Negligent Pet Store Owner- Help?

[Sangheili]

I live in this small city of Laramie in Wyoming, our population is small and we don't have any of the chain pet stores because it probably wouldn't make it here.
We have one small pet store called 'Pet Pantry' which has changed owners 4 or 5 times now. It is stupidly over-priced and really doesn't have much.

The woman is absolutely IGNORING different reptiles special needs. She always puts me down when I express my concern for her reptiles and acts like she knows everything about them.
She bought a bearded dragon baby without even looking up what they needed. She didn't have a UVB on him and when she finally did, he could not get within 6 inches of it. She either sold him, or he died, I do not know the fate of the little guy :c

For example, she's had two leopard geckos for a little over two years now. They are always together and no one wants to buy them because they are $65 each and she will not cut a deal. They were very healthy their first year, but they have been neglected. I have come to calling them Kit and Caboodle.
Their heat is not high enough, they are on coconut shavings for bedding, they do not have access to water, they do not get calcium supplements. One of them [Caboodle] is showing signs that he/she is suffering from calcium deficiency, his spine is getting crooked and he can no longer stand up all the way.
Here are pictures, this is before Caboodle developed the spinal problem. They are both around 6 inches long, and as you can see, very skinny.

This is Caboodle

This is Kit

I am very worried about these two [along with 98% of her reptiles] and I offered to take them for a month to try and get weight on them and the lady won't let me and says that they are perfectly healthy.

I have been gathering 'evidence' in case if I need to use them to close her down [or at least find a new owner or hire me to take care of the reptiles]
She has 2 chameleons that I did not get a picture of. She has them in a cage with NO humidity and nothing to climb on. They are skinny, they are breathing very hard and they look absolutely miserable. The heat is not high enough for them and the woman refuses to listen to me.
She also never cleans the cages, which poses serious health risks to the reptiles and anyone who walks into that store.
The oldest reptile resident is a water dragon, with no water to bathe in in his cage. He does not have enough heat and is hardly fed. He has one of the most severe cases of mouth rot that I have EVER seen, even in pictures on the internet. His bottom jaw is rotting and you can see his actual jaw BONE. Exposed. Bone. And yet again, she thinks that he is perfectly healthy.

I don't know what I should do. We have an animal shelter, but I am not sure what they can do. We do not have anything like the ASPCA. I really want to help these poor reptiles. Even if she'd let me get a job there, I could fix them up and help them become healthy again because in their condition, whoever spends that amount of money on them will be spending a LOT more in vet bills.
I really don't want to shut her down since a lot of people in town rely on her store for crickets and other small pet supplies. I just want to help the reptiles. Everything else in her store is healthy, except for the reptiles.

 

[LaPrice]

the police? most sensible people can tell if something is wrong with an animal, even if you know nothing about them. i just sent the link to a group on facebook, there trying to get the word out about stuff like this

 

[athenacp]

Maybe get a hold of these folk?

http://reptile.rescueme.org/Wyoming

Marybe they know of someone who can do this? You can explain that they are the only animals she is not taking care of and see what they suggest.

Its a thought.

 

[NightmareDisco]

Do you have the phone number? I'm from that facebook group http://www.facebook.com/pages/Reptile-Care-Alliance-RCA/186725731345701 I would be happy to call them and also get in touch with the nearest aspca.

 

[AcePearce]

Call the cops.

 

[valcash]

How horrible. Do you have a city newspaper?

 

[Lara]

I live in South Africa, and here it doesnt even help to have a SPCA since they only protect normal pets and indigenious species. Any exotic pet is not their problem.

We had 3 petshops here in town owned by one person that didnt have half a clue as to how to take care of reptiles. I harassed them daily with info that i printed from the internet until eventually you could see they at least took some of the advice. 1 year later they closed down.

If i were you, first try a call or a visit to the police. If that doesnt work, I dont know how old you are, if you have a job, but you can buy supplies over the internet, and bring the supplies to this ignorant woman and say "there, it's free, you neednt pay one cent, just take care of them" .But my new hobby is to buy reptiles that I see is in need of a caring home - like a sanctuary.

 

[lovemybeardies]

There is a major chain pet store in my area that does not take proper care of its reptiles. I'm a veterinarian in this town and I discovered a very very tiny frail baby beardie laying in an empty water bowl near death when I visited the store last weekend. The cage was filthy with dirty sand and a slimy green substance with feces in the food bowl. I notified the manager on duty, told him I was a veterinarian very experienced with beardies, and offered to take the beardie to my clinic to attempt to save its life. He called his supervisor who told him that it was against corporate policy to release any animal without it being purchased. I offered to purchase it at cost and was told no once again. I then offered to pay the full ridiculous price ($99 + tax) if I could be guaranteed a refund if the poor baby died. I was told no once again because corporate policy was that animals with known defects were sold "as is". I then questioned the manager on duty and the other employees there on beardie care... and critical care of this extremely sick tiny baby beardie. Not one of them had a clue as to how to take care of it properly. They had no baby food available... so I asked for a bowl of warm water and soaked the poor baby... then asked for their tiniest crickets. I showed them how to mash the crickets up and feed the baby. I managed to get the poor baby to swallow about three crickets... and it was at least able to lift its head after being fed and soaked.

I wrote an e-mail that evening to their corporate office detailing my concerns about this incident and waited the next day for a response. I didn't get one. So I called the corporate office and told them personally about the incident. The head manager of the pet store in my community called me back promptly and listened to my concerns. I talked in a non-confrontational but concerned way... and I hope I made headway. She agreed to remove the sand in the baby beardie tank and replace it with reptile carpet. She agreed to have emergency tanks in the back of the store available with proper UVB lighting (she did not even know that Reptisun 10 tubes were the only recommended bulb for beardies). She agreed to use tiny pieces of collards or turnip greens as well as small dusted crickets for the babies... and she agreed to have emergency chicken and squash baby food on hand. I treat many pets that my clients purchase from their pet store, from puppies to reptiles to hamsters... and I told them I would be checking back. And I will.

If you do see a suffering animal... take some kind of action. It helps to be calm and professional and concerned. Animals are completely dependent on us... so its up to us to change things. It may be a slow process... but every small effort helps.

 

[Janico]

I would call the local animal shelter. They may be able to guide you in the right direction.

Although, calling a local newspaper and rescues are also a good idea.

I went into Petco yesterday for an extra piece of reptile carpeting. I was so disgusted with the condition of some of the reptile cages I left without buying a thing. The worst was a baby leopard gecko stuck in a cage with tons of crickets (dead and alive) and the poor thing should've been sleeping at the time as it was daytime. There were dead crickets in the water dish. A bowl so full of meal worms they were falling on to the substrate. Not to mention the substrate which was the reptile bark (or whatever it's called). The poor lil guy was so thin and his tail was way too skinny. Then they had the bags of crickets just hanging there by the reptiles with dead crickets in them. After what I saw there is no way I can support the Petco chain and will not be purchasing anything from them.

 

[ladybriann]

I went into Petco yesterday for an extra piece of reptile carpeting. I was so disgusted with the condition of some of the reptile cages I left without buying a thing. The worst was a baby leopard gecko stuck in a cage with tons of crickets (dead and alive) and the poor thing should've been sleeping at the time as it was daytime. There were dead crickets in the water dish. A bowl so full of meal worms they were falling on to the substrate. Not to mention the substrate which was the reptile bark (or whatever it's called). The poor lil guy was so thin and his tail was way too skinny. Then they had the bags of crickets just hanging there by the reptiles with dead crickets in them. After what I saw there is no way I can support the Petco chain and will not be purchasing anything from them.

I don't think it's fair for you to slam "the Petco chain" because of your experience with ONE store. I work for Petco and I can tell you a lot depends on the general manager of each store. Petco as a rule tries very hard to properly care for all the animals in the store and educate their associates working there. We are required to pass computer training and tests in each pet area such as reptiles, small animals, birds etc. There are many checks and balances, policies and procedures built into Petco's animal care system. But it still comes down to the individual associates compliance and their general store managers enforcement of those P&Ps. I personally keep myself informed with the latest care knowledge that I can find. I also try to help my fellow associates updated too. Just last week my manager and I set-up special cue cards on each of the reptile habitats stating feeding instructions for each species; so everyone involved in their care KNOWS what to feed at a glance.

I'm sorry to go on and on, but I just get a bit upset when people generalize unfavorably about pet store personnel not knowing or not caring about the animals. SOME of us do.
OK, I will now step down off my soap box. and I agree, negligent pet store people should be reported and made to clean up their act, If it's a Petco, you can talk to the GM of the store and if they don't help you, contact their district manager or call the help line phone number on any Petco receipt.

 

[Janico]

I went into Petco yesterday for an extra piece of reptile carpeting. I was so disgusted with the condition of some of the reptile cages I left without buying a thing. The worst was a baby leopard gecko stuck in a cage with tons of crickets (dead and alive) and the poor thing should've been sleeping at the time as it was daytime. There were dead crickets in the water dish. A bowl so full of meal worms they were falling on to the substrate. Not to mention the substrate which was the reptile bark (or whatever it's called). The poor lil guy was so thin and his tail was way too skinny. Then they had the bags of crickets just hanging there by the reptiles with dead crickets in them. After what I saw there is no way I can support the Petco chain and will not be purchasing anything from them.

I don't think it's fair for you to slam "the Petco chain" because of your experience with ONE store. I work for Petco and I can tell you a lot depends on the general manager of each store. Petco as a rule tries very hard to properly care for all the animals in the store and educate their associates working there. We are required to pass computer training and tests in each pet area such as reptiles, small animals, birds etc. There are many checks and balances, policies and procedures built into Petco's animal care system. But it still comes down to the individual associates compliance and their general store managers enforcement of those P&Ps. I personally keep myself informed with the latest care knowledge that I can find. I also try to help my fellow associates updated too. Just last week my manager and I set-up special cue cards on each of the reptile habitats stating feeding instructions for each species; so everyone involved in their care KNOWS what to feed at a glance.

I'm sorry to go on and on, but I just get a bit upset when people generalize unfavorably about pet store personnel not knowing or not caring about the animals. SOME of us do.
OK, I will now step down off my soap box. and I agree, negligent pet store people should be reported and made to clean up their act, If it's a Petco, you can talk to the GM of the store and if they don't help you, contact their district manager or call the help line phone number on any Petco receipt.

I'm sorry if I upset you with my post, but what I saw in the store was not good. I do agree it may have been unfair of me to lump up all Petco Stores due to my experience in my local store and for that I apologize. I do realize there are many working in pet stores that do care about the animals and do want the best care for them. In this particular, Petco, that wasn't my impression.

 

[ladybriann]

Janico-thank you for your apology and let me extend my own. Sorry, I didn't need to attack your post so strongly. It caught me on a bad day and happened to trigger my sound off button.

 

[Janico]

ladybriann, it's ok. I do understand your frustration and understand how my post struck a nerve with you as I should've based my opinion only on my local store.