# Oh Petsmart! How you Aggravate Me!!



## MoonShadow (Feb 29, 2012)

I reached out to several local pet smarts and PETCOs with concerns regarding the care of bettas in their stores... today I received this reply from one petsmart... SMH... 



> I am glad to hear your betta is thriving in its new environment and I appreciate your concern for the bettas in our care. The betta fish in our care are well cared for and the associates here are all lovers of animals of all types and only want the best for all of our pets here in the store. Bettas do not put off ammonia at a extreme level like goldfish so they don't require daily water changes which is why bettas are the only fish that can live without a filtered tank. Doing daily water changes is actually not good for bettas or any other fish, it is to disruptive to their ecosystem and actually does more harm to their wellbeing. We do water changes several times a week and inspect their wellbeing daily to ensure they are all healthy and happy. As for the fin rot you mentioned seeing, I believe you are mistaking the natural tail that the crowntail bettas have. They are stringy fins not the solid fins that regular male bettas have. I can see how you could think it was fin rot but I can assure you it is not and is their natural tail. I hope I addressed your concerns and feel free to reach out to me or my Petcare Manager Mellissa with any other concerns or questions


And here is my response!




> Thank you for your response I appreciate you taking the time to address my concerns. I would just like to comment on a few of the things that were said in your email.
> 
> Firstly all fish produce waste and therefore produce ammonia, and in those tiny cups the ammonia builds up very very quickly. After reading your email I decided to get a betta from petsmart and test the water myself. Even though you claim that the water is changed frequently enough, and that the bettas don't produce much ammonia, the test of the water revealed an ammonia level of nearly 4ppm. Any ammonia is problematic for fish, and levels over .25ppm are potentially fatal, the fact that this betta is still alive is amazing.
> 
> ...



I am just so aggravated!!! I hope they read the email and really listen to what I have to say!!


----------



## Thomasdog (Jan 26, 2012)

You go MoonShadow!!! ~~ Way to smack him down! LOL  Gorgeous fish btw


----------



## WildFlower (May 8, 2012)

Wow I'm so gald that someone is actually talking to PetSmart people about this! I can't believe they thought we could mistake fin rot for a crowntail(....I laughed out loud when I read that) I hope they write back so we can see what they say.


----------



## Erin908 (May 28, 2012)

Wow, just wow. If you went public with this it would wind up on some important news source. Maybe we should all join forces and write an investigative report on this. Then they would REALLY squirm. The bit about fin rot vs. crowntail was unbelievable. Even someone with no experience with fish would be able to see if an animal was sick or not.


----------



## KadenJames (Mar 23, 2012)

Moon, what was the original message you sent to them? I'm wanting to make a similar email and send it to the managers of my local petco/smart. What a fantastic response, I would be HIGHLY surprised if you get a response back.


----------



## JaysuzGawd (May 28, 2012)

I'd just like to say bravo. Please, keep us updated and let us know if they respond! I think that'd be something to see. They're probably so baffled, trying to come up with more excuses, I bet!


----------



## Bethydan (Mar 22, 2012)

I walked into Petco today and was astonished to see that all the cups had clean water, there were no dead or diseased betta, and several actually had bubble nests with vibrant and interactive little males. :shock:


----------



## Litlover11 (Aug 1, 2011)

Moonshadow, you are awesome! How insulting that they would assume we don't know the difference between crowntails and finrot! I once tested the water that Freya came in and I believe it was also around 4ppm, perhaps a little higher. Hope they reply!


----------



## ZackyBear (Dec 1, 2011)

You would think that a pet store owner would be KNOWLEDGEABLE about any animals it keeps :roll: That person obviously isn't~

Way to go Moonshadow!


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

That is a wonderfully thought out and beautifully worded response! I would love to see what they have to say back to you.


----------



## FishyFishy89 (Jul 3, 2011)

I don't think they will be messaging her back. And if they do, they'll just say something along the lines of "we again appreciate your interest in the care we take of our bettas....and goes onto explain that their care is appropriate by some means and they will not be changing their care. OR might possible consider changing the care"
As a former employee of PetsMart I've seen 1st hand the care given to these bettas. They do infact get water changes everyday. It is just done in a way that makes you cringe.

Imagine if you will, a bucket full of that tacky blue water. All fresh and prepared for the bettas. Now add to that picture an empty 10 gallon tank with a fish net layed across the top with the net portion over the inside of the tank.
Now here is the process:
Fishy gets poured into net from cup. 
fresh prepared water is now scooped into the cup
fishy is plopped...yes literally plopped back into the cup

no acclimation, no making sure water is heated or even reads the same level as the previous water (not that you want ammonia in it )

MoonShadow, I do appreciate the fight you are putting towards the beautiful fish. I understand (somewhat) why PetsMart cares for the fish in the way they do. They simply don't have enough time in the day or the means to balance customer care/fish care. They dont have the space to put up a heated tank with several dividers for the males or a heated tank as a female sorority. Or they do not have the money to build it. Whatever the reason, if they cannot properly care for these beautiful fish in the correct way, then they shouldn't have them. But to PetsMart and Petco. Everything living and has a heartbeat or not, everything is a product and a means to make money. It is all about money for them. And the fact that bettas usually get bought up fast is also another reason for them to not properly care for them.
Keep up the fight, maybe someday when we all join together, SOMETHING may happen. Be they stop selling bettas or they actually create an appropriate environment for them.


----------



## sassysharay (Jun 2, 2012)

Bravo!! Please let us know if they reply (which they probably wont...)

I cannot believe that they suggested that you were confusing fin rot for a healthy CT.


----------



## ZackyBear (Dec 1, 2011)

My Petco recently started putting some of the bettas in the larger tanks with the schooling fish. One of them got shredded! >:C


----------



## zombiegirl (May 24, 2012)

I think it's great that you wrote to them. I love that you tested the water. That's so awesome. 

My Petco is awful. I complained when I was there yesterday. The bad thing is that we don't have any pet stores close by or I'd boycott them. I spoke to the manager and asked how often they change the water in the betta cups. She swore up and down that they took _excellent_ care of their fish, but never did answer my question. I just shook my head, asked her to follow me and pointed out three dead, four with swim bladder and at least six with fin rot. I smiled then told her that now that she was aware of the condition of her fish that maybe she could improve things for them. I have no idea if it will work, but it sure felt good.


----------



## Danibunkins (May 15, 2012)

Very nice response to the email.

I'm less annoyed at the finrot/crowntail confusion, and more annoyed by the ammonia reasoning.

I just ... wow.

That's how people get sold the betta blocks that are maybe a quarter of a gallon and encouraged to keep bettas in them.


----------



## acadialover (Nov 17, 2011)

Congratulations on your letter. Last year, after observing fin rot on several betta's
I wrote a note to corp. Petco. I was quite impressed that the very next day i got a mail back asking which store etc. since , they keep better care I think at that store.


----------



## Ramble (Mar 13, 2012)

Excellent job! Tha was to the point without being rude or bullying. Hopefully the managers will take your letter to heart...and good thinking adding the ammonia test, since they clearly had no idea about actual ammonia levels in fish tanks!


----------



## Ramble (Mar 13, 2012)

zombiegirl said:


> My Petco is awful...... I just shook my head, asked her to follow me and pointed out three dead, four with swim bladder and at least six with fin rot. I smiled then told her that now that she was aware of the condition of her fish that maybe she could improve things for them. I have no idea if it will work, but it sure felt good.


hopefully that manager will do something now that you've called them on their shortcomings as well. Fingers crossed...


----------

