PetSmart: Two visits; two dead dragons

[Ladyhawk42]

Hi, everyone. I've been in the hospital, so I haven't been able to log on. I have type II diabetes which turned into diabetic ketoacidosis, which is rather rare for type II diabetics. I'm still recovering, but it explains why I've felt lousy for quite some time now.

Prior to my hospitalization, I went into PetSmart and saw a baby beardie on the bottom of the cage. She didn't look very well. I grabbed an employee and said, "That dragon on the bottom of the cage is sick." She said, "Well, she was up and running around earlier. A huge cricket, bigger than anything that should have been in the cage with her, was perched on her body. When the employee picked her up, she was pretty much lifeless: close to death if not dead already.

Yesterday, I went back into PetSmart and found a cage full of youngsters that didn't even look a month old. One was on the bottom, eyes sunken in. Great. I grabbed an employee. "These dragons are too young to sell," I said. "I doubt they're even a month old." The employee said they'd had the dragons a month (doubt it considering how fast they sell). "In that case, you're not feeding them correctly."

I told the employee there was a sick / dead dragon in the cage. She said they'd been force-feeding it. When she picked it up, it was obviously dead.

I grabbed another employee and gave him an earful, saying they had no business selling dragons that young (the other dead dragon was also too small to sell, IMO). I doubt it did any good, but whatcha gonna do?

My dragon, Grover, is now 9 inches long. He hung out at about six inches for what seemed like forever, then suddenly grew three inches in what seemed like just a couple of weeks. He still needs to be properly tamed, but I'm working on that.

So, PetSmart...what can you say?

 

[koilover512]

Some of the down falls with petsmart is 1. Their employees usually have no idea what they are doing. The training they receive is not correct. Trust me I use to work at one. 2. The pets you see in the store are sent to them from the main corporation. Sometimes they go through certain breeders. So the actual stores have no choice in what age the animal is when they receive it. All they do is request the pets and the corp. sends them.

I wish they would actually train people correctly.

 

[Majora]

^I work at a Petco, and it's sort of the same thing for us. They send us babies way too small to be sold and there's nothing we can do about it. If we get really tiny babies in we keep them in the back for a few weeks until they get bigger. We monitor them to make sure they're healthy and eating well and make sure they get soaked every morning to keep them hydrated. I wish we could get them from local breeders or something. We get a lot of ours from Sandfire Dragon Ranch.

 

[Ladyhawk42]

^I work at a Petco, and it's sort of the same thing for us. They send us babies way too small to be sold and there's nothing we can do about it. If we get really tiny babies in we keep them in the back for a few weeks until they get bigger. We monitor them to make sure they're healthy and eating well and make sure they get soaked every morning to keep them hydrated. I wish we could get them from local breeders or something. We get a lot of ours from Sandfire Dragon Ranch.

I suggested keeping them in the back room until they were ready. I've only had Grover since August, but I've learned enough to know that you don't sell four-inch babies. Sigh. They're awfully cute, but I bet my nine-inch dragon would view them as food. No more dragons for me until I feel I know more.

Incidentally, Grover's taming is going better. He's learning to trust my hands more and seemed comfortable jumping from one hand to another and then resting for awhile. He's getting more orange, but I have a feeling melanin will probably cover it when he's full-grown. My dream orange dragon will have to wait.

Incidentally, I think Grover is probably a female. The name is going to stick, regardless.

 

[megaglaze]

I always see posts like this so i want to remind people that some stores actually take good care of their beardies, at the Petsupermarket near me where i bought Toothless the where always fed adequate size crickets with vitamins and calcium supplements, where a good size to sell and around 3 months old, they where actually overweight :lol:, they only kept 2 small beardies in a 20 gallon tank, and they where incredibly active and would run up to the tank every time i walked by.

 

[hypnotiq]

my bestfriend works at a petsmart and she's main head of the reptile. She's properly trained and has a few reptiles herself. I'll say one thing she would never ever in a million years let something like that happen. The minute one of them look lethargic or it not eating she pulls them puts them in the sick room in the back and calls the vet. it's a sad that they can't find one person who knows anything about reptiles to put over them. or people who just don't care enough. i would seriously call corporate and tell them your story because that's there reputation on the line. maybe they will find someone who is knowledgeable in reptiles which is by far something they need.

 

[Oki05]

I actually went to my petsmart a few days ago because my friend needed a frozen mouse for his snake. While he did that I decided to go look at some of their beardies. I could tell they were really small. I asked an employee how old they are and she said oh those are a few weeks old like in new borns. Im thinking ok so maybe petsmart isnt the best place to go

 

[Ladyhawk42]

my bestfriend works at a petsmart and she's main head of the reptile. She's properly trained and has a few reptiles herself. I'll say one thing she would never ever in a million years let something like that happen. The minute one of them look lethargic or it not eating she pulls them puts them in the sick room in the back and calls the vet. it's a sad that they can't find one person who knows anything about reptiles to put over them. or people who just don't care enough. i would seriously call corporate and tell them your story because that's there reputation on the line. maybe they will find someone who is knowledgeable in reptiles which is by far something they need.

It's nice to hear a good story. It makes me feel better. I did complain to PetSmart. I've complained multiple times and nothing has changed.

Also, due to my pet store experience there are a lot of things I want to teach them, but I come off like a know-it-all every single time I go in there. They pay people **** wages, which makes them not want to learn their jobs. This sucks because this is one of those jobs where lives are on the line if you don't learn your job.

*sigh*

One thing: They don't know how to properly tie the rubber band on bags of crickets. I SO want to teach them, but the know-it-all thing...you know?

 

[hypnotiq]

yea here at our petsmart they have awesome people =) my friend and I were actually discussing this post yesterday she said it's a shame and that you should stay on their butt at corporate.

 

[dulceelizabeth]

We got our beardie at Petsmart back in June. All the beardies they had looked healthy and happy. Our little guy was around 6 inches when we got him and he's now around 18 inches long and thriving.

However, we went to another Petsmart location not too long ago and they had a very small, very dead beardie in their tank. There was also beardie poop all over the place like they hadn't cleaned the tank in weeks.

I guess it really just depends on the store...

 

[AngelicDevil]

I work at Petco and we have the same problem. The corporate business's sending us too many dragons or to young of dragons. A lot of times overstocking the tiny tank we can keep them in. We have started putting some in a 20 gallon in the back and checking them daily. The more sickly ones we DO take to a vet. One thing about MY Petco is we are very good about trying to save whatever animals we can. We saved a full stock of baby corn snakes. Took them to the vet twice because they were not eating but we did not keep them on the floor, they each had a separate tank in the back and they had to have shots and be force fed. After two feedings they were up on their...tails, and ready to go! Now they are all doing fine and eating pinkies. Sad to say though that not all Petco's do this as well. It just varies from store to store. Call the corporate office, tell them what you witnessed. Then call animal control and ask them what they can do to help? IDK just some ideas.

 

[clearlyjoyful]

I don't really have anything to say about Petsmart, but I just wanted to say, glad to hear you're okay! I'm a type 1 diabetic and that's how I was diagnosed - by going into DKA. That was a rude awakening and a half.

My baby, Itchy, is from PetSmart, and the vet has actually said that could be why he's so susceptible to MBD. He does have MBD and it is partially my fault because when I moved I couldn't immediately take him with me and my mom didn't do a wonderful job with him, so he didn't have a really great life for a while. But now that he's back living with me, I've been rehabilitating him since April of this year and he's getting somewhat better. He still has the twitches though. My PetSmart has this adorable juvenile "pastel" beardie and I want him so bad, haha.

 

[Ladyhawk42]

AngelicDevil: I'm glad to hear you got those corn snakes going. That's the perfect pet snake for most people and they come in some lovely colors and patterns. I've had corn snakes, but I like the beardie better. He has more personality. Last night I measured him and he's up to 10 1/2". It only took him a couple of weeks to grow an inch.

Itchy: Thank you. I had low blood glucose last night. It was instant. I was playing Sonic Racing and mid-lap I got so hot I had to shed my clothing. I started sweating profusely and shaking. I was weak. My heart raced so fast it could have beat Sonic to the finish line. I knew of a candy cane that hadn't been eaten and stumbled to it. I ate the candy cane BEFORE checking my blood glucose because it had happened so suddenly. Blood glucose was 62. In my panic and uncontrollable hunger I ate too much sugar and ended up at 199. That feels just awful. It scared me so bad I waited HOURS to take my insulin today.

Now I have proper glucose pills, etc. I'm stocked up.

And yes, DKA was a wake-up call and a half. I'd had diabetes for 12-13 years or so. I had it so under control that I stopped taking my blood glucose. Then a few months ago I started feeling ill. I thought it couldn't be the diabetes. I don't eat any sweets. My 3-month labs are always good. Then I took my blood glucose and it was over 300. This was before Thanksgiving. It STAYED over 300 or 400 no matter what I ate, no matter how much I ate and no matter what my doctor threw at it. Food started looking disgusting to me. I was clammy. I couldn't think. I felt horrible. My doc finally put me on insulin and that didn't bring it down. One morning, I woke up and my glucometer said, "Hi." I don't think it was a salutation.

At the ER, my blood glucose was determined to be 618 and I had DKA. Lots of pokes, lots of IVs: insulin drips, potassium drips (they sting!), stuff to prevent ulcers. At one point, I was tethered to the bed by all four limbs. On each leg was one of those anti-blood-clot cuffs that pump up every few seconds. I had an IV in each arm. They had to get arterial blood several times, which hurts more than the normal stick.

I'm don't want a repeat of last night so I'm going to make myself something to eat after the injection. Why couldn't this have happened in the middle of the week so I could call my doctor???

 

[Ladyhawk42]

P.S. PetSmart contacted me about this thread. I gave them the address of the PetSmart and told them this:

Hi,

I strongly feel that being a pet shop employee should be a skilled job that pays more than minimum wage and requires employees to take classes on caring for animals. I worked at two different pet stores and took it upon myself to learn more about the pets in my care because lives are at stake. It's a more important job than flipping burgers at a fast food place. I also feel there should be a vet on call for sick animals, which was NOT the norm at the pet stores where I worked.

The bearded dragons for sale at the shop in question are often too small to be sold, which is not the fault of the employees. I've seen them offered food much too large for their tiny digestive tracts, which may have been why the two young dragons died.

I've also seen some pretty stunning ignorance on display by employees. Once I called and asked about the length of waxworms for sale and the girl who took the call hemmed and hawed and then said, "About five inches." When I questioned her more carefully, she admitted she didn't know her measurements. Someone that ignorant should not be in charge of animal care. She may have learning disabilities, etc., but I believe pet store employees should be skilled laborers required to take classes on a regular basis. You may have to pay them more, but you will probably end up with fewer dead animals.

I was also told a ten gallon aquarium and a coiled UVB bulb would be sufficient for a baby bearded dragon. A young dragon should have a 20 gallon long. Coiled UVB lights are notorious for causing photo kerato conjunctivitis. My dragon developed eye problems. I had to buy a suitable tank and new suitable UVB lighting (Reptisun 10.0 18" bulbs). Reptisun 10.0 long fluorescent-style tubes are just about the only reliable bulbs your store carries for UVB. Some mercury vapor bulbs may work, but they're a little overwhelming for a baby dragon.

BTW, I also alerted the employees about a sick budgie and nothing was done. I used to breed exotic birds, so I know what a sick bird looks like. I told them what needed to be done for the bird and they just nodded their heads. The next time I was in the store, the sick budgie was still on display and nothing had been done for it.

It's obvious most of the employees do not know enough about the animals in their care. They probably think I'm a know-it-all when I come in and tell them what they should be doing, but it's obvious they don't have a clue. Two dead dragons and a very sick budgie = not acceptable. Every time I go in there, I have this overwhelming desire to educate the employees. Of course, they think they know better and just roll their eyes.

I'm still learning about bearded dragons, but I feel I already know more than they do. The employees should be trained by experts and encouraged to post / read Internet forums including the one where I posted.

In short: babies that are too young + uneducated employees = dead baby bearded dragons (and probably a dead budgie since it was never cared for properly)

Thanks,

Laura

 

[clearlyjoyful]

I don't know how often Type 2s typically have low blood sugar, but I've had one everyday for the last week. Bleh and they always happen at around 4 AM. So I wake up shaking, often don't test because I already know what's happening. I like those glucose tablet things, but they're so expensive. I usually just have candy from the bulk candy shop on hand for these types of things, haha. Much tastier.

618 is about 34 to me (I'm Canadian, so we use the good ol' metric system). And my meter only goes up to 33.3. Ugh, I hate those numbers that only show up as HI And I know all about the works of DKA. I only had it when diagnosed, and I was 11 years old, but I will never forget it that's for sure. You don't normally eat after your injections? Anyway, good luck with avoiding hypos and at the same time, avoiding DKA. Ah, diabetes. You're... special.