Disappointed in 'reptile specialist'

[disintegratus]

I wonder if someone like Dept of Fair Trading or someone would be the way to go... the RSPCA might be toothless but surely there is a regulatory body within the govt that states the standards to which they must operate. Bit like the health inspectors that can close restaraunts.

There are standards, they've just set the bar ridiculously low is all, and the RSPCA does have the power to enforce those standards, but the punishments they can give out are pathetic. Unfortunately, legally defined standards and good ethics are two very different things.
The problem is, it's hard for any group to stand up and demand action without being labelled as extremists one way or another. And aside from that, no one seems to be able to define a scope. Everyone wants things to be "better", but everyone has different ideas of "better". Add in all the petty arguing between crazy animal people (which is just my affectionate term for us people who actually give a damn), and nothing is ever achieved.
Sure, there are plenty of small groups working for change, but small groups can't combat such a large and mostly undefined issue, so they focus on the small issues that directly affect them, not the broad issues that affect animals as a whole.
Hell, half the time, people can't even agree on what constitutes animal cruelty anyway!

 

[Colin]

these sort of threads appear all the time on this forum and have done for years. the thing is theres probably some good shops and plenty of bad ones.. by going into the bad ones and spending money on anything whether its accessories or whatever only contributes to keeping these places going. It might be close by and easy to get accessories etc from these places but personally I would either spend my money in a good shop that keeps their animals in good care or use a mail order online reptile accessories shop to get accessories and reptile needs.

 

[ingie]

Even the most dim witted person with no reptile knowledge at all should have the common sense to change soiled wet substrate. If you can fill up a water bowl you can quickly change the paper! How do they think this looks to customers, and what example is it setting for first time reptile keepers who are trusting their local store to teach them the ropes? Surely it cant be too time consuming to care for 2 macs and 1 tank of beardies......

This is what I saw:

No basking spot, dirty old paper, bowl ful of cabbage.

Tanks in the middle of nowhere with no heat source.

(There was more than one poo and they were old and partially decayed. Paper 100%wet.

 

[jinjajoe]

& to think someone is there all day everyday....... no excuse.

 

[KaotikJezta]

OK, I work in a reptile shop and those tanks are disgusting. The snakes however, look disgusting but it in my case, I don't clean brand new arrivals and hatchies straight after feeding unless I can do so without disturbing the snake, especially if they were a little shy at feeding time. If customers comment, I tell them how it is. I would rather have a small mess than a regurgitating snake that stops eating and is then sold on to someone. There is also the fact that I am the only one in charge of the reptile part, the other people run the aquarium and so things quite often get left for me. I only work Thursday to Sunday. Then when I am there I have to maintain every cage/animal and serve customers. It is a huge job and occasionally something doesn't get done that day. That would translate to some as a bad shop, but when it comes to the reptiles under my care I am very serious, right down to telling my boss not to sell certain people animals if I believe they can't care for them adequately.

 

[ingie]

I have also worked in several pet stores, with and without reptiles. I despise pet stores in many ways, and enjoyed that I could do everything in my power to improve conditions for animals, even if it meant doing the work of many people, and giving as many people as possible honest, thorough and correct advise. It is important to admit when you don't know the answer and refer customers to other reliable resources like trusted books, instead of just waffling on about some rubbish you make up.

I understand that staff aren't standing around watching the critters and waiting for mess so it can be cleaned within 10 seconds. I also understand that while there may be a bowl of only cabbage for the beardies on one day, they could eat like kings on other days. However, the snake mess was clearly ancient, and the heating situation (or lack there of) was obviously a long term thing. This is barely a reptile section, it is 3 tanks that would take less than 10 minutes to clean, F10, prepare a balanced meal for, and flick on a heat source. Not rocket science!

I don't like reptiles in stores because conditions aside, the staff rarely know enough to give anyone good advice, let alone trouble shoot issues or health concerns. It is the blind leading the blind! Of course there are exceptions. However, there are enough bad ones to ruin it for the rest.

QLD commercial reptile license laws are both a blessing and a problem. There are a very limited amount of species allowed to be sold in QLD stores. This limits the amount of animals that stores have to make mistakes with, and limits the amount of knowledge that they need their staff to know.

The downside is that it doesn't leave much room for a store that really specialises in reptiles and through variety, can attract a much larger reptile focused customer base, and therefore strive to employ real reptile enthusiasts with a huge knowledge of reptiles and their husbandry and health. The reptile section is often just a little tac on to the store, and the staff selection is more focused on mammal, aquarium and bird expertise. I am not saying that I wish stores could sell all the species, rather I wished they could sell none.

 

[Wild~Touch]

I wished they could sell none.

I'll second that

Cheers
Sandee

 

[Manda1032]

Well I was paid to stand around and wait for puppies to poop! A big clean in the AM and a spot clean in the PM is what we did. you clean, feed and water when you open and you remove food and spot clean in the pm! not too hard at all. I agree, if I don't like a store I don't buy anything and I walk out. If I'm overcome with smell I walk out. It's very hard to do when you've travelled over 2 hours sometimes to go to a pet store for stock or equipment. I only go to my local pet store for crickets every fortnight or for things I have ordered. I wouldn't really buy fish there but the bird cages are clean and the store is quite clean. Not bad for an older lady trying to sell so she can finally retire.

And Ingie, I'd be so afraid that someone would STEAL the contents of those tubs! Just sitting in the open! and that's more than a days worth of poop in the beardie home!

 

[SteveNT]

but wasnt this supposed to change in the near future? and when and if it does NSW will eventually go down this same path..

personally I never even bother going into a "pet store" anywhere..

Same here Colin. There are only a couple selling reps up here and the little carpet I bought to get her out of one had mites. I gave up getting marine fish from the pet shops with 3 hours quarantine which die a week or less after getting them home (and they are 100s of $ each!) We catch our own now (fish), legally and locally.

How are your B&G jungle hatchies coming on?

 

[Colin]

How are your B&G jungle hatchies coming on?

I will private message you about this steve so I don't post off topic

 

[FAY]

Those poor animals!
Like Colin said, don't shop in there. Let them go broke.
Like any business, the average worker is usually the one that cares.

 

[JrFear]

ive worked in pet shops for years and can rant on for ages lucky for me im in NSW so we dont have reptiles in petshops here! i currently work at a petshop supplies shop! were we advise people to resucue animals or buy from legit breeders!

i think no animal should be sold in pet shops wether is fish birds or mice let alone puppys kittens and reptiles!
and that all animals should be under license just like reptiles are! maybe not fish but the rest!

 

[Fiamma]

I was relieved to see the chain store pet shop close down in our local centre

 

[thepythonguy]

I'm pretty sure i know the store your talking about ingie and if it is those 2 spotted went through the floods the owner retrieved them from the rafters and they are still for sale over a year down the track

 

[Scleropages]

Oh wow ... that's not a good way to keep reptiles..... What did they say about them? did they even know you need to heat them?

 

[camcamcam]

Name and shame people!

 

[Manda1032]

Same here Colin. There are only a couple selling reps up here and the little carpet I bought to get her out of one had mites. I gave up getting marine fish from the pet shops with 3 hours quarantine which die a week or less after getting them home (and they are 100s of $ each!) We catch our own now (fish), legally and locally.

How are your B&G jungle hatchies coming on?

That's cause 99% of marine fish in petstores are wild caught and the live rock is wild harvested as well

 

[Gruni]

If you saw the reps in those conditions why not front the management about it? Not flaming anyone, I just wouldn't be able to help myself and then I still would have made loud comments on the way out?

 

[ingie]

I'm pretty sure i know the store your talking about ingie and if it is those 2 spotted went through the floods the owner retrieved them from the rafters and they are still for sale over a year down the track

Yes it is that shop. That was the first time I had been in there but we have some mutual contacts so I knew of them and had met them outside their shop before. Usually I have no problem speaking my mind but because of the mutual connection, it was very a very awkward position for me. They saw me taking photos though.

No wonder they are still for sale, any reptile lover would be horrified and march straight back out the door.

 

[thepythonguy]

yeah i have photo's as well of the pythons they are almost 3 years old according to him and their in a little click clack he uses room air condition set at 28 degrees for heating. I started asking a lot of question but he was shrugging me off trying to walk away from me