Petco isn't all bad!!

revhtree · May 17, 2016

Many of the big box pet stores get a bad reputation because of poor management and care.

But I'm here to tell you that there is hope!

I was in the local Petco picking up some cat food when I noticed that they had a saltwater section of fish that I didn't know about. I went over and saw a nice selection of fish and a young man taking the proper care and time to acclimate a new shipment of fish including some nice fairy wrasse.

I started talking with him and got around to asking him if he ever checked out any forums and to my delight he said he was on a place called Reef2Reef.

We had a nice chat and now I have a cool friend who sends me updates on new fish and sales. Just got a text from him today about a 20% off aquatics which promted this thread.

Anyway the skews on the fairy wrasse were all $20 so I took 5 of them home! Ha!

Moral of the story? There are some good caring people in all places and all types of stores! Let's encourage one another to be better and be there for one another! One of our very own moderators is a manager at one of these big box pet stores! @SeahorseKeeper

Triggreef · May 17, 2016

He looks like he could be your kid! Check out the nose resemblance...

revhtree · May 17, 2016

Hahaha!!!

reefwiser · May 17, 2016

The employee's do the best they can with what they have to work with. Like most people that work for a living.

tamand5 · May 17, 2016

I know that the petco here is terrible. The fish are unhealthy diseased and scared. Not to say this is all petcos but when i go and check mine out it is scary looking and i feel so bad for the fish.

dewboy1127 · May 17, 2016

Not gonna lie here... ive thought about trying to get a second job at one of f those stores just so i could get in there and help the animals in whatever way possible.

tamand5 · May 17, 2016

Yeah im no expert but when i see the petco fish my heart goes out to them .

Tahoe61 · May 17, 2016

That is too cool Rev. The kid must have been blown away, probably made his day.

donnievaz · May 17, 2016

Here in the DC area there are probably over a dozen Petco stores. All but one are varying degrees of crapiness. They should make the good one (Clinton MD) a training center for all the rest.

JackDE · May 17, 2016

I have a Petco close by that is AWESOME. One lady takes care of the saltwater section and she's great. She will also order whatever you want from liveaquaria. My first 5 fish were from there and they are doing great.

JackDE · May 17, 2016

donnievaz said:
Here in the DC area there are probably over a dozen Petco stores. All but one are varying degrees of crapiness. They should make the good one (Clinton MD) a training center for all the rest.

If you ever go to the Eastern Shore try the one in Denton, MD. I will certainly be checking on the one in Clinton, thanks for sharing.

twilliard · May 17, 2016

This is awesome!

donnievaz · May 17, 2016

JackDE said:
If you ever go to the Eastern Shore try the one in Denton, MD. I will certainly be checking on the one in Clinton, thanks for sharing.

I rarely go out Rt. 404 to the beach but the next time I do I'll check it out. I do always go to Pacific East when I go out Rt. 50, that place is amazing!

Naiad · May 17, 2016

It is all about the people working the area. I used to work for petco. I cant give details but their basic process for handling the fish sections leave much to be desired. The good stores are the ones that are willing to bend some corporate guidelines or to figure out new ways to do things regardless of protocol. To be really great both the fish manager and store manager have to be on the same page about this.

revhtree · May 17, 2016

Tahoe61 said:
That is too cool Rev. The kid must have been blown away, probably made his day.

Ha! I don't about all that but he did think was cool!

michellejy · May 17, 2016

I haven't ever checked their fish section. The one close to me was tiny and only had freshwater anyway.

However, on a related "not all big box pet stores are evil" topic, I had a Doberman before. In the world of Doermans, Petsmart puppy training is considered the equivalent of just not bothering at all. I tried a highly recommended, upscale training facility first, and their methods were literally abusive (like a shock collar on a fearful dog to make it stop whining). I knew that place wasn't for me and went to Petsmart. It turned out that one of the trainers there owned Dobermans and showed them at Westminster. In my second round of classes, the trainer was on the Doberman Rescue board.

I think it is easy to jump on the bandwagon and lump them all together. I'm not saying that all should be assumed to be good because one or two are, but they shouldn't all automatically be written off either--unless you have an issue with their business practices, of course.

Waters · May 17, 2016

My Boxer was trained at a Petsmart.....some of the best money I ever spent

I think the quality of those type of places are based on the employees more than anything.

LetItReef · May 17, 2016

The sale is on May 20-22, correct? I obviously shop at Petco and it isn't bad at all =)

Wilsoni · May 17, 2016

I saw a beautiful Wartskin Angler in my local Petco last month. The price listed was $39 which was a steal for it. I wanted to take it home but I promised my GF I wouldn't purchase anymore fish for awhile... I know I could've convinced her and she almost caved because she thought it was adorable but I refrained and kept my promise