Ferrets
Boycott
Petland
Boycott Dreamy Puppy
Pet Store
Hall of Shame, part 1
Pet Store Hall of Shame, part 2
USDA Violations by Petland Breeders
USDA Records on Various Breeders
How to find out more
about your puppy's breeder
Do Petland puppies really come from LICENSED breeders?
Hunte Corp.
Puppy Mill Links
14-Day Heartache Guarantee
Protesting
for Beginners
Find a group near you
Shelters
Adoption info and links to rescue groups
Bird Mills
Other animals sold in pet stores
Poems, etc.
Former pet store employees speak out
Buying puppies online--buyer beware
Pet Stores and Puppy Mills in the News
Animal sellers in Washington DC area
Pet supply stores that DON'T sell animals--the good guys:)
Puppy mill survivor stories
Shop
Donate
A local ferret rescue organization estimates that 75 ferrets purchased at Petland are surrendered to their group every year, and there are 5 other ferret shelters in the area. They add, "Petco is the other major offender. The staff of both of these stores sell ferrets without giving the purchaser accurate information about care/vacs/diet.
"The biggest mistake is that they promote these as easy-to-care-for pets. In reality, they are a very high maintenance companion pet with a transit time of 4 hours (thus making them poop machines!). They are vet exotics and expensive to treat. They are obligate carnivores, not just carnivores, and have very strict diet requirements.
"For more info, visit www.ferretuniverse.com and read 'Ferrets for Dummies' by Kim Schilling, both of which are required reading for those I adopt to. Our group has accepted and adopted well over 3,000 ferrets in the 11 years we hav been in operation as a ferret shelter."
Remember that you can locate ferret rescue groups near you through www.petfinder.com!
Reptiles
Our thanks to the rescuer who contributed this information.
Most tortoises and many turtles sold in pet stores are wild-caught. That means a wild animal is removed from its native habitat, kept in crowded conditions often with little or no food or water, and shipped hundreds or thousands of miles, then stored at a wholesaler's warehouse before it ever reaches the pet store. Along the way it might be mixed with other tortoises or turtles from different areas of the world, resulting in a mixing of bacteria, parasites, and viruses as well. Some imported Russian tortoises have even been known to carry a chelonian version of the herpes virus that can affect our native box turtles. Some wild-caught tortoise species commonly sold in pet stores are Russian, Greek, and hingeback tortoises. Wild-caught turtle species include South American or Central American wood turtles, African mud turtles, and North American western painted and mud turtles. It's cheaper to take them from the wild and ship them than it is to breed and raise them in captivity until they're large enough for legal sale.
Those few turtles and tortoises that are captive bred for sale in pet stores are often the larger species that make a poor choice as pets for the average person. These include aquatic slider, cooter, and redbelly turtles, and sulcata, leopard, and redfooted tortoises. Adult sliders, cooters, and redbellies need at least a 75 gallon aquarium, but some adults need 125 gallons or more PER TURTLE! Redfooted tortoises get to be the size of a large watermellon. Leopard tortoises get even larger, and sulcatas can grow to be over 100 pounds! None of these tortoises hibernate, so they need heat year round.
Turtles purchased from pet stores cannot be released "to the wild." Often they are not native to the area they are going to be released, and they may die as a result, or become an invasive species. Even if they are a native species, they may have been mixed with non-native turtles or sick turtles and could spread disease to turtles in a native wild population. It is often illegal to release a pet turtle to the wild without permission of the state wildlife agency, and it's illegal in most states to release a non-native pet.
It is illegal in ALL 50 states to sell a BABY turtle in connection with a business to the public. If the turtle has a shell that's smaller than FOUR INCHES LONG, it's illegal to sell in a pet store. This is a regulation of the federal Food and Drug Administration. There is an exception to this rule, and that's if the baby turtles are sold for "bona fide" educational or research purposes. Some pet stores try to claim that the baby turtles are sold only "for educational purposes," but the FDA DOES NOT consider a pet store to be "bona fide," and these stores are in violation. Please contact the regional FDA office and your local health department or the state wildlife agency if you see baby turtles being sold or given as carnival prizes. This is illegal in ALL 50 states!
Red-eared sliders are the cheapest and most commonly sold turtle in the world. They are often bred in huge "turtle farms" in the southern U.S. Because they are colorful and cute when young, and very cheap, they are often sold as illegal hatchlings in tourist areas, flea markets, and mall kiosks. However, these turtles get big, fast, if cared for properly, and there are thousands needing new homes all across the country.
It is illegal to sell red-eared sliders in the following states: IN, NC, VA, TN, OR*, FL**, and NJ***
* Oregon prohibits the possession of red-eared sliders.
** Florida does allow the sale of albino or "pastel" sliders (color morphs of red-eared sliders that likely can't survive in the wild) and yellowbellied sliders.
*** NJ prohibits the sale of any turtles. In addition, Ohio requires a permit to sell or keep a red-eared slider.
If it is legal to keep a tortoise or turtle in your area and you are interested in adopting one, please check www.petfinder.com for a reptile rescue group near you.
Rats
A person involved in rat protection tells us that the producer of one of the more popular rat foods, Harlan Teklad, also breeds cats, dogs, rabbits, rats, and other animals for use in animal experiments. She urges those who care about rats not to buy this product but to use other commercial rat foods or make your own using available recipes. You can about Harlan Teklad's use of animals at this section of their website.