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Why does PetSMART have DUMBcustomers??
With my birthday money, I decided to buy an aquarium and some fish. Because of this, I've been spending quite a bit of time prowling the local PetSmart doing research on exactly what items and fish I'm going to buy. During my visits, I've encountered a few SC's.
Does it bite?
I decided to take a break from the fish section and wandered over to the reptiles where I see a female sales associate with some sort of lizard on her sholder (I believe it was a Panther Gecko?) and a boy who looks to be about 12 or so with his mother behind him. The boy is quite obviously infatuated with the little creature and has that kid-in-a-candy-warehouse look on his face while he bombards the girl with questions. Clearly, he has an interest in learning about animals. His mother, on the other hand, stood a few METERS away, arms crossed, nose upturned with a disgusted look on her face. Finally, the boy turned to his mother and asked if he could pleasepleasepleeeeeeeaseee get this one.
Mother: No, we're looking for a NICE pet. Those things are diseased and probably bite! *snotty*
Kid: But, mom! They have a guarantee so if he gets sick, we can bring him back and get a new one and they are very friendly and (rambles off 20 or so facts about the gecko that he likely learned from the girl moments prior).
Mother: (to the girl) Do they bite?? *huffy/snotty*
SA: Well everything bites lady. You bite.
Mother: WELL! Then I guess we're done here! *grabs son* AAALLLL pets bite so YOOOUUU don't get one! Thank the NICE LADY! *stomps off*
Me: Pfft. Nicely done!
SA: It's the truth, isn't it?
Me: Poor kid..
Research, research, research
A pet, ANY pet, is a big responsibility. As such, the decision to buy a pet should never be made on a whim and research should be done to be sure you are capable and willing to provide whatever care is needed for a particular animal and to make sure that pet will fit into your lifestyle. For example, if a person has small children, a hamster may not be the best choice because they are small, fast and can work little ones into a frenzy if they take off. Hamsters are also very fragile and will nip small hands that squeeze them too tightly.
So I was looking at the fish when a woman slid up next to me and randomly struck up conversation...
Random Mother: Fish are so soothing, don't you agree?
Me: Mhmm *smile and nod Kisa...smile and nod*
RM: *sighs loudly*
Me: *oh, good! She shut up. I thought this was going to be one of those I'm-going-to-stalk-you-around-the-store-cuz-you're-my-new-victim things*
RM: That's why I got my son a fish tank. He has ADHD and all the other mom's said it would help him calm down.
Me: That makes sense.... *scoots a few tanks over*
RM: *scoots over with me* His next fish has to be alll silver because he names his fish after super heros. He has spiderman, batman, green lantern, yadayadayada. Now, he wants an all silver fish to be silver surfer.
Me: Neato...
And so we go on for a few moments as I inch down the row of tanks with her practically plastered to my side going on and on about her son's super hero fish until we get to the catfish tanks. I'm eyeing the Pictus Cats when she let out a squeal like a bubbly school girl.
RM: OMGOMGOMG! It's an all silver fish! *jabs a finger at a tank above my head(i was crouched down)*
I geeently stand up trying not to knock my noggin on her flailing arm only to see she is pointing at the Pangasius Catfish. Quick b/g on the Pangasius:
In pet store tanks, they are BABIES only 2-3" long. When full grown, they reach lengths of 3-4 FEET! The Pangasius Catfish is a very skittish fish that does best in groups of 5 or more as this helps the fish feel more secure and it will come out of hiding more. Most people buy one of these fish for a 55-75 gallon tank (both of which are 4' long and you can do the math to see the issue there) and wind up with a skittish, stunted, unhealthy fish that 9 tims out of 10 goes blind from rubbing the tank as it tries to turn. Also, this fish is STRONG. Even in a large tank, if something spooks this fish there's a good chance he's going through the glass because this catfish goes into a frenzy when scared.
So right away, I think this is a match made in hell. Chances are, this mom didn't buy a 300 gallon tank for her little boy and, even if she did, I doubt she would buy 5 of these fish. Potentially huge fish+teeny tank+hyper child=disaster. As an animal lover, I opened my mouth to try to help save that fish and save the mom a lot of headache.
Me: How big is your tank?
RM: 20 gallons.
Me: Oh, yeah. Then this isn't the fish for you. This catfish gets 3-4 feet long when it's full grown.
RM: No it's not! It's sooo teeny!
Me: Yes, it's small now but in a year or so this fish will be bigger than your son. Also, it's a very shy fish so it won't be much fun for him to watch. I'd recommend a silver molly or a hatchetfish as those fish are silver but stay small and will be a much better fit in that tank.
RM: Do you work here?
Me: No.
RM: Then I'll find someone who does. You obviously don't have a clue what you're saying.
So she walks over to the sales rep and drags him over to the Pangasius tank.
RM: I want that fish.
SA: Uhh...ok.
RM: She said this fish gets 4 feet long and that it wont fit in my 20 gallon tank!
SA: *to me* You own a Pangasius?
Me: No, but I know a lot about fish.
RM: I know such a small store would never sell fish that big as this is a FAMILY store and only sells FAMILY pets.
SA: Actually, many of these fish require large aquariums when they are full grown. That catfish does indeed grow to such lengths and I'd recommend you shop for fish on that side with the community fish. This is the semi-agressive section.
RM: I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU PEOPLE WOULD SELL SUCH HUGE FISH! THIS IS A FAMILY STORE AND NO FAMILY WANTS FISH LIKE THAT!
SA: Actually, I'm divorced and I shop here quite frequently. I love animals and buy stuff for my snakes.
She rambles on and on about this being a family store and such but eventually she settled down and bought a silver molly.
Does it bite?
I decided to take a break from the fish section and wandered over to the reptiles where I see a female sales associate with some sort of lizard on her sholder (I believe it was a Panther Gecko?) and a boy who looks to be about 12 or so with his mother behind him. The boy is quite obviously infatuated with the little creature and has that kid-in-a-candy-warehouse look on his face while he bombards the girl with questions. Clearly, he has an interest in learning about animals. His mother, on the other hand, stood a few METERS away, arms crossed, nose upturned with a disgusted look on her face. Finally, the boy turned to his mother and asked if he could pleasepleasepleeeeeeeaseee get this one.
Mother: No, we're looking for a NICE pet. Those things are diseased and probably bite! *snotty*
Kid: But, mom! They have a guarantee so if he gets sick, we can bring him back and get a new one and they are very friendly and (rambles off 20 or so facts about the gecko that he likely learned from the girl moments prior).
Mother: (to the girl) Do they bite?? *huffy/snotty*
SA: Well everything bites lady. You bite.
Mother: WELL! Then I guess we're done here! *grabs son* AAALLLL pets bite so YOOOUUU don't get one! Thank the NICE LADY! *stomps off*
Me: Pfft. Nicely done!
SA: It's the truth, isn't it?
Me: Poor kid..
Research, research, research
A pet, ANY pet, is a big responsibility. As such, the decision to buy a pet should never be made on a whim and research should be done to be sure you are capable and willing to provide whatever care is needed for a particular animal and to make sure that pet will fit into your lifestyle. For example, if a person has small children, a hamster may not be the best choice because they are small, fast and can work little ones into a frenzy if they take off. Hamsters are also very fragile and will nip small hands that squeeze them too tightly.
So I was looking at the fish when a woman slid up next to me and randomly struck up conversation...
Random Mother: Fish are so soothing, don't you agree?
Me: Mhmm *smile and nod Kisa...smile and nod*
RM: *sighs loudly*
Me: *oh, good! She shut up. I thought this was going to be one of those I'm-going-to-stalk-you-around-the-store-cuz-you're-my-new-victim things*
RM: That's why I got my son a fish tank. He has ADHD and all the other mom's said it would help him calm down.
Me: That makes sense.... *scoots a few tanks over*
RM: *scoots over with me* His next fish has to be alll silver because he names his fish after super heros. He has spiderman, batman, green lantern, yadayadayada. Now, he wants an all silver fish to be silver surfer.
Me: Neato...
And so we go on for a few moments as I inch down the row of tanks with her practically plastered to my side going on and on about her son's super hero fish until we get to the catfish tanks. I'm eyeing the Pictus Cats when she let out a squeal like a bubbly school girl.
RM: OMGOMGOMG! It's an all silver fish! *jabs a finger at a tank above my head(i was crouched down)*
I geeently stand up trying not to knock my noggin on her flailing arm only to see she is pointing at the Pangasius Catfish. Quick b/g on the Pangasius:
In pet store tanks, they are BABIES only 2-3" long. When full grown, they reach lengths of 3-4 FEET! The Pangasius Catfish is a very skittish fish that does best in groups of 5 or more as this helps the fish feel more secure and it will come out of hiding more. Most people buy one of these fish for a 55-75 gallon tank (both of which are 4' long and you can do the math to see the issue there) and wind up with a skittish, stunted, unhealthy fish that 9 tims out of 10 goes blind from rubbing the tank as it tries to turn. Also, this fish is STRONG. Even in a large tank, if something spooks this fish there's a good chance he's going through the glass because this catfish goes into a frenzy when scared.
So right away, I think this is a match made in hell. Chances are, this mom didn't buy a 300 gallon tank for her little boy and, even if she did, I doubt she would buy 5 of these fish. Potentially huge fish+teeny tank+hyper child=disaster. As an animal lover, I opened my mouth to try to help save that fish and save the mom a lot of headache.
Me: How big is your tank?
RM: 20 gallons.
Me: Oh, yeah. Then this isn't the fish for you. This catfish gets 3-4 feet long when it's full grown.
RM: No it's not! It's sooo teeny!
Me: Yes, it's small now but in a year or so this fish will be bigger than your son. Also, it's a very shy fish so it won't be much fun for him to watch. I'd recommend a silver molly or a hatchetfish as those fish are silver but stay small and will be a much better fit in that tank.
RM: Do you work here?
Me: No.
RM: Then I'll find someone who does. You obviously don't have a clue what you're saying.
So she walks over to the sales rep and drags him over to the Pangasius tank.
RM: I want that fish.
SA: Uhh...ok.
RM: She said this fish gets 4 feet long and that it wont fit in my 20 gallon tank!
SA: *to me* You own a Pangasius?
Me: No, but I know a lot about fish.
RM: I know such a small store would never sell fish that big as this is a FAMILY store and only sells FAMILY pets.
SA: Actually, many of these fish require large aquariums when they are full grown. That catfish does indeed grow to such lengths and I'd recommend you shop for fish on that side with the community fish. This is the semi-agressive section.
RM: I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU PEOPLE WOULD SELL SUCH HUGE FISH! THIS IS A FAMILY STORE AND NO FAMILY WANTS FISH LIKE THAT!
SA: Actually, I'm divorced and I shop here quite frequently. I love animals and buy stuff for my snakes.
She rambles on and on about this being a family store and such but eventually she settled down and bought a silver molly.
I returned the koi and have felt guilty about accidentally abusing a little fish I was responsible for keeping safe. 
She was not amused. She went stamping out of the store saying we were all idiots. LOL Takes one to know one.
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