113 replies to this topic

[♫Hamster On a Piano♫]

Oh also, the other day, when i went down to the US, (blaine or bellingham or something) I saw 8 robos in a 5 gal tank at Petsmart.

[SyrianPumpkin]

Oh also, the other day, when i went down to the US, (blaine or bellingham or something) I saw 8 robos in a 5 gal tank at Petsmart.

Thats so sad!!!!!!!!!

[PinkPumpkinGirl]

Makes me wanna cry! Poor ham hams!

[Anastasia♥]

I also can't believe how expensive the hamsters are. They care ONLY about money. They keep going up in price! Several years ago they were $7 at the Petco near me :(
They're way more expensive though. The Petco near me, though, keeps changing management, and some days I'll come in to a completely new set of employees, and a new sign on the Management door, saying it's under new management! So sad. Sometimes it's "Oh! Don't worry, we feed our parakeets fresh apples and bananas, and grapes and peppers every day, along with plenty of millet spray and ______blahblahblah_______ budgie food.....etc....etc...."
and sometimes it's "We feed them bird seed, I guess"

I always ask about the animals I want to buy first, and the plants. Some stores are SOOOOO helpful, though. Depends on who owns the store.

Edited by Anastasia♥, 30 November 2011 - 06:59 AM.

[Genevie]

In my local Pets at Home, I've seen up to 7 young Syrians in a tiny tank. It's sad. There tend to be less dwarves to each tank, probably because dwarves are not as popular. They're going up in prie here too, but I like that. Hopefully puts people off impulse buying.

[winterose]

I hated the petco i went to and i love the pet smart i got my Jasmine at.

My petco was terrible, would house 6 - 10 syrians in a 10g tank. bout the same amount for dwarfs. every hamster i got from them was sick. they didn't know a think about the animals they were selling

My Petsmart actually kept everyone alone but the dwarfs which they held in pairs. and there were some dwarfs alone which the employee i talked to said was because they didn't work well with their pair so they separated them.

She couldn't tell me bout how old they were or anything thing like that but she talked bout what each of their personalities was like and what they had been up to since they got to the store. the individual cages were a little on the small side but i would rather a hamster be a little cramped for a while than be fighting with other hamsters

[stuffedwheel]

There's a pet shop nearby me that separates all their animals properly. I was actually pretty impressed when I went in there. No more than three gerbils per tank, only about three dwarf hamsters in each tank, one Syrian per tank, and two-three guinea pigs per cage. Then... there's another one right down the street from them and it's horrible. When I went there, they had about 15 gerbils crammed into a ten gallon tank! They looked as if they'd been fighting, as well. Their Syrians were all crammed into one 10 gallon and I'm fairly certain dwarfs and Syrians weren't separated properly. I know it's just a temporary home, but there should be a limit. I haven't been to Petco in a LONG time but last time I was at my local one, they were pretty bad about separation, too. Not as much as the small one, though. At least I can say that about them.

ETA: I really don't mind price much. It really does help put people off impulse buying. I remember when I bought my last guinea pig YEARS ago... $15. They're at LEAST twice that now. Hamsters, gerbils, and most rodents have doubled in price since then, as well.

Edited by stuffedwheel, 30 November 2011 - 01:52 PM.

[Hamster Slave]

I bought my hamster from a bad pet store (found better one) and the hamsters were caged together and the hamster I bought had a lot of bites and her ear was bitten. My friend was telling me to return her but I didn't so I basically saved her life (luckily she wasn't pregnant.)

[emilystar]

They're a business The business world isn't always ethical. When I got Poptart she was in a tank with at least 10 other syrians. Most of them were extremely young (smaller than the baby dwarfs they had there; eyes barely opened) they also didn't have a wheel or a house. They were all in a pile in the corner to stay warm. Well except Poptart, she was sleeping in the food bowl. They also didn't separate genders. Luckily Poptart is as healthy as a horse and is gaining weight like crazy and has the softest, silkiest, and shiniest fur I've ever seen on anything.

[Christmas_hamster]

I bought my hamster from a bad pet store (found better one) and the hamsters were caged together and the hamster I bought had a lot of bites and her ear was bitten. My friend was telling me to return her but I didn't so I basically saved her life (luckily she wasn't pregnant.)

When buying from a pet store it isn't considered adopting or saving. It's called a sympathy purchase. While on an individual level you did a good thing for this hamster, on the larger scale you only supported the pet store and the mill that supplies their animals. By purchasing her out of sympathy you told the pet store that it's ok to do what they do. It isn't fair to animals that are already there, I understand that, but for future animals, not supporting pet stores is the best way to go. I am sure your hamster is quite thankful for getting out of the situation though. ;)

[Hamster Slave]

They're a business The business world isn't always ethical. When I got Poptart she was in a tank with at least 10 other syrians. Most of them were extremely young (smaller than the baby dwarfs they had there; eyes barely opened) they also didn't have a wheel or a house. They were all in a pile in the corner to stay warm. Well except Poptart, she was sleeping in the food bowl. They also didn't separate genders. Luckily Poptart is as healthy as a horse and is gaining weight like crazy and has the softest, silkiest, and shiniest fur I've ever seen on anything.

Yeah I saw my hamster with like 5 other ones and while I was there some started to fight each other and the owners didn't care at all.

When buying from a pet store it isn't considered adopting or saving. It's called a sympathy purchase. While on an individual level you did a good thing for this hamster, on the larger scale you only supported the pet store and the mill that supplies their animals. By purchasing her out of sympathy you told the pet store that it's ok to do what they do. It isn't fair to animals that are already there, I understand that, but for future animals, not supporting pet stores is the best way to go. I am sure your hamster is quite thankful for getting out of the situation though. ;)

Next time I'll try to adopt a hamster

[Elyse]

I bought my hamster from a small owned pet store; they keep the syrians separated them when they get to a certain age and they keep them happy as well healthy. Now for a chain place Petsmart keeps all their hamsters separated from the others and the hamsters look very healthy; would I buy a hamster from Petsmart? No, I'll continue to buy from the small owned pet store because I know what hamster I'm getting and they are the sweetest hamsters .

[Chibihamster]

What people fail to understand if that these animals are there temporarily. It is NOT a permanent home so being in a tank for a few days isnt terrible. These hamsters are really young so they do not spend much time together as stated at pet stores. I have seen older hamsters be put by themselves often but it's rare for hamster to grow old at petco since they're so popular.

Edited by Chibihamster, 05 March 2012 - 05:11 AM.

[Genevie]

What people fail to understand if that these animals are there temporarily. It is NOT a permanent home so being in a tank for a few days isnt terrible. These hamsters are really young so they do not spend much time together as stated at pet stores. I have seen older hamsters be put by themselves often but it's rare for hamster to grow old at petco since they're so popular.

I still don't think that makes it entirely acceptable. I have plans to one day own a pet shop in the future, and temporary or not, I want them to have good quality housing and care. I think where animals are involved, certain aspects of business need to be put aside so their needs can be focused on. They are living creatures, after all.

[Jani]

I agree with what Christmas hamsters saying, but the hamsters in the pet shops need to be bought or something. In the long run stopping pet stores using hamster mills/farns will hugely benefit hamsters in the future. But the hamsters in the stores need homes aswell.