Petsmart vs. Petco

**pink piggy** · #1 02-04-06, 04:24 pm

Hey, what I want to know is everyone's opinion on Petsmart and Petco. I've been to both stores, and personally I prefer Petsmart. Like for example, both stores have pets, their accessories, and stuff for sale right? But which is cheaper or more better of quality? I've heard Petsmart is the best, but I want to know your opinions, thanks.

**guineapiglvr14** · #2 02-04-06, 04:29 pm

Neither of them are good, if you want to buy something go on theferretstore.com or critterstore.com for water bottles and hidey house ect. When you want to get a guinea pig or other animal please adopt instead of buy from a petstore. When getting food buy it from kmshayloft.com or oxbowhay.com Mazuri is the next best food.

**aqh88** · #3 02-04-06, 04:41 pm

Generally on this site it is suggested not to shop at any store that sells animals because they all treat their animals rather poorly, get them from bad sources, and sell them to people who know nothing without giving proper care info. It's preferred to boycott such stores completely. That being said I have nowhere else to get supplies which can't be ordered online. Bedding is way too expensive to ship and is cheapest at petsmart which also has larger bulk bags than other stores. I also get some bedding from a fish store that also sells a few other pet supplies because they have aspen pellets for cheap but compared to bulk aspen shavings it's still quite expensive. I buy hay, pellets, and most houses/toys from the sites guineapiglvr14 listed and find it much cheaper to do that than buy from any local store even when you add in the shipping.

**pink piggy** · #4 02-04-06, 07:14 pm

Oh okay, that's a lot of help. Thanks guys! I wouldn't have known if not from your help. Once again, thanks a lot. I'll be sure to check out those sites.

Oh yeah, and by the way, I can't really adopt animals because I don't know of any shelter around New Mexico that has small animals for adoption, so if any of you can help, thanks. I've checked many rescue search sites already but I can't find any that have small animals in NM.

**Percy's Mom** · #5 02-04-06, 07:16 pm

Where are you in New Mexico? If you can give us a city or zip code, maybe we have help you find some. Have you looked on http://www.petfinder.com? You can search by zip or city.

**pink piggy** · #6 02-04-06, 07:19 pm

I live in Albuquerque. I'll try that site. Thanks

**pink piggy** · #7 02-04-06, 07:22 pm

On http://www.petfinder.com, there are currently 4 guinea pigs for adoption in the Cavy Rescue of Rio Rancho, NM, so thanks!

**pink piggy** · #8 02-04-06, 07:23 pm

Except I'm kind of looking for a Syrian hamster to adopt, but there are currently none around the NM area. I don't think there are hamsters that are usually for adoption because it's very uncommon around my area.

**Percy's Mom** · #9 02-04-06, 07:23 pm

I don't know how far Rio Rancho is from you, but when I did a quick search on petfinder, I found Save A Cavy Guinea Pig Rescue. Maybe they could be of some assistance in helping you find a new friend.

Save a Cavy Guinea Pig Rescue
Rio Rancho, NM 87124
Phone: 505-681-5166

Email: steves@saveacavy.com

**pink piggy** · #10 02-04-06, 08:18 pm

Oh okay, thanks!

**SkinnyPiggys** · #11 02-05-06, 10:58 am

Both Petco and Petsmart have animals up for adoption from local shelters.

**bromers** · #12 02-05-06, 12:26 pm

Quote:

Both Petco and Petsmart have animals up for adoption from local shelters

Ok I may be being slow but I dont get what you mean?

**Percy's Mom** · #13 02-05-06, 12:28 pm

Sometimes, the pet stores will have adoption days where the shelters can come out and show their animals for adoption. I'd still recommend going directly to the shelter though. If you go to the store to adopt, you'll probably end up buying your supplies from a store that also sells animals, so you've really not done much to stop the animal mill cycle.

**Slap Maxwell** · #14 02-05-06, 12:29 pm

Both Petco and Petsmart sometimes have homeless animals there for free. People dump them off at the stores.

Also, some rescues and shelters have adoption days at the stores.

**naturestee** · #15 02-05-06, 01:25 pm

My local Petsmart "fosters" shelter cats. They take the older cats who aren't normally adopted as much and houses them similar to what the shelter does. It really helps their adoption rates. There's a Petco a few counties over that does the same with rabbits, and they might do it with other small critters, too. I don't mind spending the rare buck in my Petsmart because they do house shelter cats and they do adoption days for cats, dogs, and I'm hoping to push for rabbits once I get time to help. I make sure to tell them that's the only reason I'm there so they know what brings in the bucks.

**rabbitsncavyluv** · #16 02-05-06, 03:39 pm

Rescues doing adoption days there makes the stores look good PR wise, and gets foot traffic. If you adopt there, you are more likely to buy a bunch of pet supplies.

Both Petco and Petsmart are bad.

**Lorvoll** · #17 02-05-06, 03:48 pm

My favorite guinea pig (don't tell the others!) is Oreo. I adopted him for free from Petco - someone just dumped him off at their doorstep. I was there for my dog food, and happened to be just looking at their piggies when the employee nearby asked if I was interested in adopting one. She took me to a backroom that had a shelving unit full of animals that people just dumped off, usually on the doorstep before they opened for the day. Their policy is to adopt out abandoned animals for free. Oreo was pretty small, but because his fur was brittle and dry, they figured him to be old too. Well, let me tell you, once I held him, he cuddled right up and I told them to write up whatever they needed me to sign, because he was mine from that point on! I wanted him to live out whatever life he had left in comfort. He's now tripled in size (so he had to have been pretty young when he arrived there!) and his fur is very shiny and silky to the touch. He's the friendliest, most outspoken, and cuddliest pig that I have. During floor time, he runs TO me, not away, and likes to be pet. It's amazing what quality food and care can do.

I feel so bad for the other critters on the shelving unit in the back - rats, bunnies, a momma guinea pig and babies that were already spoken for...

Had the employee not approached me, I'd have never known about their adoption policy and the abandoned pets in back.

**pink piggy** · #18 02-05-06, 05:28 pm

That is so cơol! Thank you for all the replies! I'm going to go check at my local shelters and Petsmarts and Petcos to see the small animals up for adoption. Right now, I'm not allowed to get any more pets, darn it, especially cats and dogs, but I'll see what I can do.

Thanks guys! Hmmm... I'm going to try to bribe my parents about maybe getting a hamster, guinea pigs, or a rabbit... I'll give it a try.

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