Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I went to a pet store today that I had never been too

Pets plus, in Philadelphia PA.

They had a Uromastyx, THAT WAS DYING. ITS SKULL WAS SUNKEN IN.

Its diet was completely wrong (all crickets, no vegies), its light was wrong (no UVB), its environment was wrong (no hide), it didnt have the strength to open his eyes, or the ability to fend off the crickets that were walking on its face!!!!
It was lying in water!!!!!! Uro's arent even supposed to have water!!!!! they are supposed to get it from its diet!!!!!!

I told the manager the animal was sick, and he told me it was just fine, and "I should do some more research because i dont know what I am talking about!!!!"

And then he said (and this is word for word) "They deflate themselves when they are scared"

DEFLATE THEMSELVES?!?!?!?!?!??!?!

HIS SKULL WAS SUNKEN IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

what can I do???

Who can I call???

THIS MAKES ME SOOOOOOOO F'N SICK!!!!!!!!!!

print off atleas 3-4 caresheets about uros and throw them right in his face, also bold the parts were it shows what he is doing wrong!
-----
1.2 Hypo Tang Leos, 1.0 Blizzard Leo, 0.1 het Blizzard Leo, 2.0 Tremper Albino Leos, 1.0 Knight Anole, 0.1 Mali Uromastyx, 0.1 Green Iguana, 1.1 Ball Pythons, 1.0 Green Anole, and a Common Snapping Turt.
www.geocities.com/multiplemorphherpetoculture

Reptiles and amphibians who's care isn't properly acknowledged in pet shops isn't rare, as sad and disgusting it can be.

There are two pet stores in my town that sell reptiles, but don't know the first thing about them.

It's common in lots of other places, too. PetCo is big on the animal neglect, and reptiles are no exception.

Sometimes the store owner/manager can be convinced to change the conditions, sometimes they can't. Unfortunately, because I'm young and a girl I'm not often taken seriouslyby the people at the stores, because "people who work in pet stores know what they're doing, else why would they be working there?" Yeah, right. Most pet stores are more concerned with how much retail experience a candidate for a job has, not how much they can help a customer find the right animal and inform them of its care.

Make a big fuss over it. Keep complaining, but do it wisely, you don't want to lose credibility. Like what the other poster said, print out caresheets and show him what he is doing wrong. If there is an animal welfare group in the area, try to get their support, but this might only work if the store has a history of neglecting animal care.

In any case... Good luck. Hopefully by the time you're done, the world will have one less pet store that sees dollar signs instead of animals.
-----
Christina Miller
Herptiles.org

--------------------
1.0 Iguana iguana - Draco
1.0 Anolis carolinensis - Duke
0.1 Eublepharis macularis - Ocelot
1.0 Cosymbotus platyurus - Baron
1.0 Cynops orientalis - Hyper
1.0 Leiocephalus schreibersi - Turbo

WOAH. I work in that pets plus. Just so i can clarify this, We have just gotten rid of our former reptile boy,and are doing everythign we can to salvage the mess he made in that room. We ar eperfectly aware that the animals have been put in the wrong setups,that most were sick and it is completely disgusting,i agree with you. I work there,and yes,even I agree with you. Nevermind the managers, because they dont care too much anyways. I do however care,and have been busting my ass trying to fix that room up,and i dont veen wokr in the reptile section,i do the puppies. That uromastyx actually dies so you know,he was giving us problems for ahwile,but becaus eof the dumbass reptile boy,he failed to let anyone know. things went downhill quick,and were all workign to clean it up. I have already done all of the frogs, and most of the snakes,and am now workign on researching the species i dont knwo about so i can set them up properly. I know its upsetting and dissapointing to see somethign like that,trust me,i was the one who picked him out of the tank. I know its simple to pass things off on another person, but what cna i do. I and the current reptile guy are doing all the research we can, we realise how imperative it is to get these animals in good shape. The managers dont care,forget them,. i care and i really hope people can understand that not everythign is all bad. We really are trying, hopefully the faith in our stupid store can be restored or built,get in contact with me if you wish and ill talk it through further with you.