Petco will do anything to make a sale

[PookiesPiggies]

I finished making my C&C cage this weekend and now I'm sitting here looking at Caesar's cage I bought from Petco over a year ago. Right now I want to kick myself for trusting the information they gave me. When Caesar was given to me by my friend, she came in a 10 gallon aquarium. I was so excited to go buy her a bigger cage. I went into Petco and found a (what I thought was huge) cage, but they didn't have them in boxes. I knew assembled, it wouldn't fit into my car and I told the girl that. She frekin flat out lied to me and told me that Guinea Pigs were frearful animals and too much space would be bad for them and I should get the smaller one. I asked if the cage could house 2 in case I wanted to get another one in the future. She said, "easily". I wish I could punch that girl in the face right now.
I wonder how many people who had the viehicle for a bigger cage was sold the biggest one they had cause they were told GP's needed lots of room. I really hate them. Sorry, looking at this empty cage reminds me of how much of a sucker I am and how little they care for out pets. The almighty buck wins again. This is why I hate people trying to rub my face in how "well educated" people who work for these places are. It sickens me. The only education they have is how to rip people off no matter what it does to the pet. Thank you for letting me vent. I think I'm PMSing.

[mini'smama]

PookiesPiggies;

I think alot of us have experienced the pet store cage buying scenario that you just described. It is frustrating to know that pet stores world wide continue to spout such ignorance to their customers.

(can't help ya with the PMS, but maybe you ought to hold a guinea pig for awhile? )

[MilwCavyMom]

Originally Posted by mini'smama

PookiesPiggies;

(can't help ya with the PMS, but maybe you ought to hold a guinea pig for awhile? )

Works for me.

[cusunfireguy]

I know where you are coming from. Now that I am educated, I find myself sometimes testing employees of these stores to see how educated they are.

Steven

[cavyowner2007]

I bought a petstore sized cage (not from a petstore, from a breeder) and she gave my family (I wasn't there) the smallest one and said it could easily fit three or four as long as I gave them room outside the cage, well when they got home with that cage I immediatly through a fit. It wouldn't even fit my hidey house without taking up ALL the room. It fit the two foster babies fine, so I kept them in there until they found a new home.

Then thats how I found this site in February. Some breeders AND petstores will do absolutly anything to make a quick buck. I agree with you 1000%. I did go back up there and now lets just say they don't sell pet cages any longer.

[momof2pigs]

This is why I hate people trying to rub my face in how "well educated" people who work for these places are. It sickens me. The only education they have is how to rip people off no matter what it does to the pet. Thank you for letting me vent. I think I'm PMSing.

You're welcome (for letting you vent). Now it is my turn to "vent" I am sick and tired of people who generalize. ONE bad experience doesn't mean every employee is bad or store. I happen to have a teaching degree and also work for Petco. If spending four years in college, maintaining a 3.4 GPA, running my own pet-sitting business while doing so, and passing student teaching doesn't require intelligence (and tons of sleep-deprived time), I don't know what does. I think I am "educated" (I will not discuss WHY I haven't found a full-time teaching job as it is a long explaination).

The person who told you that information wasn't neccessarily trying to "rip you off". She may have heard that GP's ARE frightened of larger, open areas and need a smaller area to feel safe. Who knows???

Petco has opportunities for employees to learn much more about animal care. They have videos and training programs. One GP website I frequent is quite large. The mods there feel that NO one has the right to INSIST that cage sizes be a certain minimum and so on. They have banned members who push their OPINION of cage sizes too. JUST because GPC.com says that minimum cages sizes should be XXX, doesn't make it gospel. It is the opinion of the website owner and SOME members. Don't get me wrong, it is a GOOD opinion and one that does benefit the piggies. I have two large C&C cages myself, but that still doesn't mean this site has the ONLY right answers in regards to how big a cage should be.

Petco has had trouble with sub-standard animal care at SOME locations in SOME states or towns. I can tell you at our store, I bust my A** to make sure the GP's get fresh hay,pellets, and veggies daily. They may not have the largest cages in the world, but MOST are not here that long. MOST sell pretty quickly. I spend a LONG time with each prospective owner; explaining the good, the bad, and the ugly of GP ownership. I explain about adoption and C&C cages. I recommend this site and Guinealynx to new owners even though I know they bash Petco and its employees.

I am sorry, just because I CHOSE to buy my first piggie from Petco (I did adopt my other three), a Silver Agouti, doesn't make me horrible because someone ELSE decided to get a GP for the wrong reasons and then dump it a few weeks later in a shelter where it MIGHT get euthanized. I refuse to feel guilty because OTHER people are making poor choices. I bought my pig at a Petco and I did it "impulsively" but you should see how spoiled he is and how I will never give him up!)

Sometimes in spite of adoptions as an option, people fall in love with one of a particular color or pattern or breed. and sometimes no matter what, they WON'T wait forever for the right one or won't go to adopt. So we do provide GP's for sale too. If some of ours are in the store too long, we DO put them up for adoption anyway.

I understand this is an anti-pet store website. However, it just seems so one-sided to listen and read comments over and over, people B---"itching" about Petco and other stores without a person or two trying to put a balanced perspective on things. What kind of site just looks at and accepts ONE narrow-view on things and jumps all over someone with a different opinion. That is militant and frankly, kind of boring.


*ducks head and runs for cover*

[salana]

I'm glad you like the other website so much. I feel sorry for the people who have been banned for "pushing" their opinion of cage size, though. Who decides what is "pushing" and what is simply trying to convince others to share in an opinion?

However, there are some things that aren't matters of opinion, but rather matters of fact. Like the guinea pig overpopulation problem. That's a fact. You can take it however you want to, and be part of the problem or part of the solution: that's your choice. You can take the information and try to help, or refuse to accept any responsibility for improving the lives of other animals. But the numbers of pigs in shelters, the conditions of piggy mills, and the number of sick pigs in pet stores, are all facts.

In the same vein, it is an opinion that C&C cages are the best. The facts are the experiences people have with them. Active, playful pigs; cases of boars who get along in larger cages but not smaller; and cleaner, healthier cages (because the pigs have more room to pee and not lie in it) are facts. It's your choice what to do about that. Do you want to give those opportunities to your pigs, or not? Just like it's your choice whether to help an animal in need or buy at your place of employment. Do you want to help animals, or help yourself? Your choice.

(Most of us choose to help animals, so you may feel left out in the cold around here.)

[momof2pigs]

I do agree that there is a pet-overpopulation problem. However, it is my opinion that PEOPLE should be more educated before they choose to buy or adopt ANY type of pet, including GP's. If more people did their research, didn't give in to whiny kids, and didn't have such a disposable mentality, then GP's could be purchased from pet stores, less would be dumped on shelters or rescues, less would be euthanized and so on. It would also help if there weren't tons of people who allow their GP's to accidently breed and so on.

I may be wrong in this, but if every pet store ceased to stop sellling GP's then what?? You could only adopt?? Well that would be great except without the pets coming from the pet-stores in the first place, then there wouldn't be any to adopt either (unless the rescues got their pigs from hoarders or small time breeders. Either way, the pigs won't be coming from a reputable place). One depends on the other. Should only a select few people be licensed to sell GP with a spay/nueter contract?? How much would these rare GP's cost?? Could a person get a wide array of colors/breeds/patterns?

I personally would rather get a baby GP from a well-established pet-store with a health guarentee then from some "farmer" selling GP's from his back-yard or from a flea-market or wherever (which is what would happen if all pet stores were banned from selling small animals) you would only see an increase in "hobby" breeders and still pigs would be over-bred.

There isn't a clear-cut answer. I believe it is the responsibility of the INDIVDUAL to educate themselves and not to breed for fun or dump a pig at the first inconvience. ALL of those things lead to pig overpopulation issues.

Where people GET an animal should be a choice. Otherwise GP's will cost WAY MORE than most people would be willing to pay for an animal that lives 3-7 years at best.

I will step down now. I am not here to change your minds. I just think that other readers *might* want to here the "other side".

[Ly&Pigs]

Well that would be great except without the pets coming from the pet-stores in the first place, then there wouldn't be any to adopt either (unless the rescues got their pigs from hoarders or small time breeders.

This statement is rediculous as well as false. The big time chain petstores aren't breeding the pigs purposely at least. Some smaller mom and pop stores do breed their own "stock" though. It's backyard breeders and pig mills along with irresponsible breeders creating the overpopulation problem. The pet stores contribute to that by making the pigs and other small pets available for "purchase" to anyone that has money to buy one.

If we were able to manage getting all pet stores to stop selling pigs and other small animals, the pigs and other small animals wouldn't cease to exist because there are still going to be backyard breeders and irresponsible breeders out there breeding not to mention accidental pregnancies that do happen.

So yes even without petstores selling pigs, there would be pigs to adopt because of rescue centers and private people that do rescue (like me and many others). As long as there are people out there breeding them, there will always be pigs that end up in shelters and rescues for adoption.

[hydrohoki]

Originally Posted by momof2pigs

Where people GET an animal should be a choice. Otherwise GP's will cost WAY MORE than most people would be willing to pay for an animal that lives 3-7 years at best.

This statement bothers me. I can't quite put my finger on why except it makes guinea pigs seem like no more than an expensive toy. I don't understand the point of the 3-7 years part. Would I pay more if they lived to be 10? Personally the shorter lifespan (well I don't want to say it's a plus) but it is the reason I have pigs instead of cats. I have no idea where my life will be in 20 years so pigs fit.

Perhaps high costing guineas would be good, then people would think real hard about owning two. I don't see that happening though. As long as pigs are missexed (and they will be for a long time), there will be accidental litters that need homes.

Again, it's even more about where the pigs in the pet store come from than the pet store itself. See your thread on the most recent delivery for an example. Until the source of the pigs is upheld to higher standards, I have the right to generalize about pet stores.

[momof2pigs]

T
This statement is rediculous as well as false. The big time chain petstores aren't breeding the pigs purposely at least. Some smaller mom and pop stores do breed their own "stock" though. It's backyard breeders and pig mills along with irresponsible breeders creating the overpopulation problem. The pet stores contribute to that by making the pigs and other small pets available for "purchase" to anyone that has money to buy one.

I think I was trying to say that. So how could my statement be false if I said what you said?? BYB = small-time breeders, no? anyway, my point is that rescues and shelters WILL always have pigs regardless of pet-stores NOT selling them because they will come from even LESS scrupulous places that have NO health garauntees, and no care standards. As I said, at least Petco has high care standards, but I digress. Even though I believe that Petco isn't SOLELY responsible for the pet-overpopulation, they are a part of it. However, I also strongly believe that if more people who purchased their animals, did the responsible thing and tried harder to keep them forever, and they didn't allow accidental or purposeful breeding, then there would be fewer animals in shelters even IF the animal was purchased.

[VoodooJoint]

I have never seen the standards of care you speak of in any Petco I have visited. I have never met an employee in any one of the stores that seemed to know anything about properly caring for the small animals. I'm certain you are a wonderful animal caregiver and employee but YOU cannot make a difference to the BIG problem that Petco and other petstores are causing.

Originally Posted by momof2pigs

Petco has had trouble with sub-standard animal care at SOME locations in SOME states or towns. I can tell you at our store, I bust my A** to make sure the GP's get fresh hay,pellets, and veggies daily.

Originally Posted by momof2pigs

As I said, at least Petco has high care standards,

You say that, while another member has this to say about the petstore they work in.

Originally Posted by mommyoffive

when the guineas came in their whole undersides where wet and matted,... Their so tiny right now, that you can feel their ribs, ...I'm trying to see if our sore can switch to another dealer, because the people we deal with right now are so rude and inhumane to our pets.

Originally Posted by mommyoffive

Update- 2 of those 5 guinea's have head tilt...there where taken to the sick room today and I was feeding 1 of them through a tube because she was to weak to drink or eat any thing. Banfield would not see them, rather they were going to make them so antibiotics sight unseen. Banfield got there weights at 7 am to make their medication, at 2 pm when I left work, the medication still had not been made and my boss was getting mad at me because I keep on bugging him about the medication... I'm expecting to come into work tomorrow to find that 1 guinea died, the sad thing is that I feel like I cant do anything about it.

Originally Posted by mommyoffive

They are, banfield is not even suppost to be treating small pets...thanks whats get me angry. Even in the past, when they would treat guinea pigs they would give them .05 ml of baytril...what is that going to do??? nothing, and thats why my baby Leo's head is permently tilted to the side.

Originally Posted by mommyoffive

the one guinea pig died, the other one is doing better, her head is going straight so I know the meds are working

[hydrohoki]

Oh my apologies, I got confused and thought that mommyoffive's thread was started by momof2pigs in my previous post.

Sorry!

[daftscotslass]

Originally Posted by momof2pigs

One GP website I frequent is quite large. The mods there feel that NO one has the right to INSIST that cage sizes be a certain minimum and so on. They have banned members who push their OPINION of cage sizes too. JUST because GPC.com says that minimum cages sizes should be XXX, doesn't make it gospel. It is the opinion of the website owner and SOME members. Don't get me wrong, it is a GOOD opinion and one that does benefit the piggies. I have two large C&C cages myself, but that still doesn't mean this site has the ONLY right answers in regards to how big a cage should be.

Well, the fact is, this site really does provide the right answers with regards to cage size and design. If you ask any vet, pet owner or professor of zoology, the answer you will get is that more space is better. As many of the laws regarding animal welfare across the world state, animals should have the right to exhibit "natural behaviour" through enrichment of their environment - be this more space or addition of objects into their cage. I do not believe that animals squashed into inadequate accomodation can exhibit such behaviour. The new laws in the UK mean that failure to provide such accommodation can result in prosecution. Bigger really is better. End of.

Since you are on the Guinea Pig Cages forum, you will find that MOST of the members agree with the website owner with regards to suitable dimensions, not SOME.