Why Do Petco and Petsmart try to STEAL MONEY $$$$$$$ From Pet owners ???

[takethecastle57]

Howdy Folks ,

Early this month I decided to get some Low-Cost Low-Maintenace Pets and the Pets I chose Was Goldfish .


Well the cost of getting my 2 species of Goldfish : Shubunkin and 24K (looks like real Gold ) Fantail was only $10.00 usd for just these two fish .

The Aquarium set up is not the standard "Goldfish Bowl" ,No I got a 6 liter Hexagonal plastic tank with all the stuff :Filter ,Gravel, Plant (not real), Light cost $30.00 . Then the proper Filter Journey was not good .

This is not my First time Caring , Raising , Breeding Guppies (The Fancy Tail ones ) back in the 1970's and back then the cost was not that much maybe $5.00 a month for food , power cost , filter media .

I first went to Petsmart and had no problems getting them in the first trip . When I went back the Manager and his sales staff wanted me to buy all these $$$$$$$$$$$ chemicals and a 20 Gallon Tank for Two (2 ) Goldfish cause they all say that they will grow to a possible 6 Inches size and the "Rule of Thumb" for them is One Gallon of Water Per Inch of Goldfish . I have 2 ,10 gallon long tanks that were for Beta fish so I got one of them up . For a "Basic 20 gallon regular glass tank at Petsmart , with filter, and top with light $60.00 .

I have to date spent $110.00 usd for TWO $10.00 Goldfish and when I mention to either Petsmart or Petco about water "Cloudy" condtion they said it was because of too much Ammonia when it was just the Aquarium getting "Stabilized " with good bactreria and where did I find out about this ? Online on the Hagen Pet Supply MFG http://www.hagen.com/canada/english/about.cfm

and also Amazon.com with the reviews of products and of course Youtube with some really great videos .

What Ever Happen to a Pet Store taking care of their customers instead of Taking as much $$$$$$$$$$ as they can get and they say "I'm Sorry" so much it makes me want to puke !!!

I've been a sales person/Manager off and on since 1972 to 2002 and it is no wonder why Stores are closing cause they Hire people who know very little of how to get and keep a customer for Life .

I wonder how many people here have been treated like this recently or have Great positive Story of a Pet store Person going the Extra Mile/ Kilometer ?

[owennewton]

I tend to be a jerk when I must shop at petco, the staff is ether goofing off and seem very annoyed that I would dare bother them or they are the peering over my shoulder trying to shove the most expensive, unwanted crap into my basket. I do my research before leaving the house. I go in, get what I need and leave. If they get pushy I turn into the customer from hell and if I can't get help I go to the POC and complain. Most of the time I will try walmart first as the cost is half as much when they have it and I expect the service to suck there anyway.

[Bartsimpson]

Yeah... Most Expensive crap is right. The last two times I have been to pet smart it has been like that.

[RaymondV]

I have only been in Pet Smart a few times and they were very expensive.
I normally buy our dog food at Sams Club, $38 for a 44lb bag of Iams green bag.
I think Pet Smart was like $54 for the same bag.

[mxfaiman]

Can't say much.

Lost my only goldfish about 3 or 4 years ago and decided not to get a new one. (he was 5 years old. don't know how he made it that long.) Either way the last time I was in petco was to grab a bag of walnut shells to polish some pins. No one stepped up and talked to me at all. (they were all gathered at the front door talking) I even went around to the fish section and was looking at fishes and tanks and stuff and no one ever came up to me. So I haven't really experienced what you have all gone through. (I'm sure it gets annoying very fast though.) I will agree that they are a little higher priced (especially on fish.)

[Ikaria]

We buy our dog food and fish food at PetSmart. Never had any problems. Get their PetPerks card and get on the e-mail list. Saves a lot.

We buy the 27 cent (20 cents on sale) goldfish for the pond there. The shubunkins were under $2.00 ea. from a hatchery. Our fish are all 6" - 8" long now.

I try to avoid PetCo. Like you guys said, they flat out suck. Last thing I bought there was anacharis (plants). Wal-mart is good for filter pads.

Be sure not to overfeed. That will cloud the water in no time. Do plenty of water changes, but I'm sure you know all about that.

[mxfaiman]

We buy the 27 cent (20 cents on sale) goldfish for the pond there. The shubunkins were under $2.00 ea. from a hatchery. Our fish are all 6" - 8" long now.

Wow big fish. I liked it when we had our koi pond. I miss it. But we can't put another back in due to the fact that the racoons at all the fish.

[KimbaWLion]

I have mixed reviews. I only buy guinea pig food and bedding at a Petco or Petsmart these days and I require very little help.
I buy my dog food from a petfood specialty food store and I am more than happy with that!

Its a shame but my Rainbow Sharks died after about 4 years, they were very large and IN CHARGE!

[daverob]

We're lucky enough to have a good independent store locally, they're a little more expensive than the chain pet stores, but I don't have to make a special trip to go there, as it's right next to the post office. I still get most of the bulk cat food and supplies from the supermarket, but buy the cat treats and food and supplies (bedding, sand) for the chinchillas from the local store.

The big chains don't really do that well in this city either, as we have a couple of large independent pet shops that have a very good local reputation and have been run by the same family since 1934! They have a better selection than most of the franchise stores, and are often more competitive on both price and service.

Also when looking for a new pet, remember to check the rescue centres. They always have pets that are in need of a good home, and the staff there are more knowledgeable than the minimum wage teens that only seem to be trained to up-sell whatever brings in the best profit margins. Our chinchillas came from a rescue centre (though we were on a 6 month waiting list for them!), along with one of Jules' horses.

[takethecastle57]

[Meliah]

I avoid those two chain stores unless I can not find an item anywhere else. When I used to be more into fish tanks I know I would find good deals on tanks and supplies at Craigslist. Seems like someone is always looking to move a 50 gallon tank for very little in return.