What horrible people

[Sabine]

On my weekly visits at the local pet stores (I'll try and rotate so they don't think I'm obsessed) I saw this woman with a littlecreme coloured chinchilla under her arm, She seemed to be there with her boyfriend and they were looking for a harness for the chinchilla. I first thought it was their own chinchilla the way she was carrying him (very matter of factly not like a precious little being) Then they try and force this cat harness on the little one. He struggles and they hold them really roughly. They try a second one and the guy holds the chinchilla down by it's tail. I was wondering why nobody was taking any notice and worst of all it turns out that they were only just bying the animal. So all the time the were handling him roughly it wasn't even theirs, I was shocked they sold the chinchilla to those two. Maybe I am just somewhat to soft but I can't imagine pulling any animal by it's tail is the right way of handling it. I just cant get that image out of my head. I really wanted to snatch the little guy from them

 

[irishbunny]

Uh Sabine that's awful, I hate seeing people being cruel to animals and not being able to do anything. Like the farm where I help out sometimes, the farmer got a hack saw and started cutting offa cowshorns, no painkillers, poor thing was screaming it's head off and it's eyes were rolling in it's head. Blood everywhere it was awful.

 

[Sabine]

I just don't understand how the shop would allow itwhen the animal hadn't even been sold. They could have injured him and then left him behind

 

[Luv-bunniz]

Sabine wrote:

I just don't understand how the shop would allow itwhen the animal hadn't even been sold.

Because they were going to sell it. They arnt really in it for the welfare of the animals, are they?

I cant belive nobody stepped in though (be it the shop people or joe public) .

 

[Sabine]

I was kind of trying to start talking to them to find out what was going on.I just thought it was their own pet. Just none of the staff seemed to take any notice. I am pretty sure some of the other pet shops I know wouldn't have allowed it. I've actually seen them refusing to sell animals to unsuitable people (a goldfish in fact) But people in this particular shop seem to be clueless

 

[mouse_chalk]

That makes me feel sick :X That poor Chinchilla.....

You've also reminded me that I need to complain to a Pets At Home store. Not our local, but another one in the area, that I went to with my mum today because she needed dog food. I saw that the rabbit pen door wasn't locked. It was just pushed to, and opened really easily. In fact, I did open it! I could have actually gone in the pen and stolen a rabbit if I'd wanted to.

So I told the girl who was tending to the gerbil cage nearby that it was open. She said 'oh, is it?' and then just turned back the gerbils! Then I went to the checkout to buy something, and told the girl there. I also told her that I told another girl who didnt seem to care, but surely they might want to lock it to prevent people stealing bunnies/kids going in and harrassing them/bunnies escaping? She said of course she would go and have a look straight away. Well after I paid, she carried on serving people. I found my mum and we left the store 10mins later and she was still serving, no intention whatsoever of going and locking that door. I felt like going and getting the poor bunnies and taking them with me I know when I tell the other manager of the good store we go to she will be mad..... I'm going to email them as well... Dunno what difference it will do but I still will try....

GRRRRRRRR...

Sorry to hijack! :?

 

[Sabine]

No harm complaining anyhow, Jen, they need to know that people notice. I feel a bit like a coward not having said anything. The way even she held him wedged under her arm like a handbag

 

[FallingStar]

Oh my gosh! :grumpy:That's so cruel!

If I was a worker at the store and saw that I would say that if they handle pets like that, they shouldn't be able to buy one!

I know what you mean Sabine, I would be to much of a coward to say anything to those people too. But I just don't understand why people be so cruel to animals! They don't do anything that horrible excpet for going weeon the rugs or braking something.

Poor chinchilla. Hopefully those people were giving the chinchilla to someone else, or something.

Karlee

 

[Sabine]

It looked to me they were bying it for themselves (to match the hand bag) but hopefully I'm wrong

 

[Brandy456]

Oh thats horrible !

They should of stopped them.

Oh, was the chin trying to bite them because that's what I do when Sparky gets out of control because its the only place I can grab him without him being able to bite me or me hurting him. Still, how you say they held him down ? I just make sparky sit.

 

[lemon]

Oh, thats horibel!!!
I know how you feel.
We have a nayber who SO mis treats his goats.
(we have goats.)
I feel as if we should go and goat nap there goats.

 

[Sabine]

I wish he had tried to bite him. They were just forcing the harness on

 

[Pipp]

Complain. And complain again. And get your friends to complain. But go in armed with knowledge.

Chinchillas have very soft ribs and should never be grabbed around the body. A safer method is lifting a Chin by the base of the tail. (But only the base).

However, for the same reason, harnesses are NOT recommended for chinchillas. At all. The store should have warned them about that.

Rough handling of any kind usually indicates a lack of empathy and knowledge. It should be an immediate red light for pet providers. And at the very very least, sales should be at the discretion of the staff who should be trained to watch for that kind of behavior.

To me the idea that people can walk into pet stores and walk out with living, feeling, thinking creature with no restrictions and no in-depth instruction about their care and handling is absolutely criminal.

People need to apply to be pet owners. They need to monitored and educated. If the pet can't be properly cared for, it has to be surrendered back to the provider (ie: the pet store) and again be their responsibility.

But it would be best if pet stores would stick to selling pet supplies.

Complaining loud and long to the store, the pet advocates and the lawmakers (re: banning unmonitored sales of live animals) is the only thing that will change anything.


sas :grumpy

 

[Becca]

Sas I totally agree!

You wouldn't just walk into a hospital and take a baby if you A. weren't his mother B. it would just be stupid and C.you wouldn't know how to care for it.



So why do it with an animal?

 

[Sabine]

They had the whole tail grabbed (which maybe wasn't that bad after all) but really struggled with that harness and pulled and yanked the little creature so hard. They didn't seem to be doting over him or anything. I'll actually try and forget about that experience and not visit the shop too often anymore

 

[BSAR]

That is awful! I would have refused to sell the animal to them!

I hope one day when I am a bit older that I can work in a pet shop. I would be a very good worker!! I would not let people harass animals in any way and I would make sure that the animals at the store were being taken care of properly and had adequate housing and couldn't get out. I wouldn't just ingore it.

Only animals lovers should be able to work at pet shops!