Petco Rant : 06.12.03 @ 4:43 pm

I'd like to take a few moments of your time to rant about my expierence at Petco today. ((enter scowling face here))

First of all, I'll give you some background info.
((if you want, you can start scrolling now until I get to my point, I'm a bit long winded))
Recently, I was looking into getting an aquarium but then I realized that I didn't want an aquarium with tetras and other dull fish. I wanted another Betta (I had one in a community tank when I was younger, I'm 17 now), because they're one of the few fishes that I've found that have a personality and they're purty to boot.
So I did my research. Spent hours reading about them online, got some books out from the library, and bought my Frida at a privately owned store. Despite me doing everything right, Frida lived about a month before I came home one day and found him dead. I have since concluded that when I bought him he was already on the old side, because the Bettas at that store all seem bigger then the ones I've seen at other stores.
Anyway. So I tried again, this time I bought a ten gallon tank, a divider, and two Bettas (Julias and Chai from Petsmart) who were later joined by an African Dwarf Frog (Zen) and two panda cories (Tayler and Jack). They're very healthy and happy and have grown since I bought them. I feed the Bettas twice a day, three pellets each time. I clean the tank once a week and I have a sponge filter on a gentle setting.

((end of background info))

So today, after setting up Frida's old gallon bowl I decided to head over to Petco (I have not bought fish there before, but its closer to me then Petsmart is) and get another Betta.

Rows and rows of bettas swimming in their own filth. You could barely see the Bettas past the cloud of Betta poo in those tiny cups that they could barely turn around in.

Politely, I inquired how often they fed their Bettas.
In the mornings, two pellets.
How often do they change the water of those tiny cups?
Once a week.
Now, I understand that when you work at a large store like that, there are lots of things to do and Bettas aren't your first priority, but you'd think they'd change the water at least twice a week because not being able to see those beautiful fish isn't exactly the best marketing ploy.
What really pissed me off was the older guy, who informed me (talking down to me, like I didn't know jack shit) that he "..have a gallon bowl with a Betta in it at home and I haven't changed the water in two months and he's quite happy. They are from puddles after all."

I wanted to buy all of those Bettas and bring them home and give them their own little one or two gallon bowl that is cleaned and kept at the right temperature, and give them all lots of love.

It's really too bad that fish aren't covered under animal creulty and that petstore employees aren't required to actually research the animals they sell.

/A

P.S. I did buy one. He's small and blue but he looks healthy despite his water condition. I let my little sister name him Marlin after the father in Finding Nemo (which is a really cute movie that I took her to see the day it came out).

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