113 replies to this topic

[jeangenie18]

I bought my hamster from petco and he was in a tank with 3 other syrians who kept trying to climb the water bottle because there was no wheel. I wish I could've bought all 4 to put them in their own bins. This was my first hamster I bought myself but I don't think I'll be buying another from a pet store unless it's a well respected store or from a shelter.

[Lucas]

Well I understand where you're coming from but i honestly don't think all the people that work there are morons. They have to do their job. They may not like the companies policies and how they treat the animals and where they come from but some people need a job just to survive not just because they want discounts or something at petco. I know I don't always agree with what my company does and I can't do anything about it because I need the money.

I don't know, I just don't think its fair to blame every associate that works there. I mean if you were to talk to a supervisor or something it would be different but a regular associate can't really do much. =/

I both agree, and disagree at the same time.
Working in a petstore is not all fun and games like most people think. It's not just about playing with cute little creatures all day, and that's what a lot of people think when they send in their resumes. It's pretty much the exact oposite.
And people who think that? Don't deserve the job. At all.

A fair number of people look to work at petstores for that exact reason, and then they can't uphold the responsibility that goes with it; normally because they didn't know there was one to begin with? I work in a petstore (Pet Depot) and I work and have worked with people who know NOTHING about animal care, but they slip past my managers and bosses because they themselves don't give a <super> about any living creature there.

Can't tell you how many people have worked there for no longer than a week, then get fired because they're incompitent, and people like me complain about it. Sometimes, they don't get caught. Heck, I STILL work with people who don't deserve to work in a petstore...

Fortunately, my bosses don't really have a lot of say towards the housing of the animals... as disgusting as that is. The only thing my bosses have to complain about are what's on the shelves, and how much money we've raked in that day. I honestly have to say I dislike my job for the most part, because of it. It's not just a completely mentally and physically exhausting job, it's also just... yeah. I'm rarely around when new animals come in, and when I do come in I spend half my time rearranging the animals. We've had a lot of casualties because people just put them wherever they want.

It isn't fair, however, to blaim the people working there--to an extent. As I said before, it's a heavy burden (in my opinion) to work in a petstore. You're caring for animals, and making sure they go to a good home. It's both rewarding, and degrading at the same time.

I've never been to Petco, but I have a bone to pick with places like Pet Smart and even Pet Land.

[pyro78]

The PetCo near me didn't have anything but dwarfs, mice, rats, and gerbils so i didn't buy from them but i did notice that the critters that they did have tended to have anywhere from 2-6 per tank, but they were larger style tanks (i think 20gal) still a fair amount of critters for one tank though... I got mine from PetSmart, at the one by my house they don't follow the 1 per tank rule all the time, but in all of my many many trips to it i have only rarely seen 2 Syrians in one tank (unless they were dwarf then they tended to have 2), I liked how they ran things, it was very clean, and the sales people did seem to know a lot even the people who worked in the other sections (though just as in any store there were a few that knew very little but they made an effort to grab someone who knew what i wanted to know). At PetCo, the people also seemed somewhat knowledgeable, but if they didn't know they just walked away which i didn't care for. But all in all, i am for the most part pleased with PetCo and PetSmart, but in PetCo i do not like how they house the rodents

[SouthPaw]

I will say that most of the time, the hamsters are young enough that they're not really territorial yet. And they sell fast enough that it never really becomes an issue.

As sad as it may be to think about, it IS a business. So logically speaking you could say, well, maybe they just shouldn't have as many hamsters so they could each have their own cage without taking up too much space. But they're not going to make much money if there are never more than, say, 4 hamsters in the store. The animals aren't there to be cared for in an extraordinary way, they're just there as a service to the public looking to buy an animal. Really the pet store's only obligation is to keep the animals ALIVE--and sometimes they can't even manage to do that.

The Pet Supplies Plus here is a good store, they have signs all around the cages saying MUST BE KEPT SOLITARY. However in the store, they are kept together. They need to save space, and they also need to make money. If their supplier brings in a litter of 13 hamsters... well, they're going to take all 13, not only 2 of them because they only have 2 tanks.

It's sad, but that's how pet stores have to be. They're a business.

[Spot]

Quote:
I will say that most of the time, the hamsters are young enough that they're not really territorial yet. And they sell fast enough that it never really becomes an issue.

As sad as it may be to think about, it IS a business. So logically speaking you could say, well, maybe they just shouldn't have as many hamsters so they could each have their own cage without taking up too much space. But they're not going to make much money if there are never more than, say, 4 hamsters in the store. The animals aren't there to be cared for in an extraordinary way, they're just there as a service to the public looking to buy an animal. Really the pet store's only obligation is to keep the animals ALIVE--and sometimes they can't even manage to do that.

The Pet Supplies Plus here is a good store, they have signs all around the cages saying MUST BE KEPT SOLITARY. However in the store, they are kept together. They need to save space, and they also need to make money. If their supplier brings in a litter of 13 hamsters... well, they're going to take all 13, not only 2 of them because they only have 2 tanks.

It's sad, but that's how pet stores have to be. They're a business.

exactly what went through my mind.

[Luci]

This is going to sound so bad, but I don't mean it to in any way. That price seems pretty high for a Syrian. I have never seen them over $10 anywhere, and the store I trust the most for all small animals sells them for about $6-7. Just seems odd to see the price more than doubled!

I got Bella at $16.99, and she's a Robo. It's too much, but you know, it's not rediculous . At Petsmart they come 'Vet Assured' and you can return them and get a replacement for free (within 2 weeks)

[jeangenie18]

The reason they're higher at petsmart, according to a petsmart employee who posted on this forums (I forgot your name ), is to discourage pet snake owners from buying them as food.

Edited by jeangenie18, 11 May 2010 - 09:19 AM.

[animalcrazy]

The hamsters sold in India are usually stored in buckets for days.. I have also seen 10 - 12 dwarfs in a 2 feet tank and 7-10 syrians stored in a 2 feet tank... I have also seen Syrians and dwarfs housed together, I think I have a pic of this setup somewhere... Sellers here sell syrians in pairs and if a customer wants to buy a single syrian then they are told that a single syrian will die without a companion.. Buyers are also told that hamsters breed only when they reach 1.5 years of age and they give 1 pup in their entire life...Sellers here talk absolutely nonsense to sell animals, there is nothing much any customer can do other than boy cot all the sellers, but that would mean that there wont be any sellers left to buy hamsters from :(

[stephie]

I think they do this because...if you really think about it, do they really need to buy/set up a tank for EVERY SINGLE HAMSTER they carry? you have to remember, they aren't the owners of these hamsters they are simply the suppliers. places like petco + petsmart do not specialize in only hamsters. they have plenty of other animals to deal with as well..so I'm guessing they want to make everything as simple and cost effective as possible. xD;

though I think they should let people know that you shouldn't buy more than one syrian. they don't and it's lame.

[johnnywalnuts]

its very common that pet stores will keep hamsters together in large numbers even when it isn't recomended. most of the times its all hamsters from the same litters. their reasoning is that they aren't living in their forever homes and that when they are taken out of the store they won't live that way. they do this with fish too. if you notice they have loads of goldfish together in ten gallon tanks when just one goldfish can live in a ten gallon tank, tops. it really isn't harmful to the hamsters considering they are siblings and won't be forced to live like that forever but it is not ideal at all. i mean, in the wild they grow up together. not saying its right but when i question it this is the answer i always get.

[SyrianPumpkin]

Yes quite a lot of pet stores do this but only until a curtain age (usually), But are to dumb to separate them after they get to old i feel bad for the hamsters, I got Pumpkin from Petsmart I think he was in a 10 gallon tank with another hamster that looked like him i think it was his brother , Well the only reason pet stores do it is because of space They don't have enough space to keep each syrian hamster separated, But even if they had space i bet they would still keep them together

[pinefresh730]

I just bought my Syrian from Petco yesterday, and the tank mine was in had FIVE Syrians together.
And the tank was so small, with a mesh wheel. :( I felt bad for the others. I wanted to take them all.

[johnnywalnuts]

i purchased pandora from my local pet store, its called bensons and is lcoally owned and operated, and i purchased talula, penelope and bianca from petsmart.
at the petsmart where i live they keep all dwarf hamsters alone except for robos. and they also do this at my local pet store as well, both saying they don't want to take any chances on them fighting. but you're right, if you look at the syrians there are usually more than 2 together at one time and aren't they more notorious for needing to be alone?
i refuse to shop at petco because everytime i've been in there they have staff that knows next to nothing about any of the animals they sell and it appears that they hire just about anyone...not comforting.

[Barrix]

It appears as if my Petco is much different than the ones that are in your areas. At our local Petco, the employees are well educated on the animals they sell and they're always willing to take in some advice. They don't keep animals that are aggressive with each other together. It makes me happy that they're working so hard to make sure everything is done right. Good job, Petco!

Lets not insist that these people are morons, instead we should be helping them better understand what is right and wrong. Knowledge is very powerful.

Edited by Barrix, 17 October 2011 - 11:53 AM.

[Not-Here-Bye]

Thankfully they don't do that in my local Pet's at Home...I guess that's something I can be thankful for.