Petsmart Fish Policy
- Thread starter Larissa
- Start date
Our local petsmart has a similar policy, they won't refuse to sell you the fish but they won't guarantee them. I find nothing wrong with it, in fact I'm impressed that they take the time to find out what kind of setup you have, how long you've had it etc. and then without beating around the bush tell you if they believe that the fish is a bad choice.
I find it hilarious that if someone were to post on here with a statement saying that their LFS sold them 50 Goldfish for their 30 gallon tank, people would have a field day griping about how pet stores are just after your money and don't care about the fish, yet when a store refuses to sell a pile of fish to someone all you see is "How dare they tell me what not to buy" The Irony kills me.
If the store wants to refuse a sale that is their perogative and I see nothing at all wrong with it. Mind you, they had better have some pretty good reasons and be able to communicate PROPERLY to the customer the reason they are refusing a sale and help the customer come to a compromise. For example, the store could say "50 Goldfish is quite excessive for a 30 gallon tank, how about we start with 1 and see how he does"
Just my 2 cents
Cheers
I find it hilarious that if someone were to post on here with a statement saying that their LFS sold them 50 Goldfish for their 30 gallon tank, people would have a field day griping about how pet stores are just after your money and don't care about the fish, yet when a store refuses to sell a pile of fish to someone all you see is "How dare they tell me what not to buy" The Irony kills me.
If the store wants to refuse a sale that is their perogative and I see nothing at all wrong with it. Mind you, they had better have some pretty good reasons and be able to communicate PROPERLY to the customer the reason they are refusing a sale and help the customer come to a compromise. For example, the store could say "50 Goldfish is quite excessive for a 30 gallon tank, how about we start with 1 and see how he does"
Just my 2 cents
Cheers
I don't have any problem with Petsmart Employees giving me advice. I'd also be happy if the stopped selling fish like Pacus at all, but that's something else entirely. The thing is, they need to ask questions and go by a case by case basis. There shouldn't be a "one size fits all" policy, IMO.
Hello All :dance2:
Figured I'd clear up some of the questions here. I'm a manager for one of the petsmarts here in charlotte nc...sadly, one of the few that has decent, knowledgable employees :thm:
There is no policy that says we can limit a sale to 6 fish..that's bogus and I suggest that if someone tells you this, to speak with a manager.
Secondly, what is supposed to happen is that all employees have to ask what size tank you have, what you have in it, how long it's been setup etc and then go from there.
It is policy that we may refuse any sale of a fish,reptile,bird or small animal if we believe (after speaking in detail with the customer of course) that they don't have the correct setup such as too small of a tank/habitat, want to mix species together that are not compatible with each other or if for some reason the customer just does not care at all or in any way hints or states that they are trying to "kill off a fish they don't want anymore" which I had a few days ago matter of fact :rant: In such cases we have the full right and backup of the company to refuse a sale if it's for the well-being of a pet.
I can only speak for the store that I work at, as not all petsmart run exactly the same unfortunately, but this is how I run my department:
I do not sell more than 3-5 fish to a customer who has a newly setup aquarium that is un-cycled.
If there are any water quality issues, those need to be corrected BEFORE they purchase anymore fish.
I don't allow people to mix africans and south american cichlids, which for most is a given anyway. Most people know better thankfully :thm:
The only fish that I allow to leave my store in a bowl is a betta, although personally I think a tank is better for them as well, but I would rather customers buy a betta than a goldfish.
My koi are only for ponds, I don't sell them to people wanting to put them in a tank, unless they have a very large tank of at least a few hundred gallons, which around here, not too many people to.
I have stopped selling a number of fish(at this store...other petsmarts probably still have them available) such as Pacus, silver-tip sharks and I am trying to stop getting in the irridescent sharks and violet gobies as our systems are not set up for brackish fish or the larger fish and I know most people don't have the room for say a school of Pacu...after trying to persuede numerous customers not to purchase these fish long ago when I still had them and failing at it, I just took the tags down and stopped ordering them. Got really tired of hearing people say "oh well I'll just throw it in a pond or something" or "I'll get a bigger tank eventually"
You're right though...each customer is different and they need to be treated as such...meet their needs, steer them along in the right direction if they need it.
As said before, take it case by case and make sure all the right questions are asked to determine what's best for that situation.
Sometimes we will get the extremely loud, aggressive, confrontational customer who insists on putting say his oscar in a 30gal with a red devil and jack dempsey...I always tell associates to politely excuse themselves and say "let me get my manager to help you" that way most always things can be resolved calmly.
I am very PRO animal rights and take my job seriously because of the fact that my job entails caring for numerous animals whose well being is intrusted to me since they have no way of defending themselves against inproper care etc.
I make it my job to try and educate those that want to be educated and always try to offer suggestions to those that are a little less willing to listen. I want to make sure that the pet parent knows what they are getting themselves into with any pet they are looking to purchase just to make sure that is what they want and are willing to take on the necessary requirements that comes with owning any pet. I want them to be aware of all the ups and downs, dirty jobs as well as all the rewards that go along with it.
So far it's worked well! :dance2:
Yes some big chain stores are horrible, but not every store is the same...it's not fair to lump them all in one category. If you had one bad experience at say a petco/petsmart in washington doesn't mean the one up in boston is going to be exactly like it...honestly it all depends on the management and employees of each individual store.
I do wish that all employees/managers applying for a job in the pet care dep. would have to take a test to see how knowledgable they are on fish, birds, sm animals and reptiles etc. It would help to get somewhat decet employees and then whatever they didn't know, we could teach them(correctly)
Oh and I'm sure many of you have noticed the new fish tags in Petsmart as well....I sure did when I had to set the new fish plannogram(fish were moved around to make space for new ones being offered and we had some that have been discontinued) about 90% of the tags have at least one piece of information that is wrong....for example the Eclipse Catfish aka Sun Catfish: on the tag it says oh that they only grow to 6" or so and that they will be fine in a 5 gal tank...load of BS if you know what I mean...they grow pretty large, anywhere from 12" - 18" is what i believe they can reach and I would say min 75 gallon tank, but that's just my opinion. Anyways, I have already spoken to my district manager and hopefully he can push it further up and have corporate rectify the problems. If you notice anything that you know to be wrong, please address it, as I think it needs to be addressed by customers as well as employees.
Oh and does anyone know anything about the Red Snook Cichlid? We have just started carrying these fish and I've done a little research on them and it says the females get about 12" and the males can reach over 18" and that they are very aggressive and predatory. Has anyone ever owned these fish before? Any insight would be wonderful!!
Figured I'd clear up some of the questions here. I'm a manager for one of the petsmarts here in charlotte nc...sadly, one of the few that has decent, knowledgable employees :thm:
There is no policy that says we can limit a sale to 6 fish..that's bogus and I suggest that if someone tells you this, to speak with a manager.
Secondly, what is supposed to happen is that all employees have to ask what size tank you have, what you have in it, how long it's been setup etc and then go from there.
It is policy that we may refuse any sale of a fish,reptile,bird or small animal if we believe (after speaking in detail with the customer of course) that they don't have the correct setup such as too small of a tank/habitat, want to mix species together that are not compatible with each other or if for some reason the customer just does not care at all or in any way hints or states that they are trying to "kill off a fish they don't want anymore" which I had a few days ago matter of fact :rant: In such cases we have the full right and backup of the company to refuse a sale if it's for the well-being of a pet.
I can only speak for the store that I work at, as not all petsmart run exactly the same unfortunately, but this is how I run my department:
I do not sell more than 3-5 fish to a customer who has a newly setup aquarium that is un-cycled.
If there are any water quality issues, those need to be corrected BEFORE they purchase anymore fish.
I don't allow people to mix africans and south american cichlids, which for most is a given anyway. Most people know better thankfully :thm:
The only fish that I allow to leave my store in a bowl is a betta, although personally I think a tank is better for them as well, but I would rather customers buy a betta than a goldfish.
My koi are only for ponds, I don't sell them to people wanting to put them in a tank, unless they have a very large tank of at least a few hundred gallons, which around here, not too many people to.
I have stopped selling a number of fish(at this store...other petsmarts probably still have them available) such as Pacus, silver-tip sharks and I am trying to stop getting in the irridescent sharks and violet gobies as our systems are not set up for brackish fish or the larger fish and I know most people don't have the room for say a school of Pacu...after trying to persuede numerous customers not to purchase these fish long ago when I still had them and failing at it, I just took the tags down and stopped ordering them. Got really tired of hearing people say "oh well I'll just throw it in a pond or something" or "I'll get a bigger tank eventually"
You're right though...each customer is different and they need to be treated as such...meet their needs, steer them along in the right direction if they need it.
As said before, take it case by case and make sure all the right questions are asked to determine what's best for that situation.
Sometimes we will get the extremely loud, aggressive, confrontational customer who insists on putting say his oscar in a 30gal with a red devil and jack dempsey...I always tell associates to politely excuse themselves and say "let me get my manager to help you" that way most always things can be resolved calmly.
I am very PRO animal rights and take my job seriously because of the fact that my job entails caring for numerous animals whose well being is intrusted to me since they have no way of defending themselves against inproper care etc.
I make it my job to try and educate those that want to be educated and always try to offer suggestions to those that are a little less willing to listen. I want to make sure that the pet parent knows what they are getting themselves into with any pet they are looking to purchase just to make sure that is what they want and are willing to take on the necessary requirements that comes with owning any pet. I want them to be aware of all the ups and downs, dirty jobs as well as all the rewards that go along with it.
So far it's worked well! :dance2:
Yes some big chain stores are horrible, but not every store is the same...it's not fair to lump them all in one category. If you had one bad experience at say a petco/petsmart in washington doesn't mean the one up in boston is going to be exactly like it...honestly it all depends on the management and employees of each individual store.
I do wish that all employees/managers applying for a job in the pet care dep. would have to take a test to see how knowledgable they are on fish, birds, sm animals and reptiles etc. It would help to get somewhat decet employees and then whatever they didn't know, we could teach them(correctly)
Oh and I'm sure many of you have noticed the new fish tags in Petsmart as well....I sure did when I had to set the new fish plannogram(fish were moved around to make space for new ones being offered and we had some that have been discontinued) about 90% of the tags have at least one piece of information that is wrong....for example the Eclipse Catfish aka Sun Catfish: on the tag it says oh that they only grow to 6" or so and that they will be fine in a 5 gal tank...load of BS if you know what I mean...they grow pretty large, anywhere from 12" - 18" is what i believe they can reach and I would say min 75 gallon tank, but that's just my opinion. Anyways, I have already spoken to my district manager and hopefully he can push it further up and have corporate rectify the problems. If you notice anything that you know to be wrong, please address it, as I think it needs to be addressed by customers as well as employees.
Oh and does anyone know anything about the Red Snook Cichlid? We have just started carrying these fish and I've done a little research on them and it says the females get about 12" and the males can reach over 18" and that they are very aggressive and predatory. Has anyone ever owned these fish before? Any insight would be wonderful!!
No they provide the 14 day guarantee because they know that any illness may not show itself within 12 to 24 hours of purchase and can sometimes take a few days to show and so they account for that. That goes for any pet sold, not just fish.
I have bought many fish at Petsmart. They have really healthy fish and I have NEVER had an issue with a fish. They sell the plumpiest and biggest clown loaches for only $8.49. I love their 14 day return policy, even though I have never had to use it
Candycat21 said:
You are right...lumping all chain stores into the same catagory just isn't fair.
You seem to really care about the animals in their care and I commend you for all your efforts.
I personally like our nearest petsmart. I love that they don't sell puppies or kittens and help adopt out from local animal shelters. I have bought fish at this Petsmart and would again if I found one i want.
I really like the pet food policy they have at our petsmart. If i buy it and my animals don't like/won't eat it, I can bring it back and they will let me get another brand/food for them. I'm sure there are bad ones out there, I just havent experienced it personally.
A Petco would not sell my mother an Oranda because she did not have a heater. So I turned to them and said, "Sell me the fish, I have a heater!" He wouldn't stating, "I can't because you will give her the fish!" I immediatley spoke to the manager and he agreed to sell the fish with no guarantee. I normally would have fussed louder and walked out. When I saw that Oranda with big pudgy cheeks and it had the WOW!! factor, I couldn't let it slip through my fingers.
I got 4 dwarf Gourmis, 8 Flame Tetras, and 2 guppies all on one day from Petsmart, they didn't ask me a single question. I haven't been impressed with the knowledge of the fish department, they never ask any questions of people with seeming intelligence, but they are all ways nice. Wish you could move futher up the corporate ladder Candycat21 to be able to make a few changes in policies stick with the other stores.
