# New Petsmart



## monkeytreey (Sep 3, 2011)

After college life for three years I have change my mission statement in what I want for my career.I know want to help people to better understand how to properly take care of their animals. To get me started I figured a pet store would help. I live in Marquette MI USA and pet stores are limited one is a feed store that is hard on their employees, and the other is one where unless you are looking at reptiles mistreats their animals. When I first looked for rats the reptile place was the only store I went to look and after seeing the horrid conditions and health of the rats I decided not to ever go there and support them. Luckily a Petsmart is coming to town and I have been hired as a pet care associate. I want to help people make the right choices and wanted to know what the community here thinks I should focus my efforts on most. Right now I am thinking I will focus on cage size and nutrition when people are looking for a new friend. What other things do yall think I should focus on when it comes to rats and other small mammals? Thanks
monkeytreey


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## gal5150 (Aug 14, 2012)

Cage size and nutrition are great, but educating the public about the inherent risks of buying small animals from pet shops would be great! I feel that if you are going to support the purchase of small animals via pet shops you should disclose things like possible medical issues due to unknown breeding pairs, potential stress related issues when bringing a new pet home, adoption of rescue animals, etc. If the customer wants to proceed the number one thing that should be stressed is that for the health and happiness of say a rat or guinea they MUST be bought in same sex pairs. My rats, as well as my guinea pigs, were pet shop animals. I knew the risks but was unable to acquire them otherwise. I paid, literally, for my choice in copious vet bills and twice a day med administration. I knew these were possibilities and accepted that going into it. The average person may not be prepared to do this and their animal will suffer if not die. That's what I would like to see pet shops do...be honest and supportive!


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## monkeytreey (Sep 3, 2011)

Honesty is a big part of what I want to do, one of the things I want to tell people is about the little tussles that males get into. My original rats were rescues from a family that purchased rats and when the boys grew up the children became scared of the dominance behavior (power grooming, squeaking).


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Whatever you do, do NOT recommend people buy crittertrails, habitrails or other hamster cages for gerbils. They really need to live in tanks with lots of bedding for tunneling. They get injured in hamster cages because they will chew on the bars and rub their noses raw, and they will eventually destroy the cage since the majority of it is plastic. If the gerbil happens to ingest any plastic then that means they could get very sick or even die. Not to mention those hamster cages are really small for one gerbil much less two.
Honestly I don't think any small animal should be in those hamster cages. Mice to better in tanks, because they can easily escape from a cage and they can often injure themselves. With a tank you just need to make sure that you clean it often, because mice are like rats with their poop decomposing and releasing ammonia. 
I have a dwarf hamster in a hamster cage currently, but he is chewing the bars really badly to the point where he has no fur on his nose anymore. If I were to leave him in there his nose would soon be bloody, so I'm going to switch him to a tank with a lid.

Rats are really the only rodent that I know of that does better in a cage rather than a tank.


Another thing I really feel strongly about that no pet store seems to care about is keeping rodents with other rodents of the same kind.
Gerbils must live with other gerbils. They live in clans in the wild, so it would be cruel and unnatural for them to live alone as a pet. Keeping a gerbil alone will cause them to sleep all of the time and they will become depressed, lonely and often aggressive towards people. Plus, if you keep a gerbil alone you will never get to experience the joy of watching your clan sleep together, groom each other and play together. Since females are the dominant gender and much more territorial than males, I would suggest keeping them in only pairs. Sometimes trios of females do work, but the chance of a declanning (where a clan of gerbils suddenly decide to kill each other) is much higher. Males can be kept in groups of 2 to 8 gerbils, but the more gerbils you have, the larger tank that you'll need. Usually the recommended size is 10 gallons per gerbil. But you'll need to make sure the people know that gerbils are very territorial and will kill each other if they are just "thrown together" in a tank without a proper split-cage introduction that lasts at least a week to several months. (Sorry that I typed so much about gerbils.. They're my specialty since I breed them. I feel very strongly about the poor ways people keep any rodent pet)
Mice are another rodent that should be kept with other mice; females especially. Yes, males can live alone since they sometimes fight with other males, but if you can keep them in a pair then that's better. I can't tell you how to introduce mice, since I just recently got my first two mice and they were already a female pair. Though I'm sure the split-cage method would be a great and safe way to go with mice too. 
I'm not really going to say much about rats since other people on the forum will, but they must be kept with other rats also. Its just as important as keeping a gerbil with other gerbils. 
Hamsters are about the rodent that is okay living on its own, though I have heard of people safely keeping them with other hamsters. I've only had a single male dwarf winter white hamster in my lifetime, so I can't really give much information about hamster keeping.


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## YellowSpork (Jul 7, 2012)

Well about the hamster bit, some breeds do better with another hamster while others will kill any others that you put it with... and I'm sure it also depends on the temperament of the individual hamster, as well. I think syrians/teddy bears are one of the breeds where it's a big no-no to keep two of them together? (someone else may chime in and say I have it backwards but I'm pretty sure syrians are very territorial)


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## Cupcake&Candy (Jun 5, 2012)

For starters, can you believe I was a grown woman with kids before I learned that rat & hamster & bird diets *can all be supplemented *with healthy fruits, veggies, and meats!  I was always taught that we give pets the "pet food" sold in bags.  
Please stress to customers the importance of *a well-rounded fresh diet* for their critters. Thanks.


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Insects are great too for gerbils. They eat insects in the wild. Crickets and mealworms make great treats, but make sure you don't get the crickets from the store because they can carry salmonella. I'd recommend getting the crickets from a place where you know poisons haven't been used. I've also known of people feeding their gerbils moths and several other things. Its really interesting to watch your gerbils switch from cute and cuddly rodents to "clawed warriors" like the name gerbil means.

As far as the meats and veggies go, each small animal is different so its best to do research first to see what they can and can't have. Too much veggies for a gerbil will cause them to get diarrhea, so veggies should only be given about once a week (and only romaine lettuce is safe out of the lettuces). Only white meat chicken without seasonings and white meat turkey without seasonings is safe for gerbils, but they don't eat meat in the wild so I don't really see the point in giving it to them. Many fruits should only be given in small quantities since many fruits have high water content can can cause diarrhea. 

With all of my rodents, their all time favorite treats are cheerios and almonds (and pecans when I can get them.. but pecans are so expensive now that I seldom have them to offer..) 


As far as food goes, I feed all of my rodents the same mixture of seed mixes (I mix 4 different kinds of seed mixes together). Gerbils require 12% protein and 7% fat if they aren't breeding, but for my gerbils that breed they need a 16% protein mixture so part of my seed mixes are high protein and the others are only 12%. For the rats and mice, I feed them the same seed mix as part of their diet along with a lab block food and many many treats out of my kitchen to ensure they're getting the proper nutrients.


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## trematode (Sep 8, 2012)

I second everything that was said about gerbils.

Do you need to know about fish care? I did a LOT of research on keeping bettas, appropriate fish for small set-ups (20 gallons or less), tank maintenance and cycling.


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## YellowSpork (Jul 7, 2012)

Bettas are always kept in terrible conditions an I HATE it. Keeping a Betta in a bowl is like locking a human in a bathroom and saying "it will survive!" -_- also goldfish. 30 gallons for the first goldfish at minimum and then ten gallons per goldfish after that. Not a one gallon bowl with no filter. Ugh.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Yes, Fish can not live (at lease not long) in bowls.

Another thing about are reptiles. Most reptiles you find in the pet store do Not need UV light, almost all of them sold are nocturnal and just need belly heat. There are a lot of horror stories of stores selling UV lights to leopard geckos who don't need them and them getting burned (often having to be put down) 

Snakes will often get very panic and stressed if fed outside their cage, and most will even get stressed out if their habitat is Too big. Also reptiles can not live on sand, especially with snakes, it will damage their scales and for snakes that means they can't move so can't regulate body temperature and scale rot will most likely happen. Impaction with all reptiles can happen and can kill the animal. 

For small animals everyone has stuff covered. Make sure to inform rat people though that rats can Not eat everything. they have no canine teeth or gal bladder and can not digest meat fats and its best to stay away from meats completely (Fish is not considered a meat, and white chicken has no fat so both are safe). Also inform them that dark chocolate is safe in rats and is actually helpful. Oh and that cheese is harmful to rats as well.

Critter trails I wouldn't recommend for any animal, not even pygmy mice (granite they are too small for one but still). Bin cages and tanks are better for Gerbils and Mice. Bin cages, tanks, and Wire cages are better for hamsters. Wire cages for all other animals after that. Also inform them that most guinea pig cages and rabbit cages sold are too small for rabbits and guinea pigs. Most rabbits sold are medium size breeds and need around 6 to 8 square feet, most commercial rabbit cages Barely meet that minimum. the size requirement is more for breeds like French lops, Flemish giants, ect. Also guinea pigs and rabbits can get impaction (Wool block (fur ball) constipation, ect) if not given hay daily. 

Also rabbits can get urine scale, basically dried urine on their feet since they really can't groom their feet, and either 1 inch by 1/2 inch wire floors or fleece will help prevent. Also rabbits 90% of the time will Not get along with each other and "bonding" two can end up being very expensive and stressful on both rabbits and humans. Yes some Will bond and some rabbits hate being alone, but most like being alone or at lease away from their own kind. 

guinea pigs on the other hand need to be in groups like rats.

Can't think of any others at the moment.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Get the management to stock small friendly rats instead of the aged out anti-social critters that somehow stay 4 months old forever. People that buy rats from chain pet shops are newbies... And if the only way you will pick up the rat is by the tail or in heavy gloves... don't stuff it into a box and hand it to someone that's unprepared for what's going to lunge out at them.


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## jd882 (Sep 16, 2012)

It's amazing the things I've just learned in this post that were almost total opposites of what I was taught when I worked at Petco 15 years ago and NJ Pets 10 years ago! It should be a prerequisite to read this forum before getting a job at a pet store now-a-days... Good luck with the new job and I'm sure you will be quite the asset to the company, your fellow associates, and the customers because of all this wonderful knowledge you now have and can spread to the masses!


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## YellowSpork (Jul 7, 2012)

ALSO! Make sure people know that guinea pigs can't produce their own vitamin C and need to fed a cup of veggies every day!!! And that peppers are a great source of vitamin C. You can cut a pepper in half and stuff it with other veggies for an edible bowl  (I don't think this was mentioned in the last post mentioning piggies but I could have missed it)


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Oh another thing you can do is grind up chewable Vitamin C tablets and sprinkle it over their food if they won't eat peppers, or citrus fruits. I forgot to mention that, but most guinea pig food has added vitamin C reason Guinea pig food should Only be fed to guinea pigs. 

Interesting fact. Humans and Guinea pigs are the only animals who can't produce their own vitamin C. Though humans used to and apparently about 1 to 2% of the population still can but its slowly becoming an extinct trait. Just how opposable thumbs quickly made non opposable thumbs extinct in humans. Just thought I would throw that out there since we are talking about facts.

Oh another thing I should mention for rabbits. try to steer newbies (especially kids) away from smaller breeds. they actually tend to be more timid or skittish, larger breeds are often more calmer but if spooked can hurt a child. Medium size breeds like Californians, New Zealands, and English lops are considered good starter rabbits. Petsmart doesn't sell rabbits from what I remember, at lease here they don't. Oh and smaller breeds, Rexes, and most long hair breeds (Angoras) have issues on wire floors. Also this is mainly common knowledge as even 99% of industrial rabbit farms that breed for the market (those who have over 200 rabbits not the simple farmer who has like 10) will have a resting mat in the cage. So with wire floors there needs to be a place the rabbit can rest, it can be a piece of scrap wood, plastic matt, or my favorite, Tile. Those who raise rabbits outside in hot areas often use Metal or Tile for resting matts/Area since it keeps the rabbits cooler in the summer, well year round since we only have 2 seasons. Hot and Hotter. (Do note with the small breeds I'm talking about in general like cat and dog breeds there are some who don't want to listen to the standards, but in general most small breeds can be very grumpy and do not make good beginner pets)

Oh and this is important not sure if someone mentioned it. Make sure to make it clear to people the life span of an animal. Rats, 2 to 3 years. Rabbit 5 to 10 (5 to 7 is the most common). Guinea pigs 6 to 8. Chinchillas over 20 years. Smaller snakes (corn snakes) and most lizards. 10 to 20 years. Larger snakes (ball pythons) 20 to 40 years. a lot of people forget about these and often will abandon the animal later in life. its sad to see how many people on craigslist here are selling a year to 2 year old rats because they can't take care of them any more, which I find sad cause most of these rats have a high chance of dying of natural causes within a few months or even weeks.


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Petsmart doesn't sell rabbits or ferrets because they aren't "beginner" pets. I asked a Petsmart employee why they have a bunch of information booklets (which have a lot of incorrect information by the way) for rabbits and ferrets, and the employee said they used to sell them but stopped because they weren't a "beginner" pet.

Honestly no pet is a beginner pet. Everyone should do their research before jumping into buying that pet.


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## YellowSpork (Jul 7, 2012)

Awaiting_Abyss said:


> Petsmart doesn't sell rabbits or ferrets because they aren't "beginner" pets. I asked a Petsmart employee why they have a bunch of information booklets (which have a lot of incorrect information by the way) for rabbits and ferrets, and the employee said they used to sell them but stopped because they weren't a "beginner" pet.
> 
> Honestly no pet is a beginner pet. Everyone should do their research before jumping into buying that pet.


I agree, but there are often impulse-buyers and the best way to keep those impulse pets well taken care of is to have knowledgeable employees! Who can sometimes scare them off impulse buying an animal.  And, if a person really does care for animals well, impulse buys don't always turn out badly. Some people will buy an animal they fall in love with at the store and then do a lot of research right after and correct the things they're doing incorrectly, which isn't too bad. But I feel those people are also an exception... lol

I wish the pet store by me didn't sell rabbits or ferrets. Actually I wish they didn't sell ANY animals. They are AWFUL, and though my vet today couldn't comment on the store I could tell she hated it just as much as me. lol They keep their rabbits in tiny wire cages I wouldn't put a rat in (multiple rabbits in one) if they aren't in the display, as well as guinea pigs. And their hamster cages are ten gallon aquariums with like 5 hamsters in them, and I frequently go in there and see mothers nursing new-born babies. :/ It disgusts me. I never buy anything there anymore... I used to get fish there, but after I got into rats I realized how terrible they are (I never went to the rodent section before xD). I sometimes just like to go in and play with their rodents since they really don't get much attention and most of them are very nice once they realize you won't hurt them. lol


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## monkeytreey (Sep 3, 2011)

Thanks for all the advise I knew a lot of it from my past pets and am going to always do just what I do to the college kids that ask me for advise. Tell them To do some research and ask questions and remember to take everything with a grain of salt. During the interview I asked them many questions and after a little time working there will be tring my best to improve conditions as much as I can. The sad part is I was happy when they came here because the other pet store is horrid! Everything housed in 10 gallons and constant uri and kennel cough. I will also encourage people to join forums and to tap the wellspring of knowledge that can be found here. I will hopefully keep y'all updated to the extent the confidentiality contracts will let me. Thanks
Monkeytreey


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## Flashygrrl (Feb 8, 2012)

At least with you being up in Marquette you'll be further out of the corporate eye and can probably deviate a little from whatever their training might be, so if they train you to do things one way that you know is completely imappropriate there's a chance you can say "Hey, this is not the best way to do this".


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## Jaguar (Nov 15, 2009)

It's always good to be up to date on your knowledge when working somewhere like a pet store. It's sad how many pet store employees have no idea about animal care!

HOWEVER. Petsmart is a VERY big chain and their main motivation is money, not the welfare of animals. If you are not selling enough and making the company enough money, you will be fired. They are not making money by you giving out advice, they are making money by you pushing store products on people. If a person wants something, you CANNOT refuse to sell it to them. It doesn't matter if they want to put a tiger oscar in a 5 gallon tank or a rat in a hamster cage, if they're paying for it, it doesn't matter what happens to it afterwards. It's the sad but unfortunate truth about places like Petsmart.


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## RatMama13 (Aug 20, 2011)

Actually our local petsmart and PETCO s are picky. They wont sell them to you if you dont have the right set up no matter what the animal is. They are more than willing to give you advice if you are a newbie too


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## trematode (Sep 8, 2012)

If I were you, I would not push any "starter" homes on people. The kind that are okay for baby animals but too small for the adults. The likelihood of people returning to buy larger cages and aquariums are probably pretty slim. Most of my friends growing up had tiny cages/aquariums for their animals. I wonder if my theory partially explains that.


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## Raturday (May 26, 2012)

Jaguar said:


> It's always good to be up to date on your knowledge when working somewhere like a pet store. It's sad how many pet store employees have no idea about animal care!
> 
> HOWEVER. Petsmart is a VERY big chain and their main motivation is money, not the welfare of animals. If you are not selling enough and making the company enough money, you will be fired. They are not making money by you giving out advice, they are making money by you pushing store products on people. If a person wants something, you CANNOT refuse to sell it to them. It doesn't matter if they want to put a tiger oscar in a 5 gallon tank or a rat in a hamster cage, if they're paying for it, it doesn't matter what happens to it afterwards. It's the sad but unfortunate truth about places like Petsmart.


I definitely won't disagree with you about their main motivation being money, but I work in the Pet Care department and we are never fired for not making enough sales. They don't keep track of what we sell and how often. And we can definitely refuse sales, but only on live animals - I have done it plenty of times, especially for fish.




As for the OP, make sure you learn all you can about the fish, birds, small animals, and reptiles. You will be asked a ton of questions on all of the sections, not just small animals, and the training they give you is not adequate information to start out with. You have to learn as you go. Take a bunch of Care Guides home and get to reading.


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## trematode (Sep 8, 2012)

For betta care, I highly recommend browsing http://www.bettatalk.com and http://www.healthybetta.com.For other fish, I recommend the Aqua Hobby forums (google it). Read the article on take cycling. Browse the profiles on each fish.Just a few notes:The only thing that would comfortably fit in a 5 gallon would be a betta.For a 10 gallon, a good variety of fish without overstocking would be a small school (7-10) of tetras (black neon or neon) or rasboras, centerpiece fish (platy or guppy trio, some bettas do well but not all) and a couple of ottocinclus as algae eaters. If you lean towards 7 schooling fish, a trio of dwarf corydoras work. Sand substrate is recommended for them.Never sell tricolor sharks or plecos. They grow far too large for most tanks.This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine: letting a tank run go 24 hours DOES NOT cycle a tank. It takes about one month to properly establish the bacteria levels in a tank to handle the fish. Cycling a tank using pure ammonia is the most humane way. If you do it with adding fish, you have to be monitoring ammonia and nitrite levels daily to avoid harming your fish. If you have any questions about the process, PM me. There are several threads in Aquahobby that outline the recess.


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## riotfox (Apr 16, 2010)

i skipped the second page, so sorry if im repeating, but one of the first things that i would stress is exercise! not so much the physical aspect but the mental. cage size is important, but a cage is still a cage and animals need to be let out daily. for rats, and probably for most similar species, i would say an hour a day is absolute minimum. even most cages people consider to be "large" really arent that big if you think about it. they are fine as long as the animal is allowed to come out for playtime, but locking them up 24/7 is a surefire way to make them bored. you can have enclosures large enough to allow for adequate mental stimulation, like a big backyard aviary for birds, but they would have to be larger than most people would normally have for rats, and i would assume, much larger than any that petsmart sells.


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## trematode (Sep 8, 2012)

Oops. Duplicate post. Silly phone.


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