Horrified!

[C.Bruno]

Yesterday I went to my local pet shop to get some things for my viv.
I always go into the back to see the snakes (boas,corns,kings,royals) and I looked the the Royal viv and 2 were lying in a hide (not a problem) but the other one was lying on its back with its head under its coil. I asked a someone who was working there if i could see one of the royals she said yes so opened the viv and only saw the snake then and just five minutes ago had turned the heat lamps off.She said it was ill but I think it had died as i couldnt see any movement what so ever.

I was also noticed there wasn't any guards on the heat lamps!
I am never going to buy a animal from this shop, even though I feel I should.I do buy things for my viv and frozen rodents but never a animal.

RIP Royal Python

[Natz18]

Aww =( how awful x

[pied pythons]

Originally Posted by C.Bruno

Yesterday I went to my local pet shop to get some things for my viv.
I always go into the back to see the snakes (boas,corns,kings,royals) and I looked the the Royal viv and 2 were lying in a hide (not a problem) but the other one was lying on its back with its head under its coil. I asked a someone who was working there if i could see one of the royals she said yes so opened the viv and only saw the snake then and just five minutes ago had turned the heat lamps off.She said it was ill but I think it had died as i couldnt see any movement what so ever.

I was also noticed there wasn't any guards on the heat lamps!
I am never going to buy a animal from this shop, even though I feel I should.I do buy things for my viv and frozen rodents but never a animal.

RIP Royal Python

Tell you what Charlie...

I've personally spoken to this particular shop twice (can't publically name them, but we both know which you're on about! Begins with an ''N'') in the last year about the way they keep their animals.

No thermostats...no light guards...mixed adult ratsnake species with subadults - all unsexed...dirty vivs...heat lamps dangling (no fittings) 6 inches off the viv floor (unstatted) directly above heat mats (unstatted) and they told me the large adult bull snake ''can't reach the light''!!

The woman in there got really shirty with me when I tried to explain the importance of thermostats and guards etc... The manager then took over and said they'd get it sorted in the next week.

A number of months later I went back in...still no change. This time I was told that they couldn't find any light guards!! I know for a fact they can. But just to make the point I wrote down two websites for them.

Went back again...still no guards - the excuse this time is...''the light guards we bought got so hot that our staff members burnt their hands on them - so we took them off again'' ???!!!!

I will go in personally in the next couple of weeks...note down for myself what I see...and report them to the local council.

It's just disgusting! I've tried helping them and they just don't give a s***.

[berkshirereptile]

Originally Posted by C.Bruno

Yesterday I went to my local pet shop to get some things for my viv.
I always go into the back to see the snakes (boas,corns,kings,royals) and I looked the the Royal viv and 2 were lying in a hide (not a problem) but the other one was lying on its back with its head under its coil. I asked a someone who was working there if i could see one of the royals she said yes so opened the viv and only saw the snake then and just five minutes ago had turned the heat lamps off.She said it was ill but I think it had died as i couldnt see any movement what so ever.

I was also noticed there wasn't any guards on the heat lamps!
I am never going to buy a animal from this shop, even though I feel I should.I do buy things for my viv and frozen rodents but never a animal.

RIP Royal Python

just to say if you dont like the way the shop keeps its animals you shouldnt buy anything from them at all they make more money off thegear than the animals anyway and your putting money into their pockets so they can continue. dont know what shop you mean but that applies to anyshop really.

[pied pythons]

I agree with the above Charlie.

I know it's hard when they're the closest to you...but giving them the custom is just lining their pockets ready to buy more livestock in.

The shame is...the rest of their shop is well kept.

For anyone interested...it's a normal pet shop that suddenly decided to stock reptiles too. The manager of the reptile section is a youngish woman with quite clearly very little experience...and a terrible attitude when I offered my help.

They were always a good shop...clean, well stocked with equipment and books etc for rodents and birds. All the rodents, rabbits, guineapigs, birds and fish were/are well kept...

It wasn't until they opened the reptiles section 18months or more ago that they lost my custom. I refuse to buy anything from them.

Fair enough if they'd welcomed my help...taken it in...made adjustments to their stock/setups...used thermostats, not co-habitted adult corns/ratsnakes (everglades mixed in with corns) with unsexed juveniles (risk of young females becoming gravid too young - egg binding etc)....etc. But they basically completely ignored me.

The first time I spoke to the young woman she didn't seem to know what I was on about when I asked where the thermostat probes were...she pointed to the stick on themometers on the viv walls!

She then told me thermostats weren't necessary...and I calmly explained in depth about temperature fluctuations in the winter/summer heat waves...electricity spikes etc. How it may affect the stock.

To that...she got really shirty trying to defend herself...told me that their shop had been RSPCA checked and passed with flying colours and so I obviously was wrong. She then walked off and completely ignored me when I spoke...literally. I was fuming!

[PrimalUrges]

If that is the case I think the council should be informed immediatley... It seems that the only way they will get their act together is if they are told by somebody in a position of authority.

[foggy01.1983]

I really hope that wasnt a case of ibd.

The way the snake was laying and her saying it has been ill sounds extremely like it.

If thats the case all the snakes in that viv are at risk including others if there are mites etc.

In some ways i hope it was a over heating viv that killed it so at least there is a chance the others can be bought and survive, but it strongly sounds like ibd

[pied pythons]

It probably died coiled up and the release of muscle tension when it died flipped it over a little.

I doubt it had been ill...that was probably a cover story to try and convince Charlie that they didn't actually have a dead snake in the viv.

I asked about their royals a long time ago; and they were keeping any information very close to their chest...could tell me whether they were WC or not...but couldn't guarantee they were feeding either!

Either that or it was lying upside down gravid!

Wouldn't trust that bunch as far as I could throw them though (and I couldn't even pick them up, lol!)...

Going to get myself up there one last time...then contact the council. This kind of ignorance really winds me up!

[candoia aspera]

i went into one of my locals and we wandered past a viv that smelled - we looked in and saw a blood python that was dead so long that it had started to bloat and there were many flies in the viv. apparently they just checked on it that morning (yeah right).are the standards in shops dropping or is it just me?

[ghostcornsnake]

im not defending the shop in any way i mean they should be stoped for what there doing but i tested a infered heat light with gard (not in the viv or near snake) and after a while i touched heat gard and i nearly burnt me

as stated im not saying in anyway what they do is right im just telling you my experiance i dont use heat lights by the way as i only have 2 cornsand they are on heat mats with thermostat.