do we really NEED another reason...

[Auratus]

I hate to tell you this but even local petstores do this, vet's offices, not just chains. You may not be supporting petco but your lfs could be just as bad.

The pet store I worked at would put a whole cage of finches in the back if they started dieing. They don't treat with meds because it's too expensive and they could just order more for cheaper. If a rodent had a tumor they put it in the back until it died one day or eventually stuck it in the freezer (I never did this but it happened).

If fish were sick you flushed them so you don't risk infection of other fish, never treat them.

Vet's offices aren't as clean as you think! I know, I worked at one...

Same with animal rescues. They might be all nice and want your money to support the dogs and cats but at one point they just become greedy.

Sure, people might start up a business because they truely care about animals but at one point you get hard and callas to what happens to them and your main motive becomes money. Like when I worked at the vets I would cry when a dog died but by the end of my time there it was just, ok... dead dog. You know what i mean?

 

[wrs]

yeah, my lfs in the mall is horrible. They have so many animals in the back and you can hear them crying and howling, etc. But not all of them die back there, i know that they put bought animals back there as well, because when we bought our cat from there she had to stay back there so other people dont touch them. And they starve the danios. they have a whle tank of annercic ones, and they goldfish all have cuts, and the best part is they charge you extra because theyre inn this condition.

 

[Love2havefish]

wow..that was a very long thread. I just read the whole darn thing. There are a lot of things that i agree and disagree...and i think the most important fact..is that not all stores are the same. There are a lot of "corrupted" petstores...maybe even too many, but it doensn't mean we should just sit here in front of our computer and just "argue" about it. Why don't we actually do something? I do NOT support animal abuse at ALL. Bettas are known for getting mistreated because they are "cheap" and people are unaware on how special they are. I think...IMO...that maybe we should just try talking it out with the owners, and not give an attitude. If you were the owner, wouldn't you just get irritated and try to ignore the customer? Maybe its just me..

 

[jacblades]

yay! agreement on one thing!
yeah-they have had the bird room closed for a while because all of the birds got infected with some disease.
i have seen a lot of mice with sores or bleeding wounds.
the reptiles dont have proper environments. the tarantulas are kept in 1/4 gal kritter keepers. bettas are dying. 1/2 of the saltwater fish are always dead and the tanks are often very cloudy. i saw a $99 harlequin tusk fish dead when i went the other day.
one set of tanks is closed right now because it is "under observation". every single fish in there is dead and stuck to the filter intake. they told me a rope fish was a "chinese water dragon" and that an arowana could go in a 20 gal. a turtle had a swolen eye the size of a pea. it was swolen shut.
oh gosh i could go on forever...

 

[Auratus]

woops, forgot to add.

On a good note, all of these places I worked at are no longer in business.

Gosh, makes it sound like I drove them over the edge and they finaly went out of business...

 

[wrs]

yeah, that one ounds like it does need to be shut down. There should be a show with people going around to lfs and lps and evaluating them, and taking action if it doesnt pass. I would LOVE to see a show like that. ( I like the shows like that on APL, I guess I'm just weird, lol ) noone comment on that,

 

[rykitten]

Auratus I worked at a Clinic too, for a week. It was horrible and I hated it so I quit. It was so fast paced and lonely. One animal was shoved back in it's cage and out came the next. Like a conveyor belt of surgery.

But anyway, I'm glad you guys decided it's okay to disagree. I always think it's good when someone is willing to take a stand when they feel something is unfair. IMO not enough people do that now. That's one of the few ways as a consumer you can stand up for yourself.

 

[Inchworm]

...inchworm- protests are far different from blowing up things. maybe youre thinking of protests like the wto ones. not peta protests. i saw a peta protest not too long ago. they were holding up signs in front of kfc and handing out leaflets. i dont see how people could consider that terrorism.
yes-some people think peta has a bad name and that they solve things by blowing up stuff, but it doesnt really matter because those people wouldnt support them even if they had a good name.

Hi jacblades

No, I don't think they blow things up; if you scroll back you will see that you raised that issue and I expressed my surprise over it.

However, as well as throwing a lot of red paint around, PETA traumatizes children:

http/www.rightwingnews.com/archives/week...2_14.PHP#001598

And, they have been known to contribute money to fund other groups who engage in criminal activities:

http/www.consumerfreedom.com/petaPetition.cfm

Supporting such a people financially is as despicable as committing these acts yourself and it appears that there is a movement to revoke their US tax free status.

Your point might very well be right about Petco and their treatment of fish and other animals, but I have not seen this in any of their stores that I have visited. In my opinion, following a line put forth by an organization as questionable as PETA only makes your argument that much harder to believe.

 

[jacblades]

yes-i have seen those postcards. i was always upset when my mom wore a fur coat when i was little. i dont think peta pointing out that someones mom is wearing the skins of animals that were tortured is traumatizing, but i dont agree with them handing out those postcards-even if they do shed an unfriendly light of truth.
hey-you cant pull news from rightwing (or leftwing) websites and expect them to be completely truthful and fair. rightwingnews.com doesnt sound too credible (and i consider myself a republican so im not biased)

PETA donating to other charities is hardly criminal. i dont think the main purpose of the charities is to blow up things. once again, just because a few members do something-doesnt mean they speak for the whole group.
well anyways $1500 is not a lot of money. im sure this happened before the charity was labeled "terrorist" anyways. peta is not going to consciously donate to a "terrorist" organization. that is stupid. as for people saying peta should not be a tax-exempt npo, that is absurd. peta makes no profits. the president of peta only makes about 30,000 a year.
peta does not advocate breaking the law. check the website and in NO place, will you find them advocating law-breaking.

most people dont care about animals and consider them as things. when peta tried to educate without wild antics, no one listened. peta has naked people out on the street and girls wrestling in tofu to get the attention of people so they can educate them about their true message. of course i dont agree with some risque stunts they pull, but i know it is just to pull people in.
sadly most people dont want to change their diet to exclude animals because "it would be too difficult" or they dont want to stop wearing fur because "its pretty" (although i have never seen the attraction of fur). these people buck peta because peta wants change, and for most people, change is one of the most difficult ideas they could fathom.

 

[steppy104]

sadly most people dont want to change their diet to exclude animals because "it would be too difficult"

is that implying that peta wants everyone to become vegitarians? HA! that'll be a cold day in hell...especially for me. i love meat.....absolutely love it....and i'll never change, not because it would be difficult, but because it's something i live on. and because of all the things i've heard about vegitarians having weaker amune systems and getting sick so dang easily. and because it tastes good

god gave them people that fish to eat....and he must know what the hell he's doing...if we didn't eat animals, then they would reproduce too fast to control, and our world would be over run with cows, pigs, chickens, and everything else that we kill for food. it's not like the people who kill animals for food purposely torture them....alot of the times they make the death nice and quick...not very torturesom.

 

[jacblades]

steppy, if all the things you say were true, those might be good points.
first of all-i never ever get sick and i havent eaten meat since i was 10. my doctor tells me i am more healthy because i am a vegetarian. my arteries arent clogged with all the saturated fat found in meat (especially beef) and my immune system works BETTER because i dont eat meat.
if everyone in the world became vegetarian, it would not happen at once. farmers would reduce the amount of cows that they breed as the demand lowered and therefore we would not be overrun with farm animals. i have never seen any cows in the wild anyways.
about the torture part-i want you to watch this and then honestly say that again. i wouldnt be so against eating meat if the animals in factory farms were actually treated humanely. nice and quick death? well if you consider a death like nick berg s nice and quick, then yes-that is often what they do to the animals...

 

[steppy104]

ya...i've heard of that video before...but never watched it.

well, i can't help how they treat them....but i ain't gonna change my ways just because they won't change theirs.

i still love chicken nuggets...still love hamburgers....and alot of other meats.

i'm curious.....do you eat cheese, milk, or other dary products?

 

[jacblades]

thats kind of sad that you can watch that video and say something like that. you can change their ways but apparently how something tastes is too important to you. but i will have you know there are similar tastes! you dont have to go vegetrarian to enjoy the all powerful soybean-you can cut down on meat and lose a few pounds/gain more muscle/become healthier with veggie products. tofu is tasty and all it tortures are beans!

i try to stay away from dairy products when possible. i only buy free-range cruelty-free eggs (theyre actually healthier than regular eggs because the chickens arent fed animal by-products, like poop ). i cant stand the taste of milk. soymilk tasts so much better to me anyways and its better for me too
even if you like milk, you should try vanilla soymilk. most people really like it. its a lot different than milk. my housekeeper told me it tasted like ice cream...while i dont agree exactly-i will say it is sweeter with less sugar than cow milk. almond milk is amazingly good too (but its a little more expensive) and chocolate soymilk tastes the same as chocolate cow milk.
instead of butter, i cook with olive oil-much yummier and better for you
i would also take silk strawberry banana soy yogurt over real yogurt any day
you should try morningstar tomato basil pizza burgers. they dont taste like meat but they are amazingly scrumptious. all of my meat-eating friends love them! (i have gotten them hooked)
and soy chicken nuggets taste just like real chicken nuggets. (they are the closest immitator of all the fake meats i think) but if youre talking about mcdonalds chicken nuggets (not the new ones), theyre made of soy anyways (thats why they were called mcnuggest for a hwile instead of chicken mcnuggets)
fake hot dogs also taste just like real ones. most are fat free and eyeball/hoof/horn/colon free.
the only veggie food that i find gross is soy cheese. thats definately not a winner...

 

[Dane]

What you may not realize, is that the meat industry is a business. People live off of raising the animals to sell. So people can't really STOP them. Even if half the world became vegans (it's wrong to use animals in any way, eh

I guess what I'm saying is.. If you're against the slaughter of animals for meals, don't feed your fish live prey either, because that's killing too.

My opinion on this topic is, it's not the slaughering that is cruel, it's the way the animals are raised that is inhumane.

 

[wrs]

buut what if people cant eat vegtiables? I know that I honestly cant because i get really sick and vomit if i eat salad. I can eat green beans and corn and broclie but thats about it. I dont eat much beef, usually chicken. Never fish, that makes me sick as well.