Petco Q.

[Chiefmcfuz]

Ok so my friend saw my Leo and he fell in love with it. He's been looking for a reptile that him and his family could enjoy with semi easy needs. So I told him about this forum. Anyway he called me today and asked about petco livestock. My response was pretty much the same as anyone would give, I reccomended that he went to a breeder or a local pet store to purchase the animal. He is set on petco, and is going tomorrow. (Pretty much not listening to me) He is not computer savy and won't check out the site. He bought a tank at my lfs with uth carpet and a light. I gave him a moist hide and he is going to use repticarpet or paper towels but not sand, at least he is listening to me on that aspect.

My question without getting flamed is this and keep in mind I am going to hit home probably about a thousand times between now and tomorrow evening to not go to petco, but if it doesn't work what should he be looking for to make sure the leo is as healthy as possible. I was lucky trust my pet guy and the animal was clean, chubby and eating regulalrly. Petco usually doesn't feed things in front of you etc so you can see them being healthy. Advice would be great.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

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[beanx]

I dont know why everyone dislikes petco and all the major pet stores. I have purchased many of leopard geckos from them without ever having 1 problem. Just tell him to not feel bad and pick one of the skinny little sickly babys and he should be fine. I actually just purchased 2 SHTCTB and an Albino, all adults, from them about 3 months back, then purchased a male from theurbangecko.com he has since matted with them and all of them but 1 has laid a clutch of eggs for me and the one that hasn't is gravid. There isn't nothing wrong with buying reptiles from petco. i dont care what anyone says.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

I am not asking for a bash I am just looking for advice on picking the best possible animal. Again still trying to get him to look at the site and or go to the LFS as well.

 

[beanx]

just tell him not to pick a baby if at all possible and if he can pick up a sub-adult/adult that isnt skinny or sickly looking. Just use basic common since and he should be fine, just look the animal over make sure it has all its toes, eyes,arms etc. . Babies arnt bad either but most people let there feeling get in the way here and pick up the sickly little skinny worthless looking babys just because they want to ween them back to life, and 99.9% of the time they are just going to die. If he can get a sub-adult/adult that is already well established he should be golden.

 

[Bodon]

Petco is usually good for leos IF they just got them in, the one i got from there turned out to be a super hypo tangerine carrot tail, its very healthy and very nice. The other one i got was half dead and not much better right now, but i knew it was sick and i was trying to save it. I suggest staying clear from a "rescue" gecko. A breeder is your best bet but a local pet store or major chain has good ones as well in my opinion.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

I have heard stories about people going into petco for things and adopting animals to them which I think is a great policy. How does one get that to happen. I was in my local Petco and they had a nice sized leo but his tail had been dropped and grown back. Would that count as an adoptable animal?

How would I even approach that topic with the manager?

 

[jaredm3624]

Well, I'll say this. One leo I purchased from a chain pet store is doing great. He was healthy the day I got him and stayed that way. Then I purchased a leo from a certian pet store chain. Nothing but problems. If he won't listen and still goes in to get a leo, tell him to pick one out that is obviously not a baby. One that looks like it's been eating. I'm sure not all of their leos are bad, but it is better to buy from a local breeder.

 

[Jaiden23]

I would say to anyone that is going to purchase a leo from a pet store:

1. Buy the oldest/largest gecko available, no matter how cute the little ones are

2. Look closely at their cage, if it looks like it hasn't been cleaned in awhile, don't buy the gecko as it has a higher chance of being ill. I was at a pet store recently where the leo's tank easily had 3-4 weeks worth of feces that hadn't been cleaned.

3. Check the substrate, if it's housed on loose substrate there's a chance it could be impacted if it has been housed there for awhile.

4. Ask how long they've had the gecko, if it's been there for weeks then the chance of malnutrition is even higher. You want a gecko that they haven't had very long.

5. Have one of the pet store workers get the gecko out and handle it a bit, make sure it is alert when being handled (eyes open and clear, sticking tongue in and out, looking around,ect)

6. Ask what they've been feeding it and how much they've been giving it. If they say they feed it 5 crickets everyday and there are 5 loose crickets in the cage... then it may not be eating and there may be something wrong.

I bought my girl from a local pet store and she has been very healthy and friendly since day one. It is much safer to buy from a breeder, but as long as you think things through and really look at the animal and its tank you can sometimes find a good leo at a store. I wish them the best of luck finding a healthy leo.

 

[karls-geckos]

if it looks good and healthy get it and remember a large portion of those pet shop geckos come from breeders right here on gecko forums and they wholesale them off to suppliers who sell them to petco etc... but no-one wants to admit it lol:main_rolleyes:

 

[downthebeatenpath]

Just the basic checks, make sure eyes are clear, no cloudiness. Ask if you can see them eat to see which is most active and eating the most. I know a lot of times at the big chain stores you chose any pet and they just chuck it right in the box, ask to examine it before they do, check for any cuts or abrasions. Also make sure there are no broken bones. Check vent area make sure it's clean. And then what everyone else said about cleanliness of tank and such. There is nothing wrong with buying from a big chain store as long as you use common sense.

 

[Isujustice05]

definitely, i just purchased a SHTCTB from a chain for only 29.99 my buddy got one also and they had 4 total all on reptile carpet all fat tailed and very lively actually it is the only gecko i have gotten that has eaten right away! 7 meal worms and 7 crickets as soon as i brought it home! just use your head

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

So the post from today was about animal adoption happenings and ways to get around to doing it, does anyone have an answer to post #7 from this thread, from today, quoted below?

I have heard stories about people going into petco for things and adopting animals to them which I think is a great policy. How does one get that to happen. I was in my local Petco and they had a nice sized leo but his tail had been dropped and grown back. Would that count as an adoptable animal?

How would I even approach that topic with the manager?

 

[Jaiden23]

So the post from today was about animal adoption happenings and ways to get around to doing it, does anyone have an answer to post #7 from this thread, from today, quoted below?

I really think it depends on the manager. When I approached the manager of one of the other chain stores about a young leo who had lost her tail the previous week, the manager replied that 'We only lower the prices or adopt geckos out when they are missing limbs, tails do not count because they grow back.'

If the tail is missing and the gecko seems perfectly healthy in every other way... you may have some trouble getting them to adopt it out to you. I would say your best bet would be to try to convince the manager that no one else will buy that gecko because of the condition it is in. At least this is what I've gathered from my experience with different stores in my area.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Sorry about the confusion BTW, My friend Mike waited til the last sow and picked up one there. Being a mod on another forum It drives me crazy when the same people start new threads for the same type subject. That's why I found it better to continue this discussion

 

[syntheticreality]

This is actually scintillatingstar- but either way
I work at a major chain petstore, ********. Honestly, policy's are all the same. If the animals are sick- they are not allowed on the floor to be sold. I know ***** has a reputation of being one of the poorer chains, but honestly, this is not true. Every store is different. Some will have employees who are much more caring/knowledgable.

You wont get an adoption for a regen tail. If the animal had scares or a tail nip or major thing like that, then I would think that is different. A regen tail could happen even if you purchase a gecko from a breeder and it looses it in shipping.

If the animals are so sick that you say you'll rescue or adopt it that is technically against the law. The animals that are not 100% healthy are suppose to be quarantined and fixed before being sold to public. Then again, if you get a manager who does not care- that would be different.

Geckos can live 20+ years. Don't be cheap on something that can be your pet for a huge chunk of your life! Go in there and pick the one you truly want and think will be the right pet for you. Not one you feel bad for or one that looks sickly. Fat tails- clear eyes- healthy looking gecko's are pretty easy to spot

Best of luck! I think petco is not a bad idea, he could end up with a real looker quite possibly!

 

[downthebeatenpath]

They usually pick what animals are up for adoption, I've never heard of someone getting the store to adopt an animal out to them unless it was already marked for adoption. The only way I could see it for a leo too is if someone had brought one in who didn't want it anymore. Leo's are the chain stores money makers, they sell so many of them, so I doubt they would just give them away for free if it is from their own inventory.

 

[Euphoric]

I work for petsmart too Jason, I worked there for six months, returned to school, and I am back to work on monday as pet care (Meaning I care for the animals) and after my 90 days I will be able to qualify for pet care manager because the pet care manager there is leaving out of state, so hopefully I will get the position.

I almost worked at petco but it feel through (on my part)

I think a lot of people have bad feeling towards chain retailers. But you know, a lot of the problem is they will hire people not knowing what they are doing. I got my first reptile when I first started working at petsmart, two bearded dragons. It took a lot for me to learn but now I can give good sound advice. I have a lot of people come into work and say they have heard a thousand different things from 8 stores that have 16 year olds working just to get cash.

Getting a gecko or any animal from a pet store isn't bad. Thats what they are there for, and in AZ at least I find most of the time they are cared for. While I will say petco does do things like put their geckos on sand which isn't good.

I recently found out my favorite pet store, **** ***, a independent business is breeding leos and some of them are magnificent. Now they keep their geckos on beast bedding (vermaculite) and it baffles me. And they are selling one month old babies too for a good price (They have sunglows for 120, which would be cheaper for me to order online for once)
However, all their geckos look healthy and are quality breed lines. Since I am a regular and close to all personal, I got to look at the parents and I am amazed at thier color and health.

OH, and I might add, sometimes you just get sick animals in from shipment. Its now always our fault.

 

[packs_fan]

I dont believe all of the chains do badly I believe like what euphoric said that yeah the ppl dont know what there doing sometimes. I think though that I have noticed with most of the local pet stores in my area is they are very under stocked with reptile supplies. It always seems like I have to order most of the things for my tank. Strangely enough though just yesterday I found a store called Pet supplies plus which they had much more things than any of the pet stores I have went to for reptile supplies and were much cheaper. They also had their animals on vermiculite they seemed extremely healthy and their areas were kept spotless. Although a lot of them were very young. Petco I have never had any expeirence with basically because I have never went to one.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

IMO Chain stores are fine it's the employees that you need to worry about. That being said most of the employees are fine its a select few you need to worry about.

BAck to topic this one leo has been there for about 2 months and he looks fine just nobody has bought him. That's why I was thinking of going the adoption route.