed to be asking the right questions of me, i should get to find out soon what the outcome was, if any. They did say it can take a few people reporting them before anything can come of it.

 

[Jaidensmomma]

if its a large chain store, call the corporate office. also, try to get the number of their reptile supplier. ( i have Petco's if its them) and really if the head guys don't seem to care, note everything that's wrong in the store and go to the local news media! the seattle, Wa area news stations do the occasional investigative report, maybe they do in your area too. thats the only way some of these shops will straighten their stuff up!!! I'm having problems with petco right now, and i work there.

 

[muskox]

The reptile store near me (Amazon Reptiles) takes pretty good care of there chameleons. The cages are small but are not glass and they mostly only put one to a cage unless they are babies.

 

[dondeb562]

I will be honest, I skimmed through this thread, but I wanted to touch on the whole water bowl thing at petcos and petsmarts. The reason they are in there is cause people who DO NOT know about chameleons report the stores for the chams not having access to water, so that is the reason why the water bowl is in there....

 

[Jaidensmomma]

I will be honest, I skimmed through this thread, but I wanted to touch on the whole water bowl thing at petcos and petsmarts. The reason they are in there is cause people who DO NOT know about chameleons report the stores for the chams not having access to water, so that is the reason why the water bowl is in there....

yeah, pretty much, and if any one from corporate goes in to the store and there's not a water dish the store gets in BIG trouble!

 

[Brad Ramsey]

I will be honest, I skimmed through this thread, but I wanted to touch on the whole water bowl thing at petcos and petsmarts. The reason they are in there is cause people who DO NOT know about chameleons report the stores for the chams not having access to water, so that is the reason why the water bowl is in there....

It's actually federal regulation. The store will get fined if inspected and there are not water bowls in those enclosures.
This, however, does not mean you can not have a dripper as well.

-Brad

 

[summoner12]

My GF worked at Petco... They didn't have UVB lamps above the cages.... She told them they needed them and they never did anything about it! She got sick of it all and ended up leaving. I have said this before... we got our first cham from petco. Her name was Stella and she had a bad case of MBD. we were able to get her back into decent shape and she lived with us for about 9 months before she died. She had issues laying her eggs.

My boy Fred is from a local petsmart. I would see him there when I would get crickets. I think he was there a whole month. At work we had a sales bonus ($100) and It was burning a hole in my pocket. I figured "what the hell it was free money.. I'll take this little guy home with me' He didn't look well cared for there and everyone there said he was mean! HAHAHA Fred is the most chill cham ever. He loves to come out and hang with me or go outside in his tree. He literally will sit watching me across the room until I take him out. He runs out onto the stick I offer him and greets me with a little mouth gape... then climbs all over me.

 

[Zilla005]

ya we have the ASPCA , but i highly doubt they'd care, that's the sad part...

the ASPCA should be happy to investigate the situation, Ive called once before on a neighbor for mistreating his dog. the dog was taken and he was sent to jail.... they dont mess around.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

The only way the ASPCA can do a through investigation is if you take the time and explain the needs of the animal in question prior to siccing them on petco (it looks like a petco cage).

Many animal control officers are not trained in the habiat requirements for Herps beyond a clean cage with water available and some kind of heat source nearby.

 

[rcmike]

Most of the time they aren't really that concerned with animals that aren't cute and cuddley like dogs and cats. Or larger animals.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

Most of the time they aren't really that concerned with animals that aren't cute and cuddley like dogs and cats. Or larger animals.

That lack of interest isn't usually due to the fact it's not cute, it's usually due to them not knowing about the needs of the Herps and the officer not wanting to show his lack of knowledge. It's safer to just pass them by if there is nothing obvious to deal with (filth or lack of water).

 

[Jaidensmomma]

Just as a side note, not all pet-stores are bad! I was at a very nice Petco yesterday, and they had a veiled. he had a dripper, and some (but not enough) plants to climb on. i talked with both of the reptile guys, one of which adopted the other veiled they had, and both were knowledgeable. i know that chain stores are generally bad, but when you find a good one, its nice to see. I called and raved to the manager this morning about how nice it was to see animals taken care of by people who actually know about the animals!