A question about shops and snakes

[Tatile]

Hi all, firstly I should probably say that I'm new to snakes and lizards, at least in a serious sense. My other half is Geckilian and he's already introduced Blank and Blot on the main introduction board.

We got Blot from a local reptile and fish store, which is about a ten minute walk from us. Their vivs seemed to very clean, easy to see into and, though we've had weird June weather down here, the air in the store was quite cool and dry. Generally it felt like a nice, pleasant place to get corns and beardies (they have others, but mostly those two).

I discovered another reptile and fish store which is about a thirty minute walk from us (we're a small town) and it was much, much different from the first. The air was clammy, it felt like it was overly humid for no real reason. I, and later Geckilian, saw numerous snakes and lizards with left-over sheds in their vivs and, something was rather upsetting to us both, a rainbow boa and gecko with large parts of their shed skin still attached. The vivariums themselves seemed rather dirty and moist.

This is probably nothing, but is it normal for stores to have such gross disparity in how they keep their animals? Is the second situation normal, and more importantly, is it possibly hurtful to the animals?

I didn't ask the staff in their about the animals with sheds left on them as, though I work in retail myself, I hate causing conflict. So for all I know they just hadn't gotten to helping with the awkward bits.

Sorry if it's just a newbie not understanding how snakes can be kept, but I am concerned.

 

[bitsy]

There are good and bad shops, in the same way that there are good and bad owners. Poor conditions are bad for the animals but I wouldn't call them normal.

The best way to deal with the bad shops is to never set foot in them (regardless of how much you feel the need to "rescue" their animals) and tell all your friends to avoid them as well. Pretty much the only way to close them down is to starve them of customers and profit. Once earned, a bad reputation is rarely shifted.

Pet shops need licences from their local council, but it's rare for bad ones to be closed down. I think most reptile keepers in the UK would be wary of involving the RSPCA due to their generally anti-reptile position. Bad shops are generally publicised as reasons why reptiles shouldn't be kept as pets at all, tarring all the good shops and good keepers with the same brush.

 

[Tatile]

Thanks for the infromation Bitsy. I wasn't aware that the RSPCA was quite so anti-reptile, but I suppose it's from their experience of bad owners.

 

[bitsy]

Sadly, these days the RSPCA governing body is essentially run by animal rights activists, rather than people who are concerned with animal welfare.

If experience of bad owners prompted their stance, then they'd be campaigning against cat and dog keeping, as these are the vast majority of their cases.