  Petco - The Place Where Pets Die |
Consistent Quality Care?The reality of any large retail store is that employees come and go. An employee that has experience caring for reptiles may at one point be on the job. How long that person is in place to care for the reptiles is a question. Additionally, how much do these employees actually know about animal care? We often warn people about many of the books normally sold in pet stores. We advice them that there will be at least three statements of advice regarding care that, if followed, will lead to the death of an animal. We discussed this with a pet store owner years ago who explained that most of the books sold were written by hobbyists, who may not be fully qualified to write such books. Since that time, many books have been published written by true experts. Even with the existence of quality literature, care issues are always a source of controversy. Breeders and welfare advocates often disagree on care issues. Laws regarding the treatment of animals are difficult to pass due to the difference of opinions held by those lobbying legislators regarding animals and animal use.The bottom line in determining just who does have the expertise to care for animals properly lays within the motivation of the parties. Those that believe that animals exist for human use and therefore see animals as an opportunity for personal gain will often support care methods that increase the profit margin. Those that believe that animals should not be used by humans for any purpose will protest all use of animals. There is a middle ground. Animal welfare activists and educators are traditionally concerned with care that supports health, emotional well being and longevity. Animal care techniques based on research which has stood the test of peer review and published in scientific journals is the most reliable. Unfortunately, not all issues regarding the behavior, environmental requirements and nutritional requirements of all species sold in pet stores have been researched. The second test of quality, though perhaps not as reliable is anecdotal information. Someone who "raised rats when I was a kid" may not be aware of information held by someone involved in animal welfare education and private rescue endeavors. The realities caused by over population and the surrendering of mass numbers of animals to shelters makes it highly unlikely that an animal welfare educator or rescuer will cosign the sale of companion animals. Therefore, who do you suppose will be found caring for animals at Petco? In summary, the very nature of a big box store such as Petco, with high employee turnaround, makes it difficult for the store to maintain high quality care of the animals in the store. True experts in animal care are few and few will be found taking this kind of job. >>next - Current Events Petco Where Pets Die History Repeats Itself |
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