ARGH! Stupid pet store staff!!!

[pamziaw]

Really angry today, went out to this garden centre with my grandma and they sell animals in their small pet shop, i don't normally go in it however today i went in for a looky and passed the sales guy telling this woman that under no circumstances can she have 2 males in her cage as they will fight to the death...

<thoughts in Pam's mind> 'Hmmm... i wonder if fudge and nugget have fought to the death when i get back then?'

Pam: 'excuse me, but i own 2 boars and they don't fight at all, they get along quite well'

Sales Assistant: 'well in 12 years of breeding guinea pigs i've never known 2 boars get on'

<Thoughts in Pam's mind> 'Yeah i bet you haven't, you've been too surrounded by dead sows to make an attempt with the males'

Pam (to the woman): 'Just disinfect and throughly clean the cage and introduce them on neutral territory instead of putting them back in the cage together straight away, let em meet in a neutral place and they'll get along far better'

Sales assistant: <ignores me completely> you can try putting a divide in their cage so they get used to one another

Pam: Just try cleaning it, it will help a lot

Sales Assistant: They will fight!

Pam: We will have to agree to disagree...

<Pam thinks> ...cos if we don't im going to get arrested for GBH you ignoramus!

Sales assistant: <doesnt make eye contact>



Spent the rest of the time there being very angry, mostly cos the guy totally ignored me. So theres another mum given bad information, it doesn't half make my blood boil!

[Mommy Of One]

Aw, what did the customer say? Hopefully, she believed you?
Atleast you tried.

[Aertyn]

One thing you could have done to the woman is give her the address to both GPC and to GL, that way she could research Guinea Pigs (and their care) using a reliable source.

Simply tell her that this care guide has been compiled by exotic vets and people that have owned cavies for decades, and you would be hard pressed to find as complete a guide anywhere both on the World Wide Web and in print.

[pamziaw]

I couldn't have hun, cos the pet store staff basically talked to the mom like i was just a know-it-all kid (im 21 by the way) in a really sarcastic manner, basically saying i was not credible. The mom stopped paying attention to me.

[Susan9608]

It's frustrating. I'm sure you did the best you could, in those circumstances.

What I usually do is approach the customers after the sales associate has left. That might mean following them out of the store, but sometimes that's the only way of getting them away from the sales associate. I usually say something along the lines of:

"Hey, I just want to let you know that there are alternative ways to care for your new pet. Pet store employees are not always the experts they seem to be. For more information, please check out these websites." and I had them a little card with info on guinealyx and this forum.

That's about all you can do, unless you want to pick a fight and end up getting arrested. And take it from me - someone who has had both store security and the police called on her in precisely these kinds of situations - you don't want to get arrested for something like this. Well, you probably don't want to get arrested for anything, but especially not for something like this.

[pamziaw]

Tis true, to be honest i was more angry at his ignorance and remarks, his whole manner was that i was the scum of the earth for disaggreeing with his mighty all knowingness as he had been breeding for 12 years and so knew all the facts! <Rant Rant Rant Rant Rant!> *swears*

[luvmyzoocrew]

I would have to send a letter to the store with some pages printed out about how wrong there employee was. Also to let them know the correct information and tell them that they should educate there employees on the facts before they let them talk to people. HA HA

[Aertyn]

I'm 20 and have had my fair share of arguments in regards to care info given out at pet stores in my town, I find that if you present the information in a clear, concise manner and then back it up with facts people will understand easier.

One thing to remember is to never lose your temper, no matter how angry the ignoramus makes you, it often causes for you to lose credibility in the eyes of the person you are trying to convince.

If you have no luck with moronic employees, try calling up management with information on websites (such as GPC and GL) and then refer them to an exotic vet (that you have already asked permission from) if they have any further questions. People listen when they have a Dr. in the front of their name, and when it says Dr. John Smith (eg) Specialising in Exotic Animals (or some such thing) they will really have to listen.

Also, sometimes it's not how you present the information, but it's how you say it. If you come across as a snotty know it all, people wont take you seriously (especially if you are younger than them).