[split] Does PetsMart sell wild caught or captive bred tortoises?

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StudentoftheReptile

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I was told it was company policy that Petsmart does not sell green iguanas. I have never seen a single green iguana in a petsmart, nor have I ever met or heard of anyone who has seen an actual green iguana being sold in a petsmart.

futureleopardtortoise said:
Petsmart and Petco can only sell animals that aren't illegal in that area. So, I bet there is a Petsmart or Petco somewhere that sells green iguanas, just can't in most places because they are illegal.

I also take a little offense to the anole thing. We caught our own anoles in Florida and had them for several years, even got a few accidental babies. Sure we had no idea what we were doing, but we actually ended up taking pretty good care of them. :D

Again, I'm was talking in generalities. The average joe knows squat thinks all there is to keeping anoles is a Kritter Keeper. A TRUE herper will learn from their mistakes and improve their husbandry over time. The average joe will not; to him, a green anole is just a gold fish with legs...or an ant farm, or a grow-a-frog kit = something disposable. They don't view them how you or I or anyone else on this board sees them.
 

Mgridgaway

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As far as I've seen, most stores don't sell Iguanas anymore. They're the Sulcata of lizards; they're cheap, they get huge, and they need a lot of space. And Unlike Sulcatas, if you get one that doesn't tame well (like my Ferdinand), they can also be dangerous and unpredictable. I personally think it's one of the better choices pet shops have made. People who still really want a green iguana can still easily get one from a trade show or online.

For what it's worth, every Petco or Petsmart I've been to has RT's that have that classic "I'm from the wild" look to them.
 

acrantophis

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I worked in a pet store for over 20 years. This topic saddens me. No one should be shopping at these giant mega stores. Apart from the terrible information you get concerning animal husbandry, you also are hurting local businesses. Support your locally owned pet shops. Spend your money locally. Large mega stores are killing small business. They kill our economy. Just like walmart and target, they destroy many small businesses in the area. This is one of the reasons the middle class is dying. Small shops can't and don't make money on livestock. It's on all the other things. When you buy an animal at a little place and all your equipment at petco you have voted, with your dollar, to shutdown a local privately owned shop. Remember when every town had a nice little pet shop? I do. That being said, petco buys most
Of their reptiles and amphibians from California zoological supply in San Luis Obispo. And they sell a lot of imported chelonians, squamates and anurans. They rarely breed anything but they do buy cb animals from many people.
 

EricIvins

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Okay here are the FACTS about Petco -

They sell both wild caught AND captive bred Tortoises.........Along with a myriad of other Reptiles.......

What they get is dependent on the supplier they use and the area they are in.......It is that simple.......And yes, some of those suppliers breed some of those animals that are "never" captive bred.........An example would be Water Dragons........It isn't particularly hard to do, akin to something like a Bearded Dragon that can be produced en' mass..........

$150 Hatchling Russians? I guess in a perfect world where the Geese still lay golden eggs..........
 

Deac77

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For the record I keep my "goldfish with legs" in a 55gal Viv I set up with live plants colonial pill bugs ad spent over 400$ on that set up alone I dont go half ***
 

Mgridgaway

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acrantophis said:
I worked in a pet store for over 20 years. This topic saddens me. No one should be shopping at these giant mega stores. Apart from the terrible information you get concerning animal husbandry, you also are hurting local businesses. Support your locally owned pet shops. Spend your money locally. Large mega stores are killing small business. They kill our economy. Just like walmart and target, they destroy many small businesses in the area. This is one of the reasons the middle class is dying. Small shops can't and don't make money on livestock. It's on all the other things. When you buy an animal at a little place and all your equipment at petco you have voted, with your dollar, to shutdown a local privately owned shop. Remember when every town had a nice little pet shop? I do. That being said, petco buys most
Of their reptiles and amphibians from California zoological supply in San Luis Obispo. And they sell a lot of imported chelonians, squamates and anurans. They rarely breed anything but they do buy cb animals from many people.

In my experience, mom and pop pet stores almost always lose my dollar because they mark up everything. For example, I went to our closest local pet shop this weekend (which is 45 minutes away) and while they surprisingly had pancake tortoises and only wanted $250 for them, they wanted $180 for a northern redfoot hatchling (normally no more than $150 shipped online) and $75 for a 160 Watt Powersun UVB that you can get on Amazon for $46 shipped.

Like many others, getting the best deal is my number one priority when buying something. I can certainly sympathize with small pet shop owners and their plight, but at the end of the day, if shopping online or at Petco/smart saves me 30% of what buying from a local store would cost, I'd rather save 30%. I love pet stores and I miss the many that've closed in my area, but being able to save money is more important to me.

And to be fair, the internet has affected pet stores just as much as box stores. For every animal, there's a breeder who can take advantage of the internet, cut out the middleman, and sell their animals for more profit than they would've made and less than we probably would've paid. And if that's not supporting small business, I don't know what is.
 

acrantophis

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Mgridgaway said:
In my experience, mom and pop pet stores almost always lose my dollar because they mark up everything. For example, I went to our closest local pet shop this weekend (which is 45 minutes away) and while they surprisingly had pancake tortoises and only wanted $250 for them, they wanted $180 for a northern redfoot hatchling (normally no more than $150 shipped online) and $75 for a 160 Watt Powersun UVB that you can get on Amazon for $46 shipped.

Like many others, getting the best deal is my number one priority when buying something. I can certainly sympathize with small pet shop owners and their plight, but at the end of the day, if shopping online or at Petco/smart saves me 30% of what buying from a local store would cost, I'd rather save 30%. I love pet stores and I miss the many that've closed in my area, but being able to save money is more important to me.

And to be fair, the internet has affected pet stores just as much as box stores. For every animal, there's a breeder who can take advantage of the internet, cut out the middleman, and sell their animals for more profit than they would've made and less than we probably would've paid. And if that's not supporting small business, I don't know what is.

All you said is sad but true. I grew up in a small town that became a big town. I rode the reptile industry wave from 1985 to 2003. I have bred and sold so many different animals it's crazy. I realize that buying and caring for animals is expensive. It's just unfortunate that an industry which was once such a strong economic entity is succumbing to a slow death...,Sorry I'm just down today. The shop I grew up working at and helped build was closed last week. I haven't worked there in 12 years. But the owner is a friend of mine. It's seems like a trend for small stores of any kind to have to close because of large megastores. What does the future hold, only 2 stores? Home depot and Walmart?
 

Mgridgaway

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acrantophis said:
All you said is sad but true. I grew up in a small town that became a big town. I rode the reptile industry wave from 1985 to 2003. I have bred and sold so many different animals it's crazy. I realize that buying and caring for animals is expensive. It's just unfortunate that an industry which was once such a strong economic entity is succumbing to a slow death...,Sorry I'm just down today. The shop I grew up working at and helped build was closed last week. I haven't worked there in 12 years. But the owner is a friend of mine. It's seems like a trend for small stores of any kind to have to close because of large megastores. What does the future hold, only 2 stores? Home depot and Walmart?

I can understand your pain. Our neighborhood pet store closed down 3 or 4 years ago. I bought countless animals from there over the years, and loved going in to see their sliders and huge Iguanas. My personal favorite, about 20 minutes away, closed down a year before that. One stands empty and the other is now a Five Below. I like seeing the animals at Petco/Petsmart, but they seem like an afterthought to the huge pet supplies racket they run.

I think pet stores are just one of those business models that completely lost their viability after the internet became mature and box stores became the norm. Most of the supplies I need (lights, heat, etc) are just plain cheaper online. Cheaper than a mom and pop, cheaper than a big box. Most other supplies I go outside of traditional pet stores (ie going to home depot to build enclosures, get pots for hides, etc).

At least I have reptile shows in my area so I can get something similar to that feeling of nostalgia and excitement you get from going to the pet store. I just wish they didn't charge just to get in.... :(
 

StudentoftheReptile

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Deac77 said:
For the record I keep my "goldfish with legs" in a 55gal Viv I set up with live plants colonial pill bugs ad spent over 400$ on that set up alone I dont go half ***

If more people were like you (with any species, not just anoles!), this would hardly be an issue.

My mentality is to try and treat every animal like its priceless, not disposable. Most people just try to evaluate cost of care vs initial price of the animal. Not many are going to spend hundreds of dollars to set-up a $7 lizard.
 

CourtneyAndCarl

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I even hate it when people keep goldfish in small bowls or tanks! Goldfish belong in nothing less than 55 gallons with a huge filter, or even better, a POND. One of my least favorite things about working at Petco is getting all the people come in that want to put a butterfly koi in a 20 gallon tank. I always tell them "you realize this thing is going to get three feet long, right?" and I am so surprised that there are still so many people that believe fish grow to the size of their tank. A lot of people ask me that about my tortoise, too.
 

StudentoftheReptile

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I just thought of a GREAT idea!

You know how we all go around in circles about how most people suck and take horrible care of their pets, and how there should a test for people to own pets, blah blah blah, etc. Of course, this is not feasible, but I just thought of an alternative.

Kind of an incentive for consumers and "noobs" to learn more about pets. Have a Quiz in pet stores or something, and if the customer gets every question correct, they get a discount, or giftcard or something. Questions like:

1.) Fish, reptiles, and amphibians will only grow to the size of their tank: true or false?
2.) If I put my reptile tank by the window, I don't have to buy any lights for it: true or false?
3.) As long as I replace the cartridge in my filter, I don't have to do water changes on my aquarium: true or false?
4.) A fish's stomach is approximately the size of its eyeball: true or false?

...stuff like that. The questions they get wrong, will give the store staff an opportunity to educate them. And there may be a small consolation prize involved...who knows? Because really, the whole point is to dispel all these silly misconceptions about basic small pet husbandry. Obviously, a lot of details to be worked out, but I think the idea has merit.
 

Deac77

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Actually it's petsmarts policy to do just this ask questions and if we don't feel the home is fit we can AND DO refuse the sale I turn down countless people a day/week because I won't let any of my animals go to bad homes even the fish I don't care for. And as for the anole set up I view it as a fish aquarium it way more interesting to watch and the activity level is very fun when feeding :) a 55gal fish tank would've been more expensive
 

GeoTerraTestudo

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StudentoftheReptile said:
I just thought of a GREAT idea!

You know how we all go around in circles about how most people suck and take horrible care of their pets, and how there should a test for people to own pets, blah blah blah, etc. Of course, this is not feasible, but I just thought of an alternative.

Kind of an incentive for consumers and "noobs" to learn more about pets. Have a Quiz in pet stores or something, and if the customer gets every question correct, they get a discount, or giftcard or something. Questions like:

1.) Fish, reptiles, and amphibians will only grow to the size of their tank: true or false?
2.) If I put my reptile tank by the window, I don't have to buy any lights for it: true or false?
3.) As long as I replace the cartridge in my filter, I don't have to do water changes on my aquarium: true or false?
4.) A fish's stomach is approximately the size of its eyeball: true or false?

...stuff like that. The questions they get wrong, will give the store staff an opportunity to educate them. And there may be a small consolation prize involved...who knows? Because really, the whole point is to dispel all these silly misconceptions about basic small pet husbandry. Obviously, a lot of details to be worked out, but I think the idea has merit.

That is a good idea! :D
 

CourtneyAndCarl

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GeoTerraTestudo said:
StudentoftheReptile said:
I just thought of a GREAT idea!

You know how we all go around in circles about how most people suck and take horrible care of their pets, and how there should a test for people to own pets, blah blah blah, etc. Of course, this is not feasible, but I just thought of an alternative.

Kind of an incentive for consumers and "noobs" to learn more about pets. Have a Quiz in pet stores or something, and if the customer gets every question correct, they get a discount, or giftcard or something. Questions like:

1.) Fish, reptiles, and amphibians will only grow to the size of their tank: true or false?
2.) If I put my reptile tank by the window, I don't have to buy any lights for it: true or false?
3.) As long as I replace the cartridge in my filter, I don't have to do water changes on my aquarium: true or false?
4.) A fish's stomach is approximately the size of its eyeball: true or false?

...stuff like that. The questions they get wrong, will give the store staff an opportunity to educate them. And there may be a small consolation prize involved...who knows? Because really, the whole point is to dispel all these silly misconceptions about basic small pet husbandry. Obviously, a lot of details to be worked out, but I think the idea has merit.

That is a good idea! :D

I agree, if you could get the box chains, even just one of them, on top of that, you'd really be on to something :)
 

StudentoftheReptile

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Deac77 said:
Actually it's petsmarts policy to do just this ask questions and if we don't feel the home is fit we can AND DO refuse the sale

That must be a new policy. Regardless, that was/has never been made known to me or anyone I know who has been employed by Petsmart. In my collective experience (and those I've spoken with), the general consensus was it doesn't matter what answers you get. You can try and persuade the customer to get something else, or "think about it," but if they straight tell you "I want to buy that _____ now," your job is box it up for them, make sure you tell them everything they need to know about caring for it, and hope for the best as they walk out the door...but it was never explicitly stated (at least verbally anyway) that refusing sale of a live animal was ever an option.

If that's the policy, fantastic. I now wish only more employees were properly trained to ask the right questions, because I can assure you that they are not...at least not in our local petsmarts anyway.
 

CourtneyAndCarl

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I believe the policy is that it's up to the managers. Most managers care more about profit, and just tell them to box up the animal. However, we have a lot of $300+ animals in the store, like all of our conures and things like that. We make SURE they are ready for that purchase before they walk out the store, especially after most of the employees get emotionally invested in them.
 

StudentoftheReptile

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GeoTerraTestudo said:
That is a good idea! :D

futureleopardtortoise said:
I agree, if you could get the box chains, even just one of them, on top of that, you'd really be on to something :)

I think so...because as much as we like to rag on pet stores and pet store employees (I feel that I can...because I worked in that environment for over 10 yrs), that is only one side of this battle. The other side is the customer/pet owner. Although I do concur that some responsibility does fall on any business for both providing healthy, quality animals and accurate, proper husbandry information, it ultimately is the responsibility of the consumer to know what they're getting into, and not to rely on a singular source for information.

Refusing a sale isn't enough. The indignant customer will just shop somewhere else or go pitch a fit to the manager until they get what they want. I know because I've seen it countless times. This idea is an INCENTIVE for the customer to go above and beyond what they already "think" they know or want. Yeah, not every person who walks in the front doors will participate (too time-consuming, or whatever).

It could also be a chance for employees to "refresh" themselves on some information, too, in preparation for this.
 

CLMoss

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StudentoftheReptile said:
I just thought of a GREAT idea!

You know how we all go around in circles about how most people suck and take horrible care of their pets, and how there should a test for people to own pets, blah blah blah, etc. Of course, this is not feasible, but I just thought of an alternative.

Kind of an incentive for consumers and "noobs" to learn more about pets. Have a Quiz in pet stores or something, and if the customer gets every question correct, they get a discount, or giftcard or something. Questions like:

1.) Fish, reptiles, and amphibians will only grow to the size of their tank: true or false?
2.) If I put my reptile tank by the window, I don't have to buy any lights for it: true or false?
3.) As long as I replace the cartridge in my filter, I don't have to do water changes on my aquarium: true or false?
4.) A fish's stomach is approximately the size of its eyeball: true or false?

...stuff like that. The questions they get wrong, will give the store staff an opportunity to educate them. And there may be a small consolation prize involved...who knows? Because really, the whole point is to dispel all these silly misconceptions about basic small pet husbandry. Obviously, a lot of details to be worked out, but I think the idea has merit.

Quiz? I don't think so... These stores want to sell product, and that is it. Education may lead to the sale of said animal to walk out of the door. Selling the animal is what lead to sales in the future for that store; food, supplies, etc., lack of education is the "hook." Also, these stores (or any) don't want to spend the time to educate, unless you ask a question (that they may not know), or if they want to take the time to educate you. Time is money, and staff would rather do nothing that to help educate. Well, at least this is what goes on here in NY. I am the one that ends up doing the "teaching" when I ask questions in some of these stores. Education, the best place is on "forums" like this, or societies of said interests. And your radio show! ~C
 

StudentoftheReptile

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CLMoss said:
Quiz? I don't think so... These stores want to sell product, and that is it. Education may lead to the sale of said animal to walk out of the door. Selling the animal is what lead to sales in the future for that store; food, supplies, etc., lack of education is the "hook." Also, these stores (or any) don't want to spend the time to educate, unless you ask a question (that they may not know), or if they want to take the time to educate you. Time is money, and staff would rather do nothing that to help educate. Well, at least this is what goes on here in NY. I am the one that ends up doing the "teaching" when I ask questions in some of these stores. Education, the best place is on "forums" like this, or societies of said interests. And your radio show! ~C

I dunno...if they handled it right, it would still be profitable. Have it for a limited time, advertise and promote it to get people coming in the doors, and even if they give away a few giftcards...once people have a little "extra" spending credit and are already in the store, they are more inclined to purchase stuff.

You are correct; the sales come from the "add-ons." But....you gotta get the people in the store in the first place!
 

CLMoss

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StudentoftheReptile said:
CLMoss said:
Quiz? I don't think so... These stores want to sell product, and that is it. Education may lead to the sale of said animal to walk out of the door. Selling the animal is what lead to sales in the future for that store; food, supplies, etc., lack of education is the "hook." Also, these stores (or any) don't want to spend the time to educate, unless you ask a question (that they may not know), or if they want to take the time to educate you. Time is money, and staff would rather do nothing that to help educate. Well, at least this is what goes on here in NY. I am the one that ends up doing the "teaching" when I ask questions in some of these stores. Education, the best place is on "forums" like this, or societies of said interests. And your radio show! ~C

I dunno...if they handled it right, it would still be profitable. Have it for a limited time, advertise and promote it to get people coming in the doors, and even if they give away a few giftcards...once people have a little "extra" spending credit and are already in the store, they are more inclined to purchase stuff.

You are correct; the sales come from the "add-ons." But....you gotta get the people in the store in the first place!

It is a great idea! As a marketing tool, it would be great! Maybe you can sell this idea to one of these stores. ~C
 
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