# Booted out of Petland...AGAIN...sigh



## Hissy-Fit-Hazel

I'm still so mad I could spit fire  I hate Petland for how their animals are treated but I really wanted some crickets for Hazel so I called there today to see if they had any ( cause I didn't want to go there if they had none) They had crickets...so I asked if they had mealies and the gal on the phone said no. This made me wonder if maybe they stopped selling Hedgies. I asked if they had any hedgehogs in and she said yes many of different ages.

OK cue for to me to not explore....just get my crickets and get out right?

OH NO! The first bin right at the entry (in the draft!) are 4 adult hedgies. I have to stop as they are right in my path....the TWIT tries to tell me they are all babes under 6 mths (not a CHANCE!...Hazel is 8 mths old and these were nearly twice her size or bigger. At min they were 1+ y/o up to 3 y/o I'd guess) They did not know the sexes...and they were so stressed there was no way I was going to pick any of them up to check stressing them more. 

Twit says to me as she pulls their wooden dumb single house off them exposing them completely "the kids really love them so we keep them right here near the door" No lights, no heat....one totally dangerous wheel...no comfy fleece....SCARED....all looked to have skin issues. Ya I lost it after listening to twit for several minutes :roll: I hate that place BOO BOO BOO! 

Sorry for the rant...I needed to vent to those who understand how miserable those babes must be. It sucked big time to see that...grrrr :twisted:


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## Rainy

Oh, I know how you feel. Fortunately, many pet stores don't sell hedgies around here. I try not to educate myself on care of the other animals I see in petstores because I'm sure it would just irritate me. :evil: 

The one independent store here is the only one I've found that have hedgies. It's ran by an older gentleman that loves pets. He doesn't know a lot about hedgies, but he's willing to take suggestions. I changed him from pine bedding to liners. The two hedgehogs he has are kept in separate cages. He has mealworms there and crickets, so when I go in there, I buy some for Izzy and Harvey and a "round" for the others in the store. 

I don't even look at the small animals in Petco and Petsmart anymore and I try to buy whatever I need at the independent guy near my home or online.

I'm sorry you had to see that. If they were willing to take suggestions or even confirm the information you are telling them as truth, that would be different, but nothing changes. I'm so sorry.


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## Nancy

Hissy-Fit-Hazel said:


> OH NO! The first bin right at the entry (in the draft!) are 4 adult hedgies. I have to stop as they are right in my path....the TWIT tries to tell me they are all babes under 6 mths (not a CHANCE!...Hazel is 8 mths old and these were nearly twice her size or bigger. At min they were 1+ y/o up to 3 y/o I'd guess)


They easily could have been under 6 months. Size has absolutely nothing to do with age. I've had many 8 week olds that were well over 300g and Quillson and Truffles were over 700g at 4 months old.


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## PJM

I'm so glad that the pet stores here don't sell hedgies. I don't think I could get out without one in each hand.


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## newfie_nurse

I know how you feel *PETLAND IS THE WORST*... :twisted: Thats where I got Chloe, and they gave me the worst info :!: I feel like she was a rescue. I am so Glad I did months of research first. I have even offered to update their info sheets for them for those buying hedgies.

Last time I was there they had 6 in one small area. And they were older but they had no idea they said they were "maybe" 4 months or more.. One of them was much bigger than Chloe and shes 8m old. I would estimate over 400grams for sure . And *one* med sized igloo for the whole bunch. I mean I pointed out to them an injured hampster and they said thats normal, they come in in the morning and remove all of the injured ones from the cages some of them missing limbs etc..

I think animals that are considered exotic should be sold only in petstores equiped and informed to look after the same. I now buy my supplies at *Petsmart* eventhough they dont sell hedgies, they do seem to have a larger selection of good Dry cat foods, bowls, toys etc..  Plus the staff is informed about the animals they do have and products available.


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## ProjectParanoia

It's amazing the stories I hear about pet stores. The Petland in my area has a bunch of people who genuinely care about the animals and make sure they get whatever they need. They even do pet photoshoots the first Saturday of every month to raise money for the local animal shelter (100% profit). I guess I'm just lucky.
I think maybe it just depends on the store closest to you, and really how much the employees, especially those higher up in ranks, care about the animals.


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## Lilysmommy

PJM said:


> I'm so glad that the pet stores here don't sell hedgies. I don't think I could get out without one in each hand.


Only one in each hand? I think any one of us would walk out looking like this -










:lol:

Actually on topic...It really does vary by store. I've had two stores around me (neither the store I work at, thankfully for my sanity and my coworkers'!) that have had hedgehogs. One wasn't doing a great job with them, both girls had severe mites, long nails, didn't have great food, and were on wood bedding with no heat lamp. The staff was willing to listen to my complains and advice though, and made changes to help the hedgehogs. They got rid of the mites, let me clip the nails, changed the bedding, and gave them a heat lamp. They sold those two girls and haven't gotten any hedgehogs since then, as far as I know, and I'm not sorry.

The other store is one I'm hoping to get a job at and they take great care of their animals. They didn't have any hogs when I last went in, but the guy I talked to was more than willing to tell me how they keep them. They have them on Carefresh, with a mix of hedgehog foods (unfortunately not cat food, but at least it's a mix, and I think they have the more decent hedgie foods in it), plastic igloos, solid-bottomed wheels, they give them insects for treats, keep them warm enough, and best of all....They keep them in a gated-off section of the small animal area, so they're not bugged by customers as much. It just really depends on the store and if someone who's in a position of authority is willing to make the effort to research and properly provide for the animals. :?


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## nikki

I'm lucky that the Petland near me is very good with their hedgies. I know the manager and have known her for years and she really wants to learn and do the best she can for the animals there. The first time I told her she had males and females together she was shocked, she said that when they recieved them they were told they were all females. I showed her how to sex them and she seperated them immediately and put the females in the back on "baby watch". She also gives my card to anyone that buys a hedgie there so they can call me with any questions. When someone called her looking for help with a surprise litter she passed my number on to them. I can honestly say that since I showed her how to sex them, and what to feed them, she's followed all my advice.


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## Hissy-Fit-Hazel

Nancy said:


> They easily could have been under 6 months. Size has absolutely nothing to do with age. I've had many 8 week olds that were well over 300g and Quillson and Truffles were over 700g at 4 months old.


Sorry I should have been more clear (although age is a mute point, they should not have been like that regardless) that yes I do realize they can be bigger (an uncle of mine bred hedgies for many years) but size was not the only clue that they were not babies. The one that dared lift it's head to look at me already had obvious teeth issues (missing one and not bright white 6 mth old teeth) aside that they appeared to not have that "baby look" of fresh skin, nails and such. Definately older than they stated...you also rarely see them here bigger even at 6 mths old in a pet store. They looked like a breeders cast offs and one was also super fatso compared to the rest.

I'm still stewing errrr...Wish I had a spare $700 and more cages lol. The smaller pet places seem to be much brighter when it comes to husbandry. Bad enough the way they had them housed but right in front of the door geez.


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## ReginasMommy

Could you report them? I'm not sure how the whole "official complaint" business works, because none of the stores around me sell hedgies, but you could try calling the ASPCA or something... maybe get someone official to make a stink. I'm just throwing out ideas


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## Hissy-Fit-Hazel

Funny thing but the other place that sells crickets but were out of them told me that they don't have hedgehogs in because of some city stipulation against it. It was a young gal and I quizzed her about it wondering if the city had banned hedgehogs....but I think it may be their business license only or something. I'll check into it further and yes will call the spca too....while I was listening to the young twit I could also see the poor hamsters in the next bin-display nearly beheading one another on the one-wheel-for 30 hamsters :shock: I can barely watch them...hamsters flying all over the place!


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