Very pleased Petsmart visit!

[Pigluv]

I went to petsmart yesterday with a friend to pick up some Yesterday's News, for all of you who don't know what that is, litter. We of course were temped to hold a pig, no intention of buying, so we asked a worker. She asked us if we had guinea pigs and we said yes. She said she also had pigs and asked us if we built our cage or bought it. I was so happy to hear those words! I asked her if she mean't c&c and she said yep! I told her that is the best cage and gave her a big thumbs up, . She started asking us questions and she is the worker! I told her about the forum and she agreed to check it out if she has any more questions. I was ecstatic when I left, haha. This gives me hope for the piggy generations to come!

[pinky]

It's nice that someone who works there knows how to properly house a guinea pig but that still doesn't change the fact that Petsmart guinea pigs are from pet mills. The large pet chains would be better off not selling live pets and hold adoption events for rescue pets instead. I'd love to see them permanently stop selling animals, sell high quality food and supplies and make animal welfare their primary mission.... but unfortunately, profits are the priority.

[Pigluv]

I am well aware of that, I only went to purchase litter & ended up holding a pig and chatting to a worker. There is no harm in that, I had no intention of bringing anything home.

[jacqueline]

the thing is that everyone's passions about guinea pigs, pet store and human abuses, etc runs the whole spectrum. some are completely outraged, some just shrug their shoulders and everything in between. once i read the site often cited here about petsmart, and other large chain petstores, i personally could no longer shop for anything there. i didn't want my money to support that business in any way. i don't think petsmart is going to go out of business because i don't spend my money there, but i just can't walk in to their business, knowing that on a larger corporate level, THEY shrug their shoulders at the mistreatment of the animals they profit from (to say the least). everyone has their own feelings about this, and that's mine. i've seen lots of attempts here by people to change people's minds, and it's almost always been unsuccessful, and usually someone's feelings gets hurt.

all of the above - well, it's just my personal opinion. just like you had your personal opinion too.

[mufasa]

That's the great thing about this site, that we all have are opinions, and for the most part everyone at least respects that even if we don't all agree. I'll admit that I go to pet stores, as I write a column about pet supplies so it's part of my job to see what's new, get photos, etc. I buy things for my brood since I'm there, although I almost always end up ranting to hubby when I leave because of the way the pigs are kept. At least my local Petsmart sells Cavy Cuisine and Oxbow hay, although from what I've seen, most people still buy the cheap stuff.

Still, I'd be happy if all pet stores that sell animals disappeared tomorrow. If I see people looking at the small animals, I make it a point to tell them about adoption. If I ever see anything that would cross the line into illegality, the cell phone camera would be out immediately and it would be all over the internet and reported to the authorities.

Pigluv, I understand what you were saying because along with bad conditions, too many pet stores also give horrible advice that contributes to pigs leading miserable, unhealthy lives. The ultimate goal is for stores not to sell animals, but while they do, it's better to have someone who recommends the right things than someone parroting the BS about small cages and yogurt treats and exercise balls and the like. And another good thing is, that worker might also give good advice to people who adopted a pig but who still don't really know much about care (if they got it from Craigslist or a shelter vs. a rescue).