Worst one I have seen so far

[louie_joey]

I was in the mall today for an optometrist apporinment and on my way out stopped into the petstore as I am very low on shavings, and I think that it is the worst petstore that I have seen yet.

Puppies look sick, birds overcrowded, dead fish. Guinea pigs are extremly young, they even had a litter living with its mom. As expected, tiny cages. The most appalling thing- there were 4 full grown guinea pigs in a petstore cage that looked to be about 3 sq. ft. They could barely move, and the water dish was disgusting (the water dishes for all the animals are disgusting actually.) I finally managed to find an employee and I politely notified him on the disgusting state of the water dishes and told him that the cage was too small for one pig, let alone 4 adults. He stared at me and afer a long pause, in a snarky, challenging voice he said: "Not much to do but sell 'em." And he then proceded to turn around and walk away.

I was completly furious, but I avoided a big confrontation and just left.

So how can I get this place shut down, or at least attempt to change the way the animals are treated? It is also a chain store, to make it more complicated.

To make matters matters even worse, my local SPCA is closed due to an outbreak of ringworm. ONTARIO SPCA - YORK REGION BRANCH

Do you guys have any suggestions for me? And no, I didn't end up getting the shavings, there was no way I am going to support them, even if it is only a bag if shavings.

[Sirene]

If it's a chain, I would contact their corporate office (email or an actual letter), and perhaps even try their customer service number if they have one.

That really sucks, I am sorry. I wish I had more suggestions for you to take immediate action - maybe someone else knows?

OK I found this info. I realize it's for the US, but perhaps you have similar organizations:

Outside of New York City

We urge those who do not live in New York to contact any or all of the following organizations:

• Your local SPCA or humane society, which may have the power to investigate such matters in your area. For a listing of animal agencies in your area, visit ASPCA.org.
• your local Health Department/Board of Health, as the abuse of animals in pet stores and breeder facilities often involves unsafe or unsanitary conditions for humans
• your local Better Business Bureau
• local law enforcement officials
• local media organizations
• local politicians
• the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees wholesale breeders of dogs and cats. It is best to contact this agency by mail.

Headquarters:
USDA/APHIS/AC
4700 River Rd., Unit 84
Riverdale, MD 20737
(301) 734-7833
ace@aphis.usda.gov
Western Regional Offices:
USDA/APHIS/AC
PO Box 915004
Fort Worth, TX 76115
(817) 885-6923
acwest@aphis.usda.gov
USDA/APHIS/AC
9580 Micron Ave., Ste. J
Sacramento, CA 95827
(916) 857-6205
acwest@aphis.usda.gov
USDA/APHIS/AC
2150 Centre Ave.
Building B, Mailstop 3W11
Fort Collins, CO 80526
acwest@aphis.usda.gov
Eastern Regional Office:
USDA/APHIS/AC
920 Main Campus Dr., Ste. 200, Unit 3040
Raleigh, NC 27606
(919) 716-5532
aceast@aphis.usda.gov


I think contacting the local news is a really good idea - name them and shame them!

[Sirene]

OK more info. This is for Toronto, but maybe if you call this number, they could tell you who to call for your area/help you out?

I was in a local pet store and noticed that the animals� cages were quite dirty and that the animals looked unhealthy and depressed, do you inspect pet stores?
Every pet shop operating within the City of Toronto must comply with Municipal Licensing & Standards (Urban Development Services) who make sure businesses follow applicable municipal bylaws. Since a pet shop generally has animals for sale, they must also comply with City of Toronto Municipal Code, Chapter 349 [SIZE=1](PDF file size 95KB)[/SIZE]. Chapter 349-5 indicates that it is the responsibility of the owner to provide adequate and appropriate care. Chapter 349-8 indicates that no person shall keep an animal in an unsanitary condition. If you are concerned about the health and safety of animals housed at a pet store, call Toronto Animal Services at 416-338-PAWS (7297) and file a complaint.


From: Animal Services: FAQ - Toronto Public Health

[louie_joey]

Thanks for your suggestions Sirene! I will definatly give them an email and then go from there. I will give you the link to the petstores website, if it isn't allowed then mods please remove it!
PJ's Pets

The location I was at was the Scarborough one, technically not local to me hut that is besides the point. I suppose I could see if the Toronto Humane Society could do anything about it. What do you think I should include in my email to the head office of pjs and how should I go about contacting the THS?

Thanks again guys! I really hope that we can put an end to this petstores and another one that is local to me (one at a tome though!)

[Sirene]

What do you think I should include in my email to the head office of pjs and how should I go about contacting the THS?

Hello! I would say something like: "On visiting your Scarborough location today, I was appalled by the conditions in which some of your livestock is being kept. During my visit, I witnessed...
[list what you saw here]... When I attempted to bring some of these issues to the attention of one of your staff members, he ...[insert what he did here]. I was disgusted both by the ill-treatment of the animals in your custody and by the attitude of your staff members. I left the store without making my intended purchase and will not be patronizing any of your locations again until conditions improve.

I would appreciate your feedback on this matter.

Sincerely,

LouieJoey."

Here is the contact information for the THS: Toronto Humane Society | Contact

I hope they've cleaned up THEIR act a bit, too - I was just reading some very distressing stuff about the River Street shelter from late last year...

Good luck with this - it's great that people are speaking up!

[louie_joey]

I am emailing the Pj's now.

[YayPiggies]

There's a pet store in my neighbourhood that is absolutely horrific. I never knew you could cram that many fish in a tank and have the store smell so bad but still get customers. I'm so glad for this post because I have been wondering how to close them down ever since.

As for PJ's, try all of the suggestions here but also try to make it public. PJ's is a chain store so it would be harder to close down. I have seen a news show zooming in on PJ's after a lady paid 10 thousand dollars for surgery on her puppy mill dog from PJ's who had so many health issues it was disgusting, especially for a young dog.

Good luck!

[rabbitsncavyluv]

We have this chain named Pet City here. They are awful. Owned by the same people as Shoe City.

[louie_joey]

This was the reply of the manager if that location.
"Hello Katherine,

My name is Sarah, I’m the store manager at the Scarborough Town Centre PJ’s Pets. I received your email, and am sorry to hear you had an unpleasant experience here last week. I’ve taken some time to investigate all of your concerns.

In regards to your conerns about the puppies appearing ill, I assure you we have a veterinarian come to our store two times every week to examine and vaccinate our puppies when required.

Unfortunately, fish do die from time to time in any environment. We do our best to promptly remove them from the tanks when this happens, and if they appear to have any disease or sickness, we treat them as required.

One of the unfortunate situations we find ourselves, in all too often, is finding animals dumped either inside our store, or out in the parking lot. Unfortunately, most shelters are full, and instead of taking the time to find a new home for pets people can no longer care for, people chose to abandon them at our stores. This is the case with those adult guinea pigs you saw. I’m a huge guinea pig lover myself, and quite a few of them who were dropped off have snuck home to join my herd! I’ve got a giant C & C cage built for them and my skinny pig, which takes over a huge part of my home! Those baby pigs you saw actually were quite young, just three weeks old. Their mother was dropped off a week before she gave birth, and once they hit three weeks and were able to be sold. We’ve separated the sexes, leaving the female babies with their mama until they found their forever homes.

In regards to the cage with the four adult guinea pigs in them, I’ve decided to split them up. They were dropped off at the same time as the female who gave birth (those studly men!) , and we were a bit short on space so they were all kept together until another cage opened up. We are currently working on finding them new homes, we are giving them away with the purchase of an appropriate bag of food and hay.

I am truly sorry your experiece at PJ’s Pets was not a pleasant one, but as a fellow animal lover (especially of guinea pigs!) I welcome you to come to me personally if you ever have any other issues with the care of our animals. I’m here most days, and would be glad to meet with you and discuss any conerns you may have.

Have a wonderful day. I hope you are enjoying this beautiful weather!"

Opinions?