Possible mistreatment of Corn Snakes in a pet store

[Dolemite]

Hey guys and gals.

I was in a pet store the other day. It was called Safari Stan's...as far as I know, it's not a chain place like PetCo or whatever, just a stand-alone store. Anyway, as an owner of a corn snake, I always like look in the reptile section of any pet store I wander into and check the little fellas out. So, I'm in Sarfari Stan's and I notice that all the waters bowls in the snake tanks are empty. And not just empty, but BONE DRY, like there hadn't been water in them for ages. Now, when I first got my corn, I did tons of research to make sure I'd be a good daddy to him and one of the main things I read, no matter where I looked, was that they needed access to fresh, clean water at all times. I brought this to the attention of the guy working the reptile section- here's the exchange we had:

"Hey, I noticed that all the snake's water bowls are empty...looks like they could use some water."

"Snakes don't drink."

"Um...what?"

"We soak them once in a while. That's all they need."

Now I see Scooter, my corn snake, drink from his water bowl on a regular basis, so I'm thinking this guy's retarded or something. So, I press the issue a little. Lucky for me, there's another customer there who's also a snake owner who backs me up. We both bring up that we see our snakes drink and that these snakes need some water in their bowls. But the guy wasn't budging on the issue:

"Snakes don't drink. They just need to be soaked here and there!" And with that, he walked off.

Anyway, this guy's obviously stupid and has no business taking care of snakes. I was wondering what I should to help these little guys out. Call the store owner? Report the store? If so, to whom? Opinions? Any help?

Thanks.

 

[Caryl]

Oh my. Some people are so amazingly stubborn about their own bull-headed stupidity.

You should DEFINITELY notify the store owner. To put it in PC terms, this employee needs some serious retraining. If it were my pet store, he'd be promptly fired. If I were the store owner I'd absolutely want to know about this situation, and about how the employee had handled it.

I'm willing to bet that there are books for sale in that store that indicate that snakes do in fact drink, let alone your knowledge from experience.

I can't imagine local authorities taking any sort of action, but this is animal cruelty. If the store owner doesn't act, I would call authorities. If that becomes necessary you should provide the authorities with a sound source that clarifies for them the fact that snakes drink - just in case the misinformed (AKA stubborn fool) employee tries to argue the fact.

Kudos to you for caring! Please let us know what happens.

 

[Teddy Roosevelt]

Uh, my snow corn mouse who I've watched drink right while I held her wants a word with this guy.

DYK animal abusers don't breathe? It's true! All they need is a little air once a month or so! They require airtight space the rest of the time.

 

[SquamishSerpents]

i googled them, and it appears they are a franchise. i would suggest finding a way to get hold of them. see if they have an email address. believe me, i would be GLAD to send them a nasty email!! i too on a regular basis see my snakes drinking! in fact, i find they don't eat if they don't have access to fresh water!

 

[Aislin]

You could speak to a manager, at least. If that yielded no results I would fire off an email to the main offices of this store as well as sending via snail mail stating what/who you will take this to ie. The Humane Society, or other rescue type place and mention the bad publicity they would get when you go to the papers with the animal neglect story they would love to run .

How anyone could think an animal doesn't need to drink..*shakes head*

 

[ShenziSixaxis]

If they're a chain like Katia said, google them and phone or email them with what happened and the store's location.


Lucky for me, the three stores I know have corn snakes that I regularly go to (a Petco, a Petsmart, and Pet Supermarket) all take good care of all their animals.

 

[sciencechick]

In addition to calling the owner and head of the franchise and notifying the authorities, I would also go on any website you can to review this business and write about it there. Be specific. If you can't get anyone to listen to you, you may at least be able to keep people from buying there.

 

[dionythicus]

Take pictures, get someone else to witness it (someone who you know and can write a statement), contact management with the info then animal control and file a report if nothing changes.

 

[Dolemite]

Thanks for the responses. Despite the kid I talked to sounding like a know-it-all, I can't see him being the only person who takes care of the snakes. In other words, I'm sure this must be store policy, and not just his own (if it is, he should be fired). Anyone who thinks animals don't drink is seriously retarded.

I'll take it up with the manager/owner of the store and see if that helps. If not, I'll take the suggestion above and take pictures and contact the main office. IMO this is totally abuse.

Thanks again, and I'll keep you all posted.

 

[starsevol]

Now, I do keep rosy boas. They are desert animals and humidity is really not good for them. I don't keep waterbowls in their cages unless they are brumating. But....I do offer them a drink once or twice a week (they really rarely drink, believe it or not!) and when I thaw their food, I do it in water and offer it wet. And that is really about all they need. My youngest is almost 12 years old, so I can't be failing them that badly.....

But corns need clean water every single day....no doubt.