# Went into garden Centre near me today and was discusted!



## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

Filthy water bowls was one worry. a poor baby royal pthon not shed properly was another and they was using the dreaded calci-sand. :evil: It so p/sses me off when I see places like that!


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## chocolatecolubrid (Apr 1, 2005)

Grr that annoys me when people try selling stuff they dont care to have a clue about :evil: 

There was a bad one here at one point which stopped doing reptiles after a complete d**k started working there and the place got closed down or something. He now owns his own reptile shop near me :x and its no better.


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

It's really frustrating isn't it.


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## reps4pets (Feb 23, 2005)

thats the trouble with petshops, they dont have to know about anything that they sell,it should be made a law really,i was in a reptile shop a while back and there was rotten mice in the snake vivs but thats just dam lazy workers :twisted:


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## nicky (Jul 13, 2005)

i know what you mean my local shop which was good in the past has gone right down hill everytime i've been in there lately i feel like buying everything just to get them out of there..the fire bellied toads are skin and bones i know my son will manage to talk me into getting them, they have a P regalis (tarantula)£100) curled up in the corner of the tank did mention it to them last time in there was kinda hoping they'd agree to me taking it on but no they'd rather it die i think...and basically all the vivs are full of crickets all hoping round geckos etc.... :evil:


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## chocolatecolubrid (Apr 1, 2005)

I found out that the shop I mentioned above has a sign in the window stating that green iguanas grow to 20inches (male) and 18inches (female) and are very tame pets. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: 

The worst part is I know for a fact the petshop owner knows this is not true and only has the sign up to get sales. He doesnt care about all the people who'll be looking rid of their 6ft iguanas in a few years time :x and all the people who wont be keeping them right cos according to him reptiles dont need heat or UV light. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

Doesn't it make your blood boil!!!!!!!!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil:


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## Si (Nov 27, 2005)

Denise...If this is the one in Radcliffe (I wont mention the name) it is the same one we got Twigg from. http://www.buryreptiles.co.uk/feature4_twig_1.php

We managed to get the pet shop licence off the guy, but he is still running the pet shop :? 

I would suggest that you write a letter of complaint - the sooner he is away from animals the better.


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

Hi Si it is the same one. I keep going back and well each time its just getting worse. Who do I write the letter too? If he has no license how can it be that he is still selling pets? It makes me so angry at the state of the place , I feel I should just go in there and take them all away from him, course I can't do that but that's how I feel.


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## chocolatecolubrid (Apr 1, 2005)

> If he has no license how can it be that he is still selling pets? It makes me so angry at the state of the place , I feel I should just go in there and take them all away from him, course I can't do that but that's how I feel.


I've heard of a couple of places in NI that have apparently had licenses taken off them but are still selling. Maybe just rumours but I wouldnt put it past them tbh. It's well seen that the authorities do their jobs right if these people can still get away with selling animals. It annoys me SOOOO much. :evil: 

The guy I mentioned (the 20" iguanas) has apparently been taken to court for animal cruelty though I dont know what came of it. Obviously not a lot if he's still going. :x :x 

I walked by his shop the other day and noticed his sign for the iguanas. Then I noticed the viv that sat in the window beside the sign with a subadult male and female iguana in it. These iguanas were obviouslty bigger than 20" I was guessing round 4ft head to tail. He must have a really good judgement of the people in the area if he thinks they'll fall for that one!! (then again.....)

I had to go in and tell him what a spoon he is but he wasnt there. So I asked the shop assistant how big an enclosure I'd need for one of those iguanas and she said 5ft minimum. I asked why such a large viv for a 20" lizard?? She didnt answer me. :x Then I noticed a hatchling ratsnake writhing round in a viv and pointed it out to her. She lifted it with a pair of tweasers, explaining that it had escaped and been found next door. She put it in a cricket box and put the box in with some baby water dragons.... :?: :?: :?: I had to walk out before I started yelling. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:


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## cornsnakeman (Feb 2, 2006)

This reminds me of my first attempt to keep herps; I bought a couple of animals sold as "green lizards", I now think they were anolis. I was assured that both would live quite happily in a 2' by 12" tank with only the heat from a normal tungsten bulb, sawdust as a substrate, and no UV, even though I asked about it. Surprisingly they lasted about 8 weeks. This was about 12 years ago from a shop that has been out of business now for about 8 years in Wakefield. I still feel guilty about killing two lovely reptiles through my ignorance, and am disgusted by the lack of care from the shop keeper.


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

I think many ppl have all been there before through very little or the wrong advise from shopkeepers. I advise anyone to get many sources of advise rather than just the one.  
Try not to beat yourself up too much about it. (HUGZ)


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## SilverSteno (Feb 12, 2006)

Reptilerescueden said:


> I think many ppl have all been there before through very little or the wrong advise from shopkeepers. I advise anyone to get many sources of advise rather than just the one.
> Try not to beat yourself up too much about it. (HUGZ)


I got wrong advice getting Silver, the woman there told me I could just switch the heat mat off at night...yeah GREAT idea when my room temp falls to 12C! (I didn't take that advice!)


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## animal mad (Jan 7, 2006)

I'm lucky there are no local reptile petshops near me to wind me up.
Trying to think of authorities to contact, enviromental health probably NOT. Urm what about DEFRA , RSPCA don't seem to do anything???
Will have to think harder.
Kim


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## animal mad (Jan 7, 2006)

Oh yes as mentioned at the beginning - Calci sand....
Whats wrong with it. My Gecko's had wood chips but reading up on them decided to go with the above. They love it, digging away, stays lovely and warm at the heated end and is lovely and cool at the other.
Please don't tell me i've spent £20 on something that i shouldn't have???
Kim


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## chocolatecolubrid (Apr 1, 2005)

I've heard a lot of reports of impaction from calci-sand, though I used to use it for my beardie and leo gecks. I stopped cos of the things I heard and also found it very smelly. I wouldnt use it with snakes though my mate does and has never had any problems.


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

I once used it with my cornsnakes and i chose the green version but pools of condensation formed or the snakes spilt the water bowl not sure which burt it turned my snakes green FFS. the impaction stories put me well off it. Best to be safe than sorry i say!


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## animal mad (Jan 7, 2006)

The only reason i chose calci sand was because it's meant to be digestable to reduce the risk of impaction, my gecks don't seem to eat it or take any with their food, they like to eat out of our hand if i have time. I will keep an extra eye on them.
My snake has a calci sand/play pit sand mix one end, the end that i feed her she has rocks and rounded pebbles o stop the sand sticking to her food. I clean the water most days so the sand doesn't get the chance to build up.
Both my snake and gecks love to dig in sand, oh if only they could talk...
Kim


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

There was one topic somewhere where the beardied dragon had ate some and pooped it out, so obviously didnt get digested. Despte what the packet says how can sand be digested? I think these things should be stopped. it's a bit like dried iguana food.......they say it has everything for iggies..............but it contains animal protein and iguanas are herbivours!!!


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## animal mad (Jan 7, 2006)

Yeah i get what you mean.
I assume the sand is bone of shell based but yeah your right, you tend to believe what the packet tells you, after all they know what they are talking about????


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## animal mad (Jan 7, 2006)

I would be interested to hear what other people are using with their leo Gecko's. 
My snake has been in the same type sand with me for over 4 years without one single problem.


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## Reptilerescueden (Jan 2, 2006)

Well one would hope they knew what they are talking about but well who knows..........thing is peoples experience is valuable so I guess we have to make our owns minds up


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## Ace (Feb 20, 2006)

again im not a fan of calci-sand the stuff is more like calci-gravel than calci-sand. have used it in the past with no problems though. its down to personal preference. going back to the original part of this post about pet shops and rubbish one i have seen a few in my time i tell ya. if anyone has read my introduction they will realise i have a huge collection and these didnt all just come from one place. i have treked the country and visited in excess of 20 shops in the last year alone. ones to steer clear of would be one in a pet superstore/warehouse in enfield near potters bar on the outskirts of london. it was filthy the staff were talking bull sh*t and i could see nematode worm infections on the glass of some of the tanks. they also had all sorts of agamids and monitors with no uv lighting. the biggest shame i think was the species they stocked as they had the most fantastic species there all suffering i mean they even had woma pythons and about a douzen dumerills boas. i pity the poor animals. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: 

that said i have been to a few that i would definatly recomend due to cleanliness, staff knowlege, animal health and advice given. im going to name names as i think they deserve it as i was impressed with thier shops. the first is pauls reptile den in potters bar in essex. its small but immaculate and only stocks top quality reptiles. the second is the living rain forest in rhyl (north wales) this is run by steve gill (formerly gillworth reptiles) and again knowlegeable helpfull staff and a clean shop with fantastic species in stock especially if your into gecko's. the third is jurrassic pets in wokingham (berkshire) again not the largest shop but always clean and good healthy stock. advice is good too. think these guys have a website too.

so there we go my personal oppinion of some of the best and by far the worst that i have ever seen.


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## mutt (Jul 5, 2005)

the one in northampton is the dogs bolloxs i have never had any wrong answers from them, they talk the talk if that makes sense, not try and baffle you with bullshit, as for calci sand never used it and so cannot post any comments on it.
ace you dont have a collection you have a reptile house all to yourself, how much do you charge for admission again??? :wink: :lol:


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## Ace (Feb 20, 2006)

dunno about admission charges but it might be worth a try. just to get a bit back from my £70 a week livefood bill. thats at wholesale prices too. :shock:


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## Bev (Sep 7, 2005)

yeah the living rainforest in Rhyl is quite new but the guy an his missus are dead nice and know their stuff. the only other shop close by isnt as good, the animals are ok, not neglected, just not given enough humidity so they always have bad sheds, but they have uv if they need it and food an fairly clean tanks so i guess theyre luckier than most. i dont expect a petshop to be perfect anyway lol. the guy who works there most dont know a lot, but is willing to learn, thats how i got my hypo carrottail leo lol cos they dont know about leo morphs, so if your lucky you can get a nice one for the price of a wild type.
i was fairly impressed by the living rainforest tho.


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## SilverSteno (Feb 12, 2006)

Why don't we start a forum list and rating for all the different petshops so people know the best places to go? :lol:


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## Ace (Feb 20, 2006)

i know that other one in rhyl as well bev. i would call it run of the mill or slightly below par. not that it was unclean or they animals were unhealthy just that the stock was pretty poor and i met the guy that owns it and it has to be said he struck me a s being a bit of a cowboy. not that i wouldnt trust him or his advice just that i would be a bit more wary than most. but all in all pretty average. didnt like the way that they kept mice near the reptiles though although they did say that they are in the middle of building a reptile room in one end of the shop at the moment.


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## Bev (Sep 7, 2005)

yeaqh, the guy who runs it is a bit ..........., i dunno but he is a nice guy an he does have some really nice snakes at home lol, they do have plans to get more types of reptiles soon. lol shop competition at its best.


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## Candy_Shop (Aug 26, 2005)

When I first got my leo (from my husband's cousin) I went straight out and bought a new viv, and new equipment. I had never kept a reptile before, but had always had a mild interest, and knew that her environment was far from perfect. The shop I went into told me that I wouldn't need a heatmat and that a red bulb on for 12 hours, and turned off at night time would be all that I needed, even though it was winter :!: :!: Luckily, I didn't think this seemed right and did some research myself. My poor leo has been through so much. When I got her she was in a tiny fishtank with one piece of wood and a water bowl. No hides or anything, and all because of mis-information from pet shops.


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## hullreptilelover (Mar 4, 2006)

reps4pets said:


> thats the trouble with petshops, they dont have to know about anything that they sell,it should be made a law really,i was in a reptile shop a while back and there was rotten mice in the snake vivs but thats just dam lazy workers :twisted:


In my reptile shop it is me and my husband who have the experience and knowledge with our reptiles. I employ 2 staff members who I'm training up. To help further there knowledge I'm paying for them to attend and do a course in basic herpotology (plus they are gaining knowlege and on site experience in the shop). I think most reptile shops should do this...


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## eeji (Feb 22, 2006)

The shop I bought Clyde the iggy from was feeding him lovely nutritious lettuce *(NOT!!!!)*. He was _extremely_ skinny when I first got him, but as you can see he's fattening up nicely


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## CyberFae (Feb 25, 2006)

If a shop has no licence (especially if they have had it revoked) they are operating illegally, so surely you can report it to the police??


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