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The ignorance of pet store employees

BaconAndEggs

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

I'm not giving up hope quite yet, there are still quite a few people out there who actually care about an animal enough to do research for their wellbeing. It honestly isn't the people's fault (well, maybe sometimes), it's the place where the got the bad information from, or the falsely advertised items. I still go to the pet store sometimes with my parents to get food or something for our dogs and cat, and occasionally for guinea pig things. Most of my piggy food shopping is done elsewhere, however. It is sad what some people do to animals for whatever reason, or even just because they think it's fun! My mom always says: "A person who is cruel enough to torture an animal as a child, teenager, or young adult, just for fun, is the person who will most likely end up killing people.", and I agree with that. Most of the people you hear murdered for one reason or another started out with animals. I wouldn't be able to torture any animal, even if it was a flea. It just makes me feel too bad.
 

Kiyisha

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@BaconAndEggs :) That's not a bad trait to have, I could never hurt an animal either, I literally have anxiety problems now from clipping guinea pigs nails! Today I did bibbles and I was shaking and my heart was pounding the whole time! Just cause I was afraid of that little squeak when you knoow you accidentally went too far >_<

I also don't usually get my guinea pig stuff from pet stores, the quality even from oxbow to smallpetselect was insane, I could never go back to pet store hay and pellets!
 

BaconAndEggs

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I know, I feel like that too. I have to clean my pug's ears because they get gunky, and I flinch every time he yelps. One time I was at a horse riding camp. Every time the instructor would whip my horse I felt like taking it from her and throwing it away! And they said, "Wow, you're really good with that horse. He hates me." And I think, gee, I wonder why?

It's hard for me to hurt animals, even when I'm trying to help them. That's why I could never be a Veterinarian- if I lost an animal, it would just be too heartbreaking.
 

clementine8

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I work at a pet store. The products we sell are appalling. The only things I recommend are oxbow products. I tell people about C&C cages but they usually just want to buy a tiny one, so I recommend the oxbow one that at least has a pen you can pull out. I know guinea pigs very well, but I know a lot of pet store employees don't. The store doesn't provide great information to employees so they pretty much expect you to know it already or go out and research. I've done a lot of research on all the species we sell so I can give people the right info.

If you guys think you're frustrated walking into a pet store, imagine how I feel! You should see the idiot customers we get! Most people I try to talk OUT of buying an animal. Once someone asked me if we have any insulators for water bottles to keep them from freezing, because they keep their rabbit outside in below freezing temperatures! I was horrified and I had to bite my tongue. The guinea pigs are my favorite and I will fight people to get two and to buy only top quality products. It's sad to see the pigs go cause half the time I know the customers won't put in the effort to take care of them properly. Fortunately there are still customers who do a lot of research before buying guinea pigs, I really appreciate those people. I always tell people to check out the care guide on guinealynx.

What else is truly sad is the conditions our guinea pigs come in. They come from a gross small animal factory and they come to us infested with lice, ringworm, and/or URIs. They have to spend weeks in tiny bins in quarantine while they get treatment, poor things. It can be very upsetting working there, but I know I make a difference when I educate people on how to properly care for guinea pigs and they actually listen. Sometimes I really wish we didn't sell guinea pigs, thank god we don't sell rabbits cause they have it even worse!
 

4cavies

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I worked at a Petsmart as well, ten years ago. It was my first job and I lasted 4 months. I had coworkers who would tell people not to house same sex pairs of guinea pigs together, you had to do male/female pairs. There was an amazing sulfur crested cockatoo that could talk, loved being petted... Just the sweetest thing. Well, I got into it with a customer once because he was by the bars of his cage blowing raspberries in his face, spittle flying everywhere. My manager came over to see what was going on and told me *I* was out of line for saying something. There was a younger girl who worked there, too. She stole things. Never got fired over it. They don't provide ANY training other than how to sell the most expensive foods for each animal.

I really think most people think that animals are just disposable. Not just guinea pigs, ALL animals. It is a very sad thing. I understand the food chain, but not caring whether or not you are condemning a creature that has feelings to a hell of a life is pretty damn low.

There is also a semi-local pet shop near me. I went in once because I had just noticed it there by Joann's fabric. It. Was. Horrible. She had guinea pigs pack into a cage equivalent to a 3x2 cube cage. There was like 15 in there. She had four puppies in a kennel the size of a 2x4. Fish packed into tanks so tightly they could hardly move. A macaw in a cage that some jerk would think was large enough for a parakeet. It stank soooooo bad. I was so appalled that when she asked what I was looking for I just stared at her with my mouth gaping open. I didn't know what to do so I turned around and left. The next day I tried calling around to Animal services to figure out what could be done. They all pretty much told me nothing could be done.

Animals have the same rights being here as we do and people should not mistreat them because they CAN. Its the same thing as mistreating children. Bullies pick on the weak.
 

asnnbrg

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

It's sad that people are misled by people working at a petstore.

I just wanted to say I have 3 kids and I think the piggies make great pets with adult supervision and adults care.

Fully agree. I'd even go so far as to say my own three kids probably know more than the average pet store employee about guinea pigs and would have no problem setting someone straight. Guinea pigs are great with kids IF their parents are capable of being committed, properly educated pet parents. Heck, mine even discuss the herd dynamics of our pigs, can explain to their friends exactly why our middle pig has a disability and how she functions in spite of it, WHAT to feed a pig and how to house pigs.

That said, I hope the woman listened to what you had to say and took it to heart. Even if she believes the pet store employee, your words might stimulate her desire to research more before getting a piggy of her own -- and research is the best possible thing to do before adopting any new animal.
 

mufasa

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Sounds like that instructor was an idiot. The proper use of a whip or crop is as a cue, not as something to beat a horse with. For example, when lunging my horse, I use a crack of the whip as a signal to change pace or gait. A dressage whip is used against the horse as an extension of my leg. The people where I boarded my first horse bought a lovely Saddlebred, and I was teaching him to respond to leg cues and to move away from pressure. The minute he saw my dressage whip, he freaked. That and many other little signs showed that someone had obviously abused him in the past. I did manage to desensitize him to whips, and he eventually learned that no one would be cruel to him in his new home, but it made me so angry that anyone would have beat him. Granted, he wasn't one of the smartest horses I ever met, but he had the sweetest personality.

I know, I feel like that too. I have to clean my pug's ears because they get gunky, and I flinch every time he yelps. One time I was at a horse riding camp. Every time the instructor would whip my horse I felt like taking it from her and throwing it away! And they said, "Wow, you're really good with that horse. He hates me." And I think, gee, I wonder why?

It's hard for me to hurt animals, even when I'm trying to help them. That's why I could never be a Veterinarian- if I lost an animal, it would just be too heartbreaking.
 

clementine8

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I worked at a Petsmart as well, ten years ago. It was my first job and I lasted 4 months. I had coworkers who would tell people not to house same sex pairs of guinea pigs together, you had to do male/female pairs. There was an amazing sulfur crested cockatoo that could talk, loved being petted... Just the sweetest thing. Well, I got into it with a customer once because he was by the bars of his cage blowing raspberries in his face, spittle flying everywhere. My manager came over to see what was going on and told me *I* was out of line for saying something. There was a younger girl who worked there, too. She stole things. Never got fired over it. They don't provide ANY training other than how to sell the most expensive foods for each animal.

Agreed. The training is terrible...they just expect you to know about every species there! What infuriates me is that the managers force me to sell animals to idiots just so the customers don't throw a fit. I'm glad to see there are sites like this one and guinea lynx that give people the correct info, and you know they seriously care because they're not profiting from it. I do believe that many animals kept as pets don't belong in captivity...hamsters, for example. They spend 90% of their time trying to escape because they're too active to be in a cage. Guinea pigs have been domesticated thousands of years...most other rodents haven't even been domesticated 100 years.
 

BaconAndEggs

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My horse was stubborn, but it was partially my fault when he wouldn't go, because my signals weren't always clear. Then they would hit him with it, and whenever they would make me do it I'd just do a slight tap. Poor thing, every time I had to hold it he'd do whatever without... stubbornness. The first day there he jumped over a puddle, and I fell out of the saddle. lol
 

4cavies

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Agreed. The training is terrible...they just expect you to know about every species there! What infuriates me is that the managers force me to sell animals to idiots just so the customers don't throw a fit. I'm glad to see there are sites like this one and guinea lynx that give people the correct info, and you know they seriously care because they're not profiting from it. I do believe that many animals kept as pets don't belong in captivity...hamsters, for example. They spend 90% of their time trying to escape because they're too active to be in a cage. Guinea pigs have been domesticated thousands of years...most other rodents haven't even been domesticated 100 years.

Exactly. I knew quiet a lot about every animal there because I have always loved all animals and I made a point of learning as much as possible about all of them. If someone ever came in and asked something I didn't know, I would either tell them I flat didn't know or I would ask the onsite exotic vet. I would always tell people it is best to do research on an animal and learn as much as possible before making a decision.

I would quite often have people ask me if a guinea pig was a good first pet for a child and I would honestly tell them no. People assume because they are small and caged, they must be. As if you could deal with them whenever you felt like it because of that. I remember my speech being along the lines of how much it took to care for them. Cleaning their cage, providing fresh hay, water, pellets, cutting and serving a cup of veggies a day, knowing what they can have and how often. Safely trimming their nails and cleaning their ears, brushing, etc.. Also, keeping an eye out for any health problems and being able to tell when something may be wrong and acting timely about it. And it would be too much to expect an 8 or 9 year old child to handle on daily basis. So, unless their parent(s) understood that in all reality THEY would be the ones caring for the animal and supervising the childs interaction with it, then they had better not do it because there are too many pigs being abandoned and waiting for home as it is. I know the same holds true for all animals but some are definitely more time consuming than others. A cat is by far an easier animal to care for when it comes to time for a busy parent. I know that from experience.

It is totally selfish to think of getting an animal as a way to teach responsibility. A majority of young children don't have the attention span or ability to continuously care for another living thing day in and day out no matter if they don't feel good, have something better to do or simply don't want to, which is why children don't have children and there are too many homeless animals.

We got guinea pigs because I have always loved them and we were finally settled down enough for me to be able to have them again. I call them the family pets, but they are really for me. Even though my seven year old will set on the couch and pet the more laid back one and hand feed them veggies, bring them hay, I don't expect him to take care of them nor do I expect my busy husband to take care of them, every single day for every single they need. If I want to teach my children responsibility it is in their chores, etc.. not in a living being where if he does slip up it could be catastrophic.

Sorry for the rant, but some peoples views on animals really grinds my gears.
 

joys_cavies

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I know, I feel like that too. I have to clean my pug's ears because they get gunky, and I flinch every time he yelps. One time I was at a horse riding camp. Every time the instructor would whip my horse I felt like taking it from her and throwing it away! And they said, "Wow, you're really good with that horse. He hates me." And I think, gee, I wonder why?

It's hard for me to hurt animals, even when I'm trying to help them. That's why I could never be a Veterinarian- if I lost an animal, it would just be too heartbreaking.
Agreed. I want to be an animal rehabilitater to help poor animals. My family takes in injured or abandoned animals. And we never bring them home without going to the vet first. We got our kitten from the street, he's a runt and we think he was thrown out. One of our dogs, Pluto, is a basset hound mix from a hound rescue. We were looking at him and when we saw what hed been through and the medical bills (he was going to be put down because he had bronchitis and pneumonia) my mom said no cause we couldn't afford it. It also said he was very shy from being abused. My mom's bf wanted him and she still would not listen so I started teaching Zoe and Buddy (an old dog, now gone) tricks and teaching Zoe to calm down around people to prove I could work with him. Now he loves every dog and human unconditionally.


Before Pluto we were looking at a beagle named Bingo. One year old abused. Left in back yard. No food/water and beat. Horribly shy. We were gonna get her. We took Zoe in (keep in mind she's a border collie pit bull mix, very protective of my mom and sometimes shy of dogs bigger then her for past reasons). She went up to Bingo, they played, ran around, chased. Normal behavior right. Bingo went and laid down, and instead of Zoe going with her she went back to my mom. I went and sat with Bingo.


Oh boy this lady!!!! So because Zoe went to lay with my mom instead of Bingo, and she didn't come when I called (she usually doesn't if my mom is around cause she only listens to my mom if she's around. She listens to me but not if my mom is around. And I thought I was a mommas girl). The lady was just!!!!!! She said that because Zoe didn't come when I called, and stayed by my mom, and didn't interact with other dogs beside Bingo (every other dog was bigger then Zoe) she accused my mom of not raising her right! So we weren't allowed Bingo.

So we tried for Bentley. A year and half, broken leg they were going to put down for. They "didn't have the time and money" for his rehab. Like lady, you have 30+ dogs, and you can care from them all, you have 20+ volunteers, and you don't have "the time and money" for one dog!!! We were going to get him so my moms bf and I went in with Buddy leaving my mom in the car. Everything was going well. Buddy and Bentley were playing and my moms bf was talking to me confirming I could rehab him and bond him. Lady over hears us. Our conversation
Lady: Oh no. No no no. You can't let a little girl unsupervised with a sick dog.

Moms bf: I can assure she knows what she's doing. Buddy is her dog, and she's very sophisticated.

Lady: I don't care how sophisticated she is. She'll scare him and possibly hurt him!

Me: Doubt that. I'm great with animals.

Lady: This doesn't concern you

Mom (we were taking a while): Look lady, she's been around pets since the day she was born. She researches them, plays with them, heck she has her own dog walking and pet sitting business!

Me: *pulls moms bf to the side* "Watch. He's friendly

Me *walks toward Bentley* "Hey boy." I sit down. "Wanna come? Come here boy! Come on. I won't hurt ya. That's a good boy!"

Lady: Hey get away from him

*Bentley runs*

Me: You scared him!!!

Lady: "No. You were about to hurt him!"

Me: *opens my mouth*

Moms bf: *cusses lady out*

Mom: *grabs me and Buddy*

We didn't get Bentley either but we did report them. My mom was smart enough to record the whole thing without the lady knowing. Even though we didn't get Bingo or Bentley (mom's friend who is a vet adopted Bentley, did the surgery, re habed him, and adopted him out) we couldn't be happier with Pluto!

Gosh some people!!!!!
 

BaconAndEggs

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@joys_cavies yikes! That sounds... I'm not even sure how to describe it. Glad you reported them.
 

4cavies

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

I'm not giving up hope quite yet, there are still quite a few people out there who actually care about an animal enough to do research for their wellbeing. It honestly isn't the people's fault (well, maybe sometimes), it's the place where the got the bad information from, or the falsely advertised items. I still go to the pet store sometimes with my parents to get food or something for our dogs and cat, and occasionally for guinea pig things. Most of my piggy food shopping is done elsewhere, however. It is sad what some people do to animals for whatever reason, or even just because they think it's fun! My mom always says: "A person who is cruel enough to torture an animal as a child, teenager, or young adult, just for fun, is the person who will most likely end up killing people.", and I agree with that. Most of the people you hear murdered for one reason or another started out with animals. I wouldn't be able to torture any animal, even if it was a flea. It just makes me feel too bad.


It is true... My mom has been a clinical psychotherapist for 20+ years and she has always told me that just about every serial killer who has had a psychiatric profiling done has one of three things in common. One is torturing animals, another is inappropriate aged bed wetting and the last is setting fires.
 

mufasa

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

I'm a doctor of psychology and I can vouch for that, too. Read some true crime books and you'll see the trend. Cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer is a good example. Sickos "practice" on animals and use them as a way to let out their sick urges until they get a chance to do so on people.
 

BaconAndEggs

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

It is true... My mom has been a clinical psychotherapist for 20+ years and she has always told me that just about every serial killer who has had a psychiatric profiling done has one of three things in common. One is torturing animals, another is inappropriate aged bed wetting and the last is setting fires.
Yep. If you can torture a living thing to death, then you could do the same thing to a human.
 

joys_cavies

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

Yep. If you can torture a living thing to death, then you could do the same thing to a human.
Geez. Now I'm scared for my friend cause every animal she gets she absues. Well she's not really my friend anymore cause she's beat me up but I baby sit her little brother and he's more gentle with animals! She got a puppy for her birthday and when I asked to hold him she threw him! And when they die she doesnt care!
 

LoveMyHerd

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

Your friend might need some help. Throwing a puppy? Beating you up? YIKES.
Geez. Now I'm scared for my friend cause every animal she gets she absues. Well she's not really my friend anymore cause she's beat me up but I baby sit her little brother and he's more gentle with animals! She got a puppy for her birthday and when I asked to hold him she threw him! And when they die she doesnt care!
 

joys_cavies

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Re: The ignorance of pet store employees - may cost him his job

Your friend might need some help. Throwing a puppy? beating you up? YIKES.
Like I said. Not my friend. I mean I can easily take her and I have permission from her mom if she goes after me again I can beat her up. But every time I tell I her not to do whatever she's doing with the animal, she comes back with "its not your pet". I just tell her font come crying to me when your pet bites you.
 

LoveMyHerd

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Well, I'm just glad she's not your friend anymore...
 

sierralj97

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I always tell people if you want information about pets you're considering adopting, NEVER ask the pet store. Look up forums such as these and do your own research from the people who have owned the pet in question for years and actually know what they're talking about.

You definitely did the right thing by jumping in...I would've done the same! Kudos to you!

I don't think the guy should be fired for his misinformation. That's just ignorance, and that can be fixed. HOWEVER his attitude to you, a paying customer who is trying to help the welfare of the guinea pig, was completely unacceptable! He needed to swallow his pride right then and let you take over. He handled it completely wrong and for THAT he should be fired. Poor customer service skills I tell you...if I ever treated a customer like that, I'd be out the door in a second! And trust me, it's very easy to lose your temper in retail haha! :crackup:
 
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