| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| nickyff |
Posted - 10/09/2011 : 23:29:49
I go to this shop for supplies for my guinea pigs, mainly for the convenience- (no small petshops near where I live), and for a long time have been repulsed by the conditions their fish are kept in- my kids like to go look at the tanks while we're there, and EVERY time we go at least one tank has a 'floater' that's just been left in there with the other fish, non of the many staff seem to know or care-
When my son said he wanted to get a snake for his 7th birthday, I researched online about vivs, heating etc, (LOTS on this site!) and as part of swotting up before we collected our chosen hatchling from the very nice chap who bred him (found online), I went to pets at home to ask about heatmat and stat sizes prices, etc. They had LOTS of baby corns all kept in those plastic tubs you get chinese takeaways in- I asked to see one, a chap there got out a baby that was about 16 inches long- it immediately went skeetering up his arm, presumably just in the delerium of having some space to move about in.. during the conversation I realised that the snakes there are kept in these tiny tubs 24/7.. when I asked about fauns/vivs he said that it would be okay to keep a pet snake in a tub like theirs. AS ITS PERMANENT HOME!! At the time it was early in my research process, if I had been the sort of person to buy a pet on a whim, I could've taken that snake and made its life hell by keeping it in a tiny boring plastic tray, and been none the wiser because the man at the petshop told me it was okay. It was only when we went to choose our baby and I saw the very different conditions, and the very different behaviour of the snake, (so chilled in comparison, one of them sat in my son's hand and dozed off) that I realised what bad advice I'd been given.
There are laws now about petshops not being allowed to keep kittens/puppies for sale unless they provide specific living conditions, which for massive chains like pets at home obliterates the profit margin- so they don't do it. There should be the same laws for ALL living creatures. The branch of PAH that I went to had about 20-30 corn babies, of various sizes, all in chinese takeaway boxes. All the time. Until they (hopefully) go to a home where the new owner has some level of empathy/common sense and/or experience or acquired info about how to keep a snake in the best possible captive conditions.
there should be a reptile equivalent of the geneva convention.
(>>....and.... breathe.......<<)
sorry about the big rant but its been brewing inside me since it happened |
| 12 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Spreebok |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 20:54:37
Anyone with a half a brain would be able to see when the hatchling is getting too big for it's tub and move it up.
Infact, anyone with half a brain would research their new potential pet instead of just impulse buying. |
| viraleye |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 20:22:15
Eeji - i know this is totally off topic but I've sent you a message on Facebook. just wondered if you could take a look and get back to me?
Stu |
| eeji |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 19:37:22
my hatchlings are kept in small tubs, a tiny bit larger than a cricket tub. Does that make me a bad keeper? If in your opinion it does then please enlighten me as to why. |
| zandefloss |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 17:53:33
I used to work at PAH and it does annoy me when the staff are slagged off for not looking after their animals properly, especially the fish, who are kept in good conditions with a very strong filtration and sterilization system, dead fish are removed as soon as they are noticed, but yes, it is posssible for one to be unnoticed, inbetween the checks, young fish tend to die quite a lot, not because of living conditions, but because of the stress of being moved from the breeders, to the pet store, to peoples homes etc, it is the same no matter what pet store you use, it can often appear worse at PAH because the powerful and numerous tanks can hold more fish.
We did not sell reptiles when I worked there, but I am confident that PAH staff and head office have tried their best to provide these animals with a good level of care, living conditions and advice. All staff are educated about each and every animal, but it is difficult as this training takes time and it is very hard to become an expert on every animal in the store. However I can tell you that every person that I worked with LOVED pets and would always try and provide them with their best lives whilst they were with us - in fact sometimes it was hard to let them go!
Also I agree with the above, both the housing and behaviour is normal hatchling behaviour :)
zan x |
| fluffycorn |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 11:39:54
quote:
Originally posted by Sta~ple
Um... baby corns should always be kept in takeaway tubs, means they don't escape and the space is perefct for them. And yes, it is perfectly fine to keep a snake in a platic tub as a perament home so long as it is big enough. The smaller and better fitting the home the better than one with lots of room and space. The baby snake wooshing up the guys arm is perfectly normal behaviour for a baby.
Agreed  when fluffy was tiny he was kept in a takeaway tub with some kitchen roll in the bottom, toilet roll tubes as hides and pop bottle lid as his water dish |
| FerretDragon |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 11:18:45
quote:
Originally posted by Sta~ple
Um... baby corns should always be kept in takeaway tubs, means they don't escape and the space is perefct for them. And yes, it is perfectly fine to keep a snake in a platic tub as a perament home so long as it is big enough. The smaller and better fitting the home the better than one with lots of room and space. The baby snake wooshing up the guys arm is perfectly normal behaviour for a baby.
Agreed! ALL hatchlings that I have ever looked at from breeders have been in take away tubs or cricket tubs. My baby snow corn is STILL living in his cricket tub because anything bigger makes him feel insecure. Nothing wrong with it! |
| Okeetee Mick |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 11:08:59
Having visited our local Pets at Home store on a few occasions I have been quite impressed with the lay out and conditions the animals are kept in (none reptile store). The big turn off for me is the poor knowledge of the employees regarding animal requirements. |
| Mamma |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 10:28:09
quote:
Originally posted by Sta~ple
Um... baby corns should always be kept in takeaway tubs, means they don't escape and the space is perefct for them. And yes, it is perfectly fine to keep a snake in a platic tub as a perament home so long as it is big enough. The smaller and better fitting the home the better than one with lots of room and space. The baby snake wooshing up the guys arm is perfectly normal behaviour for a baby.
^^ agreed xx |
| Sta~ple |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 09:12:25
Um... baby corns should always be kept in takeaway tubs, means they don't escape and the space is perefct for them. And yes, it is perfectly fine to keep a snake in a platic tub as a perament home so long as it is big enough. The smaller and better fitting the home the better than one with lots of room and space. The baby snake wooshing up the guys arm is perfectly normal behaviour for a baby. |
| ADZUK2007 |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 00:28:00
It should b called pets in jail, PAH is good only for 1 thing and that is pet supplies like food and stuff!!! |
| paulie78 |
Posted - 10/09/2011 : 23:35:51
I remember being horrified recently after being told by our local tropical fish/reptile shop that theyd lost several thousand poundsworth of fish because theyd neglected to fill some forms in properly basically ticked the wrong box so the fish were stuck at the airport for several days and died apprently the rspca etc arent bothered by such instances because its "freight"
as for pets at home dont even go there wel be here all night lol |
| viraleye |
Posted - 10/09/2011 : 23:35:43
I had the very same problem when i had a tropical fish tank. One old chap was a fantastic help whilst all the rest was awful tellin me to just add fish even though my tank wasn't cycled.
Unfortunately it doesn't ever seem to change no matter which one you go into. |
