Impressed With P3T$M@rt

[macbeth110]

So, I recently posted a story in horror stories about a p3t$m@rt employee who was really rude to me because I tried to help a customer choose the right fish. Anyway, I used to work at a pet store, and when I helped that woman pick out a betta, I kinda missed working with animals, and educating people about pets and helping them make responsible decisions. So, I figured, I shouldn't let one stupid employee ruin my view of p3t$m@rt. And also, I figured if I got a job there, I could actually give people accurate information, to combat whatever the dumb guy is telling them

So, I applied for a job, and I got it (at a different p3t$m@rt in my area). I've only worked there for three days, but I am so impressed with everything. Before I started working there, I would always see vacation feeder blocks in the tanks so I thought that's what they fed their fish. But now that I work there I found out that the vaca blocks are only for tanks with bottom feeders, and everyone else is fed good quality flakes that are specific to each fish (i.e. goldfish flakes, tropical flakes, cichlid pellets). And, they soak the flakes, which was nice to see, because the last place I worked (p3t c0) didn't soak the flakes, and fed all fish the same food I worked an opening shift yesterday and I was asked to pull deads from the tanks. At my last job, there were always A LOT of deads. Yesterday, I examined every single tank, and only found two dead feeders in the whole place, which is pretty good. Also, the managers really pay attention and make sure everything is going well. Every morning, afternoon and night, every habitat needs to be checked, fresh water given, fresh food given, etc, and whoever does it needs to sign off on it. Yesterday, a coworker signed off on the reptile habitats, and a manager found a single fleck of substrate in a water dish and he pulled the guy who signed off on it into the office and lectured him on how important it is for the animals to have fresh water all the time and if he's gonna slack on his job, he should go work a burg3r king lol.

Anyway, I know this post is kinda pointless, but I'm just really impressed with how the store is run and I wanted to share with you all since my fiancé and roommates are tired of hearing me talk about pets

Also, the store has an AMAZING selection of goldfish and it takes literally every ounce of willpower that I have to not come home with five new fishies every night.

Edited November 9, 2010 by macbeth110

[dogsbykat]

Congrats on the new job and great news about the store's pet care standards; good to hear about good pet shops sometimes

[Helen]

hmmmmm.. i need to come visit the store.. but i'm a little bit too far away

on the new job, i hope they keep up the good routine and set an example for others

i also think that your level of enjoyment there, will come down to if you are allowed to educate customers about the "real" care for goldfish and/or all pets alike.. or will they be about the $$ at the end of the day

[number20121]

This post is not pointless at all! It is great to hear something good about a chain LFS first hand. Thanks for letting us know about this!

[Wendy]

I feel like my nearest ~Smart is much better than my nearest ~Co.

[johann_pond]

First let me say congrats on the new job. I have offten thought of trying to get a part time job at one of the 2 box pet stores near me.

Secondly, I am glad to hear that a large chain store actually seems to care how there animals are taken care of.

[Sakura]

Congrats on the job! I used to work at a Pet*smart and I hated it. Everything you say sounds like the same standards our store has, but the more time went on, the more I started to see that the company really pushes products that are not the best, and they flip out if you try and give proper information about fish to customers. Also they have weekly quotas of fish they need to sell, and there was a lot of pressure from management to sell more fish to meet those quotas. It's against company policy to give any advice from the internet, which I got in trouble for. I was told by my manager that the only thing that exists as far as proper pet care is the manuals printed by Pet*smart. Which is total bull because some information in those care manuals was incorrect, and some things just plain weren't covered at all. I finally got so fed up with everything I just finally quit. I felt like I truly cared about the welfare of these animals more than anyone else working there, and I really gave the job %100 (customers always thanked me profusely) but I was never given any respect or gratitude from management. It sucked. Most of my co-workers saw the goldfish especially as "throw-away" fish because they didn't make much money off of goldfish. They also would not flinch if a customer said they were keeping a few goldfish in a 2 gallon tank. And my co-workers thought it was ridiculous that I would try and gently talk people into a larger tank or a smaller fish. Also, I only worked there 6 months ago, and already they have a completely new batch of employees. Turnover there is insane because they don't value their employees.

But... I really hope your experience there is more positive.

Edited November 9, 2010 by Sakura

[macbeth110]

Sakura, that is exactly how I felt when I was working at p3tc0. I worked really hard trying to make sure the animals were well taken care of, and I would end up being told that what I was doing was not company policy. For example, I bought red peppers for the guinea pigs because they kept having problems because they needed more vitamin c in their diet, and I got in trouble because they were only supposed to be eating the dry pellets p3tc0 provided for them, which definitely was not sufficient. Also, a few times I got in trouble for refusing to sell a fish to somebody who was clearly not fit to own one. I also felt like I was the only one who cared about the well being of the animals, which is why I quit.

However, P3tsm@rt is definitely a better place to work, comparatively. So far, I can tell the people I'm working with in the pet care department are genuinely interested in doing the right thing for the animals. I've already talked a few people out of getting certain pets that they are not equipped to own and nobody has discouraged it. In fact, I've seen coworkers do it too. Yesterday a guy came in and he wanted a bunch of tropical fish and my coworker asked his tank size and wouldn't sell him the amount of fish he wanted and only let him get 2 or 3 so the ammonia didn't get too high. I understand what you're saying, but I guess compared to what I dealt with at my last job, this one seems much more pleasant.

[Sakura]

Yeah that's good. I just hope that as time goes on you don't start noticing bad things like I did at my Pet*smart.

[snorlax33]

I was in my local PetSSSMart today and I was seriously unimpressed with the quality of their fish. Usually Id have to agree that PetSSSmart does have higher quality fish than the Co but not today. I really couldn't believe that I saw two people buy these animals while I stood there in shock at their conditions. Talk about serious overcrowding, and not one goldfish had an intact set of fins.

Ohh how I wish I had a decent LFS near me.

[ashlee18]

Im lucky. Both the petc0 and pet$mart near me have excellent fish and give great advice. But I like to support my lfs most of the time.

[Jeana727]

Wow! I wish I could visit YOUR Ptsmrt......even better I wish I could magically turn your Store Manager into the manager at my Ptsmrt!! Mine are more the norm.....ding-a-lings!!!!

[blackteles]

It all depends upon the store's management team and their standards. Glad to hear that you're having a positive experience there!

[snorlax33]

I know what its like to work at a large chain like p-mart or p-co but I feel a lot of the responsibility lies on the individuals at the bottom of the totem pole. The people who are hands on with these fish. If you see the merchandise dieing why wouldn't you say/do something? The conditions they keep live animals on display for consumers to buy is just beyond me.