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10K views 20 replies 18 participants last post by  pinkie1205 
#1 ·
i would like to vent something,i will do this nicley as i can.
i have two gliders here out of my crew of gliders who i have had the task of rehabilitating thanks to petstores.
the first one has had her schedule messed up and thinks she is supposed to be a day glider. this is important to think about because there is a reason and need for a nocturnal animal to remain so. petstores not knowing this will recomend,practice and encourage night animals to be awake in the day time. I have had her here for several months and she still wakes up at noon everyday. she was indifrent toward ppl and moody with even the other glidrs,likely from the day waking, but has been coming along very well since. Not too bad this one was atleast on a good diet and healthy with the accetion of low protien and likely low seritonin (reason for moodiness)from being awake all day.
Recently a new rescue came to me who had started in a petstore too. he was terrorized,mishandled,caught with towels etc. He has been emoitionally traumatized fromthis and has an emense fear of humans and human hands. It has been a hard and very sad ordeal,even my vet was horrified at how petrified and damged this little guy was by the store. He has been here a cpl week now and is slowly loosing the fear,what we are working on first. He is still very young but already has a low protien issue and some indications of low vitimanins (diet has been switched) so we hope to see an eventual full recovery. without going into grave detail about what i have been going thru with these two gliders i have taken in i would like to express that i dont think for these type of reasons petstores should be able to even carry the more exoitc types of animals atall,it isnt right for the animals in the end. Ironically even tho these two munchkins of mine came from difrent locations they are fromt he same company.
Thankfully there is ppl like me who love gliders even when they are aggressive or scared and accept them for who they are with no pressures. More thankfully there are owners out there who will give up a loved baby to give it a better chance when they realize that the petstore was a mistake,in both cases the owners who gave them to me loved them very very much but were able to recognize their needs for soemthing else,it was very sad for them to give them up.

thanks for letting me vent guys,i feel better all ready.
 
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#2 ·
Honestly I have to disagree. I think people that don't know about the basic care of gliders shouldn't have gliders. I know of a great pet store in my area that has gliders but breeds them at home.. they only bring in the gliders when people arrange appointments.

I also know of USDA licensed breeders that know less about gliders than some pet stores.

I think it's your level of expertise and willingness to learn that counts.
 
G
#3 ·
I agree TMarie. There is a great pet store near me that has fantastic gliders who are very healthy and well taken care of. They have years of experience and whenever I go in there they are handled appropriately and always have the right food etc. I think it's the people who do no research who shouldn't own them, and this goes for any animal, not just exotics.
 
#4 ·
Also understand, a lot of these pet stores don't have the animals and make them this way. A lot of the time the animal comes IN to the store that way. Meaning the breeder or previous owner, was the one doing the damage.

Granted not all pet stores are wonderful and great with their care of animals, i just don't think you should bash Pet stores in general. Because not all of them are bad :)
 
#5 ·
I have to say I agree with both sides, but it should also be taken into consideration there is a small time frame to bond with most exotics. The younger the better.

I've seen Coatimundis sit in pet stores for six months before it was purchased, and even if you wean a coati yourself it can still be quite the handful!

The longer a bonding exotic sits in the shop, the more difficult it is for the new onwer to work with it, and the more trust and experience the new owner is going to need - and most people are shopping at pet stores because they're new and inexperience, they don't know a breeder to go to.

Also, most good breeders aren't going to be selling their offspring to pet stores, they most likely want to see the families that take in their babies. If you purchase the animal from the pet store, you have no idea how long its been in the store, or how handled it was from a young age.

If, however, a pet store wanted to put notice that gliders can be made available, and is willing to put potential customers on a waiting list that would be responsible.
 
#6 ·
I agree. Pet Stores should NOT sell Gliders, UNLESS they set appointments with the glider to be owners and teach them all the good and bad points. I am sorry to say that a close friend of my bought a glider by 'impulse' I had never seen a sugar glider before, or even known they could be bought. My first question was why. And she told me it was so cute ect. And this whole time I'm think you idiot! She knew nothing of the animal besides it was nocturnal, likes to climb and likes fruit. Its diet was all screwed up *poor thing :(* and two weeks later she dumped it on me to take care of it. So gues who got to research!? By the end of the month I had finally set up a diet for him and figured out how to handle ect. him. But I think what she did was VERY stupid, and it was because of the petstore *caugh caugh petland* Yes the glider is well fed and sassy, but what if soemone buys a glider like she did and doesn't research it before or even after they are bought!? The poor glider could suffer from a loving, but unimformed owner. Well thats my view! (By the way I don't own a Sugar Glider, but I adore them. But they aren't the pet for me but outta all the research I had to do I know alot about them now lol.

~Megan and Lola~
 
#7 ·
I don't believe in impulse purchasing.

I think anyone who wants a specific pet should do the research before purchasing the pet. I know I did that before I bought my first chinchilla. I want to do that before I rescue or purchase a pug. Simply because I know I want the best care for my pet.

I don't own a sugar glider, but I know someone who does. Yes, there are pet stores out there who are bad. I won't argue with that. But, there are pet stores out there who have employees who do research on pets. Not just on exotics, but on birds and reptiles and fish. Knowledge is always a powerful thing.

And I think it is the pet store's duty to inform whoever purchases the specific breed whether the specific pet is nocturnal or dinural. I always tell people that chins are nocturnal. I don't think anyone should try to switch them from their normal habits just because they're up at that time, so the pet should be too. It can be very damaging in the end.
 
#9 ·
It really depends on the pet store, but stores like Petco or Petsmart know barely anything about animals, and they shouldn't be able to sell gliders, and I don't think they do? But small pet stores that are very well maintained could have gliders if they know what they're doing.
 
#11 ·
I still don't think it's pet stores... but rather lack of education and willingness to learn. Usually this is seen more with pet stores b/c they see the business side and not the animal side but that is not always the case. Large breeder mills are just as bad as pet stores in some situations.
 
#12 ·
lol, no petco and petsmart does not sell gliders, they don't even sell rabbits. The store I bought my bunny for only fed pellets and I honestly didn't kno muc about rabbits but I knew they oculdn't live on pellets. The store my friend bought her glider from was stupid too lol. But they did know alot oabout the grooming *woo hoo* but they told her just to feed it fruits and veggies. She was SHOCKED when she found out how much care it required,especialy the diet, and I must admit I was laughing inside abotu hwo stupid she was to buy it without thinking. But thankfuly she was responisble in the end. And the glider is happy and healthy. But we did find one REALLY nice pet store that takes great care of their animals, and knows so much about them. THey don't sell dogs or cats *yeah* lol I am so against that
 
#13 ·
Wow, what an interesting thread. I have never seen a suger glider at a pet store before, but if I did, I would probably ask alot of questions from the people who work thier about them before I buy one. I would think most people would.

Also, my fiance bought one of our ferrets on impulse, and I think we did great with him and learned way more about ferrets by having one then you could probably ever learn in a book. Now we have 3, one of them is adopted. I do agree that there are pet stores that don't know thier stuff, but the only way to get rid of stores like that is to quit shopping there.

For example, Petco sales ferrets, and allthough they are really good about keeping thier cages clean and the ferrets healthy, they don't deal with them enough and they tend to be really nippy. As for our ferrets, we got at a local pet shop, and although they were not good about keeping thier cages clean and the ferrets clean, they did provide a lot of love and attention and were knowledgeable about thier pets. Buddy came home with fleas but was the friendliest ferret in the world. So what do you do in situations like that? I plan on adopting more then going to pet stores. I don't think we could ever put an end on pets being sold at petstores, it just happens to be a convenient place for people to get thier pets rather then trying to find a breeder (who can also be just as bad as pet shops) or a local shelter (which you have to go through the hassle of being an aproved pet owner)

Just look at it this way, although it is horrible and cruel when and impulse pet owner gets rid of thier new pet, that just gives them a reason to appriceate thier new perminant owner more! Thier is evil in this world, and although we would like to get rid of this evil, without this evil we couldn't define what is good. If that makes sence to you all...
 
#14 ·
There is a store near me that had a coati in for months. The buyer was making payments on him, and came in to work with him often. Some of the store employees were really good with it, and he finally went home and is doing well. Unfortunately, this same store also sells gliders. They have a breeding colony set up in a back room that is basically a sugar glider concentration camp. Its horrible. About the only time they get a decent diet is when concerned customers bring food in, but that doesn't ever seem to deter the owner as they seem to sell like hot cakes.

Rav
 
#16 ·
While over here in the UK i don't think i would find a Sugar Glider in a petshop (well i hope not anyway as more a specialist breeder pet at the moment and hope it stays that way) i totally agree that petshops shouldn't be selling such exotic species as most of them don't have much knowledge at all unless its the common hamster and even then some of them struggle. I base my experience on what i have found with Degus as they are pretty rare over here although got more popular in last few years and time after time i have seen them kept in small cramped conditions with the wrong diet and it makes me so mad as they are doing so much damage to them that even when they are sold if anything goes wrong its someone elses problem as the damage has been done :mad2: ! I think its time there was a law on how petshops conduct there business as they shouldn't be selling animals they don't have a clue about as people go to them looking for advice and knowledge on a certain pet and it seems a lot of them don't have a clue of the basics let alone of anything more exotic than a mouse!

I had never heard of sugar gliders till i joined this forum and now they are everywhere i look even on tv and i'm now hooked on them as they are soooooo cute :)
 
#17 ·
IMO i think i would prefer for my glider to come from someones loving home rather than a pet shop that is open the opposite hours that a glider is awake. And do they have to have USDA licenses to sell them? I once bought a cockatiel hand-fed baby from a woman that breeds them at her home and he was a million times sweeter than the supposedly hand-fed baby at Pet_ _. And in the case of gliders... they need the interaction at the right time of day just like they would get in a home. So mills are out and pet stores would be ok if they were open the same hours as.... oh Dennys maybe? but thats just me ~smile~
 
#18 ·
pet stores

yea, I agree! I saw a poor pair of sugar gliders at a pet store "breeding pair" according to them.. their cage was awful and they were just in a half box with nothing else. The male was sitting over the female and would growl every time someone came near his mate. It was so sad :( I did voice my opinion and I've been there a few times and haven't seen them lately so I dunno what happened :confused:
 
#19 ·
Hi. I personally also strongly believe that pet shops shouldn't sell animals at all, though that is unlikely to happen.

I *know* there are decent pet shops that sell animals out there (though I've yet to find a really good one yet myself) but there are so many pet shops that don't keep their animals in decent cages, so many pet shops that don't give out the correct care information and so many pet shops that do not really check as to whether the potential owner has any kind of real knowledge. I know a lot of people who work in rescue centres and who pick up the pieces time and again in terms of rejected pet-shop animals, (i.e - the kids got bored with it) pet shop animals that have had litters because they weren't sexed correctly and so on. :(

From all I have read of sugar gilders on here, I cannot imagine them 'doing well' in a pet shop environment, and worst still, selling them in a pet shop would leave them open to 'impulse buyers' who do not really know what they are taking on.

I have personally decided to not buy from pet shops selling animals - not accessories or food or anything - I try and shop on-line now as much as possible. Besides, most of the cages I see in pet shops are nowhere near big enough for the animal they are supposedly intended for. (I especially hate the 'starter packs!')

:ranton:

Apologies - this is something I do feel strongly about! I've even written a poem - the 'Life Story' of a pet shop bought rat. If anyone wishes to read it, I'll be happy to let them see it.
 
#20 ·
Hmm.. well, I have experience with working with gliders at a petstore that I used to work at.. I have to agree with both sides I guess.. This pet store should NOT have sold gliders, because they kept them in a plastic and glass enclosure, never handled them, threw food at them and had 4 breeding colonies in the back room without having a USDA license.. the people that own the shop knew nothing about gliders until I came along, and I put them on a new diet, added vitamins and calcium, and started handling them.. ( my hands were just torn up the whole time I worked there..). They just had too many different types of animals to really know any thing about any of them. Everything from puppies and fish to gliders, snakes, turtles.. just too much stuff. I know they have been turned in to the USDA but they didn't do anything.. I would again if I could secure that they go to a place that they would be taken care of properly.. like to me or another breeder that would rehab them a little. I have talked to the owners of the store many times and I think (I hope!) I have talked them in to selling thier breeders and getting out of gliders..

On the other hand.. if they are knowledgable enough and have the time to spend with the gliders.. then more power to them.. they may be competition for local breeders like myself and Tmarie.. but not if we do our jobs right and market them right. I always go for local people or smaller scale breeders for any animal before I'll go to a bigger place..

Interesting thread.. I'm glad it was started.
 
#21 ·
I think some pet stores are okay. I was actually surprised when I saw that petsmart was selling chinchillas. Mainly because in my opinion, they need a little extra care then the animals they normally sell. When I first saw the chin, I said 2 things. I feel sorry for this animal and I would never buy it.
When I got my first chin, I did buy it at a petstore. The owner said the chin was very tame. Well they were wrong. I paid around $150 for the entire set up which included the bedding, cage, water bottle and all that jazz. Well I was disappointed when it was only like a small cage that was only big enough for a rat. And unfortunatley I couldn't afford to buy the big leveled cage. I did try to set it up good for my chinchilla so she would atleast have some things to climb on and be happy. The chinchilla could never be tamed. If you could catch her, she hated to be held, and could usually wiggle her way out of your hands. About 2 months after that I was in another petstore and I found that they had another cage set up (this was a really crappy pet store, they have TONS of animals and no space, and it stinks like I don't know what) but I decided to buy it because the cage was huge, and had everything included and the chinchilla was male, so I wanted to mate him with my other chinchilla. Again, this chinchilla couldn't be tamed. Eventually my chinny had a baby and of course, he didn't have any choice but to be tamed...lol...
Me and my boyfriend broke up and I lost my chinchillas (he sold them both for $100 including the cages and everything) but I like the memories I have with them. I did hear that she had 2 more babies after I told the woman she had to seperate them, and of course she wouldn't let me buy one :(
I guess my point is, when you're buying from most pet stores, you don't know what you're getting. In my opinion some of the chain stores like petsmart are okay to sell the smaller rodents, but not exotics. And also, I wouldn't buy anything from superpets , my boyfriend was looking for birds and they didn't even know how to stand on your hand...it was sad.
 
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