THAT IS NOT A RESCUED PET.
If you buy an animal from petco, petsmart, any pet store, this is NOT a rescue pet. I’ve been seeing far too many people saying “yes, this is my (insert animal name here) she’s a rescue, i got her from PetCo!”
No no no. There is a huge difference. When you adopt an animal from a shelter they use the money you give them for vet care, food, and other animal supplies. If you adopt an animal from a kill shelter, you are quite literally saving their lives!
If you buy an animal from a pet store that money goes to the company, to buy more animals. As with ANY company, there is bound to be bad employees. As with ANY chain business, there is going to be bad stores.
Some facts about PetCo:
1.) PetCo does NOT have expiration dates on animals. There is no such things as an animal being too old, or being there too long so we put it down. THIS IS A MYTH.
2.) PetCo’s company policy is to “think adoption first” at my store it is MANDATORY that before we sell an animal we ask if they have considered adoption instead. This is a company wide rule, unfortunately some stores don’t enforce it, my store does. Our goal isnt to sell sell sell or “get rid of stock” THIS IS A MYTH.
3.) When shopping in a Petco store you will hear over the intercom EVERY HOUR “At Petco, animals always come first” This is a cue to the employees that it is time for the hourly health and wellness check. That’s right, HOURLY. Every hour it is MANDATORY to check every single animal in the store to see if they are okay, and complete the paperwork, If something is out of the ordinary they are taken to the back. animals never go “days without water” or other things i have heard. THIS IS A MYTH.
4.) HERE’S WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BACK ROOM: PetCo does NOT breed their own animals. There is not “hamster mills” or anything back there. All the animals are shipped in. If an animal is noticed to be sick during an hourly health check they will be taken to the vet within hours, this is policy. They are kept in the back room until they are fully recovered. There is a vet on call. Overstock is also kept in the back room. For example if we get in 3 guinea pigs, and there is only room for 1, we don’t cram the extras in. They are kept in a separate habitat in the back until there is room for them up front. There are occupancy limits posted on the inside of every habitat.
5.) HERE’S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AN ANIMAL DIES: Sometimes animals die, it is unavoidable in a pet store. I heard this crazy story that an iguana was found in a PetCo dumpster but it wasn’t even dead. There is no way this could have been true. When an animal is thought to be dead it is removed, and checked thoroughly for signs of life. If it has passed it is placed in a black then put in the freezer. Once a week someone comes to cremate all of the dead animals. Cremation. Even the fish. If it is a fish the water in the tank gets sent off to a lab for extensive testing. Every time. That’s what happens. They are not whipped carelessly into a waste basket. THIS IS A MYTH.
6.) If you go into small animals and ask them a question about a snake, they’re probably not going to know. If you go into reptiles and ask them a question about a hamster, they’re probably not going to know. If you go into Walmart and ask a person in apparel about a food item they’re probably not going to know. If you go into Walmart and ask a person in grocery about a clothing item, they’re probably not going to know. You see what im getting at here right?
7.) Recently a dog died when it was left in a walk in drier. This is horrible. However did you know that not every petco has a walk in drier for dogs? The one I work at doesn’t have one. We had a store meeting after that happened at that store that lasted several hours. We were told that all of the groomers that worked that day at that store were fired. Rightfully so.
If you want to feel good about yourself and tell people you rescued a pet, than do it. Go to a shelter, rescue a pet. Animals from Petco are not rescue pets. I hope this made some of you feel better knowing the truth about pet care. Im not some company big wig. Hell, I dont even work there anymore. I just don’t like when people have an opinion based off nonsense.
Shelters and rescue groups often include vaccinations, microchipping, and spaying or neutering in the adoption fee, and usually for a lot less money than buying a dog from a breeder or a pet store
