whats wrong with the petstore?

Most of the people on this forum believe that buying from a petstore perpetuates breeding and that breeders are only in the business of making money. I do agree to some extent, except that, like you, I am concerned about the poor pigs that remain un-bought. I know that purchasing one pig doesn't solve anything but my heart breaks to imagine that pig being fed to a snake or being put to sleep or mistreated. Enough said, (by me at least!).

1. Pet stores only care about $$$.
2. Therefore, they usually don't take good care of them.
3. They are sometimes sick or pregnant because of the lack of knowledge to separate the genders, and to quartantine and take care of the sick.
4. If they're sick, they just count them as "casualties" or "lost stock," like a stolen CD ro something. (Why would they lose money by taking them to a vet? They're just merchandise.)
5. They get them from breeders who only care about $$$ and don't provide the greatest care.
6. Your money goes to support this cause.
7. Because of this, there are more cavies that meet this fate in the long run.
8. Because more of a difference can be made by stopping the whole operation, and more cavies can be saved by taking a stand rather than saving a couple at a time. In fact, by doing so, you are giving that monye to the breeders, who sell them to stores, etc.
9. Also, it's not as if they screen you to check if you have good care planned out.
10. Many are not knowledgable about their pets, but they act as though they are, giving out awful advice.

Hope this helps you understand. This is not 100%, but it is the vast, vast majority of stores.

there is more about this on the Cavy Spirit website

i was just wondering because there is a piggy that im really interested in at a pet store its male so i dont have to worry about it being pregnant. also i cant find anyshelters close to where i live with guinea pigs i looked at all of the adoption sites.he seems healthy and i like him. and all the people at the store are really nice and informative

Did the pet store staff say he was male or did you determine that? It's quite common for pet stores to miss-sex their pigs. Even an unhealthy pig 'seems' healthy -- instinctually pigs will do their best to conceal any kind of sickness.

I agree with dagwellismypigy, there are no small animal shelters or availiable adoptions in my area, yet there is a pet store here and i've seen where the piggies are kept, its farely nice. The pet store also has proof that before you buy them you get a free vet exam, so i think it's ok. Just check all the conditions in the store, and ask as many questions as you can, in my opinion.

A vet exam from a real small-animal vet experienced with guinea pigs? Not a dog or cat vet? You can ask all the questions you want, but remember that salesmen are trained liars... do you really trust this guy? Unless you know him outside of the context of the sale, how can you trust him? To him, you're just a mark, another sale waiting to made, a walking credit card and a comission waiting to be paid. The term 'farely[sic] nice' implies it could be better. What do you have to compare to? Other pet stores?

Did you both read the post I put on top? It's not a good idea at all. Please find a source! If you'd like to pm or email me with your location, I can try and help you. I'm sure there is something out there.

well i determined that he was a male. and i dont know the sales guy out side of his job. i looked at him to make sure he doesn't hve any signs of disease or what not. his eyes are bright and shiny and he runs around the cage and seems really freindly. and i felt that almost bond thing like you know hes the one for you.. but then again i feel that with most piggies. i live in the philly suburbs and im only 14 and i cant convince my mom to drive acrosss the state to go "guinea pig hunting" as my mom would say.

also dont you guys feel bad for those pigs in the petstore that spend months in those aquariums? i know it just breaks my heart

We all feel bad for animals we see in pet stores. The problem is the animals you don't see. You don't see the ones that are being euthanized because nobody wants them. I used to volunteer for a shelter and every morning the manager would have to start her day by putting several cats to sleep. At least one morning a week she would find a beautiful litter of kittens sitting in a cardboard box on the steps of the shelter. Most of the time they had to be put to sleep because there were not enough homes for them. Their bodies were put in a freezer and later cremated. Meanwhile, people were going to the local pet store to buy kittens that came from a breeder.

You see the animals in the pet stores. The only reason they are there is because people like you buy them. Every time you buy an animal from a pet store, another one is dying because of your choice.

If you haven't the heart to see the pigs at the pet store, you'd be really shocked to see what goes on in a shelter. I promise you, if you spend some time volunteering in a shelter, you will soon understand the situation very clearly.

thats the problem ther are no guinea pig shelters around here i found one link for the philadelphia area and it said that it was closed because it didnt have enough money. all the other links only had cats and dog or ones that had guinea pigs where in places ive never heard of

I agree with Critterlover, I too volunteered at a shelter for some time. I never really saw or came face to face with an animal being put down until this one day when I was doing the laundry out back. One of the staff members was carrying a beautiful Siamese cat to "the door" as they called it. They called it that because no one wanted to go beyond that door-no one wanted to be the one who had to carry it out. They had to put her down because the shelter was full.

People give up great animals daily, and by buying a pet from a store you're just adding to the surplus of animals needed a home. When I was younger my mother bought me 2 guinea pigs from a pet store, and currently I have one that I got a store also. I got 2 from a shelter that were a result of inproper sexing from a pet store (their pregnant mother was turned in, she had 2 girls and 2 boys-I adopted the boys). My fourth pig I got from Craigslist.com, a college student was giving her away...

I think it's important to do what you can to get a pig from the shelter. I learned so much about the proper care of them while I volunteered there. I found out what you should actually be feeding them as apposed to what Pet store feed them. When I went to get the pig from the college student, all she had in her food dish was one of those treat sticks that you give to hamsters! It had seeds and honey, which you should not feed pigs!

Trust me, you should try everything and anything to get your pig from some where other than a pet store. They often are sick, and you don't know until you've brought them home. My Walter looked fine, he had bright eyes, he was the only one who wasn't hiding in the pigloo. I took him home and several days later I had to take him to the vet and spend $100 because he had an upper respitory infection.

if i cant convince anyone that the petstore seems good where am i supposed to go? yeah i know a shelter but where are they i looked on pet finder and cavy spirit and this place called gpan there are only like 3 or 4 that i know where the town the shelter is in is at and 2 of them are female, one reminds me too much of duke my guinea pigs old cage mate who died half a year ago and the other one is one with all the spiky hair that i dont like. so um i just dont know what to do . and what will buying one guinea pig do to mess up everything. dont the guinea pigs at the petstore get killed if they are too old or what not. and i know that the piggy i want to buy is gonna have a good home. i guess im just kinda confused

OK...I am not sure where in Philly you are, but go to www.petfinder.com.


There are some listed from rescues that are for other animals. There is a listing for https://www.petfinder.org/shelters/NJ231.html. Looks like a cat reescue but they have some pigs listed.

OK...there are quite a few listed here (broken link removed)

and here (broken link removed)

So...I am not sure if any of these are close to you, but I am sure you can find something. Try all the animal shelters. Call around. I know Philly is not that big, or PA for that matter. You may even be able to work something out where you can meet half way or something.

i looked there before new jersey is too far away my mom isnt into the out of state thing but i found one at the hatboro one i might like i havent met him or asked my mom yet but its a possibility... but ill still feel bad for the pigs in the petstore

i couldnt find any rescues but then i found an ad it was 2hours 30mins away me and my husband drove to go and get her and i ended up with 2 instead of 1 as i couldnt resist getting them, i would say its well worth getting them from people that are giving them away or from rescues not pet stores

Then that is reason to stay away. They are treating their animals poorly by putting them in aquariums. You should talk to them about better housing.

dagwellismypigy said:

also dont you guys feel bad for those pigs in the petstore that spend months in those aquariums? i know it just breaks my heart

Click to expand...

thats the problem ther are no guinea pig shelters around here i found one link for the philadelphia area and it said that it was closed because it didnt have enough money.

Where there are pigs in pet stores, there ARE homeless guinea pigs or guinea pigs in need of homes. How many shelters did you actually visit? Usually, almost every city or township has it's own animal control with associated shelter. Most of the time, you can't necessarily call or check a website, you have to visit. AND, MANY cities DO INDEED get guinea pigs dumped and surrendered on them, but since they don't THINK anyone will adopt them or they just don't have the resources or knowledge to deal with them, they are put down right away.

You should check the local papers, Craigslist, bulletin boards at the stores or even put an ad somewhere yourself that you are looking. Check in with some vets.

IT'S NOT HOW THE PET STORE IS TREATING THE ANIMAL THAT IS THE PROBLEM.

The vast majority of pet stores buy from distributors or backyard breeders.

THIS is the kind of wholesale torture and abuse you are CONTRIBUTING to by being a part of the pet trade: (broken link removed). And if you think this is an isolated case, trust me it's not. Not at all. Oh and here is one very pertinent quote from that page: "NAPD receives HUNDREDS of animals from breeders every WEEK and, in turn, ships them to its retail clients."

There are many other associated problems. Big, nasty problems.

Try to find a pig in need and don't be a part of the pet trade mill. Make an effort to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.