PetCo is terrible - Photos

[dustinkimpel]

I just feel if your going to have a saltwater department you need to pay the person taking care of it enough money for it to be worth their time. If someone is only getting paid minimum wage to run saltwater systems on that scale, not to mention do everything else the store demands, of course they aren't going to put a whole lot of effort into it.

 

[matty0206]

Not all Petco's are created equally. This is at a Petco in Tacoma where a member of our local forum on Facebook works, better than some saltwater stores.

 

[syrinx]

If all petcos were like this, people would complain about them flooding the market with cheap frags-hurting mom and pop stores etc

 

[that Fish Guy]

If all petcos were like this, people would complain about them flooding the market with cheap frags-hurting mom and pop stores etc

I am confused.

What is your point?

Don't Frag Swaps already do that?

 

[Force4000]

I have a few pet worlds around my area in WI and can say they do a pretty good job with keeping there saltwater tanks in check etc. I have bought a few fish and corals without any problems and one time I went in and they had every tank listed as ICH invested and would not sell any of the livestock until they resolved the issue. It was unfortunate to see but at the same time I was glad they were informing people of the problem.

 

[Bainreese]

Not trying to start a riot in here but I went to a petco in boca raton (south florida) over the weekend and was quite surprised at their livestock, very healthy looking.

Have seen some LFS around me with dead fish all over the place.

six of one and half a dozen of the other
:beer:

No it really isn't. When you shop at a chain store like Petco only .42 cents of every dollar you spend stays in your community. When you shop from a local retailer .70 of every dollar you spend stays in your community. Locally owned businesses pay a much better wage on average than a chain store. Local stores are 250% more likely to support local causes and events.

It is very much NOT equal.

 

[usmc121581]

I have defended my Petco in the past, but recently saw a new employee pour salt from a bag right into the sump, not even measuring, just eyeballing.

Almost every LFS store around me does this with there setups. I only knew this because I either worked at them or knew the owner.

I dont dump straight into my sump but I am very good at eye balling how much salt needs to go in to make it the correct salinity.


Also its pretty hard to support your LFS when everyone on of them shut down, even good ones that took care of there animals.

 

[FinzAquatics]

I think the issue with Petco is that the quality and level of care varies drastically from store to store. I have worked for multiple different Petco locations in the past and have personally seen the care vary from store to store. If the individual stores truly followed the policy and procedures that Petco has put in place they would all be great locations for live fish. They get their fish from the exact same vendors as your LFs, if not better suppliers. ORA, Quality Marine, Etc

The issue lies with who has been hired to run these departments at the individual store. If the store does not have a hobbyist, or someone that truly cares about fish, the quality will tend to dip as a result because their ownership of the department, or lack there of..

Being a large corporate company, Petco does not typically pay much for their hourly employees which hinders their ability to find/hire hobbyists but they have begun developing and hiring "aquatics specialist" that can receive a higher level of pay BUT the stores still don't typically get hobbyist that want to join the company. Petco has such a bad stigma among hobbyist that draws these potential applicants away from their stores.

Its a shame that the "good" Petco locations get shadowed by the poorly run Petcos because if they all were run per expectation they would/could be a good resource for hobbyist to get their livestock/supplies from.

Fortunately 2 of the 3 Petcos in my area are being run efficiently and have well run fish departments who I trust BUT that third store is horribly run which again overshadows the efforts that these good stores have made.

With time hopefully the company can continue to find good employees and work on the quality of their stores slowly to earn a level of trust back from many of us hobbyist.. I would just not completely discredit every Petco location for the lack of care of the individual stores that some of you may have in your area. Its a shame that the managers of those stores have not been held accountable for their departments.

 

[usingthejohn]

way i see it, Petco is just like going to Wal-Mart. Sure you may find some deals, but the majority of them may simply be there to collect a check.

 

[1987]

We have two in my town. Once is great the other 15 min away completly sucks and looks just like the pictures you posted.

 

[sharklover567]

Poor tank,Ill give it a week if its lucky

 

[sharklover567]

For sure.

Petco in my area is also no good... Little to no knowledge of salt water. I watched a mother and kid leave petco with a 20g tank salt and a tang... I could only imagine what happened...

Poor tang,Id give it a week if its lucky.

 

[shamus]

Saw this clown at petco last night. It had a tail fin deformity. Check it out. They still wanted premium $$ for a fish that should have never made it to the store.

 

[Betta132]

Saw this clown at petco last night. It had a tail fin deformity. Check it out. They still wanted premium $$ for a fish that should have never made it to the store.

I dunno, someone would probably buy it if it can survive. It appears to have a section missing out of its body, but it doesn't look like it would have much problem living. In fact, I bet you could get a bit more for one of 'em that's unique- a mutant of sorts.

 

[Tweaked]

Not all Petco's are created equally. This is at a Petco in Tacoma where a member of our local forum on Facebook works, better than some saltwater stores.

Whoa, that puts into perspective.

 

[ReefKeep66]

I asked a petco aquatic "expert" what water paramters they keep including salinity he said their good. So I can go ahead and assume with all the ick and dead fish their indeed not "good"

 

[CODE3EMT]

I just left my local Petco an hour ago in Modesto, CA. 4" Juv. Koran dead at the bottom of tank, asking price was $59.99 I believe. All their clown fish have a white dust look and clamped fins. Most Saltwater stock is thin and emaciated and what appears to be victims of HLLE, over crowded tanks, I would say 10 gallons each for their saltwater system which is all linked........ so when 1 tank goes bad, POOF! they all go bad. I don't give a hoot what anyone says in this thread.....Petco is the worst by far if your looking to buy marine livestock. Their Freshwater fish look absolutely amazing however. Stores like this need to stick to what they know best. Dog & Cat food, Parakeets, Mice, Hamsters, Bearded Dragons, Bettas, Goldfish, and kitty litter.

 

[Aerixx]

Mine had a good saltwater setup for a whole, obviously someone knew what they where doing, but he left and it went to crap so fast, they no longer have a saltwater setup fortunately, if they cared enough once an employee left they would outsource and pay someone to train a good employee how to take care of it, we all know it's not hard, just Time and knowledge

 

[tigerjace]

Petco and Petsmart are horrible. I will never buy live stock from them! Majority of the time, you will know more about fish, especially saltwater, than the employees. Employees there are the type that will give you wrong information.

 

[ichthyogeek]

Do any of you in general help out people shopping at Petco? For example, if you see an employee very obviously misleading a potential hobbyist, do you interrupt the employee? I know that I do it, and that some might call it rude, but I feel that this is a case of helpful disruption. Of course, for the actually knowledgeable employees at chain stores, I mean no offense to you.