Working for Petco.......

[dogofwar]

I'd bet that you would both have gained your (ex) manager's request...and still have a job if you would have calmly explained why you provided the advice that you did for the two customers...and the alternate purchasing choices that you recommended.

Matt

 

[pi-eyed]

Welcome to "Corp America"!!!!! You did right IMO... I have a friend that works at my local petco... He said the turn around rate(people buying fish only to return them to the donation tank when they can't care for them) is insane!!!! Big chain stores(for the most part) are all about the almighty $$$.... Take for example a cute little baby pacu. If it's explained to the interested person that their 40g is way to small and you try a pitch on the 150g tank(telling them that that will also be to small for a grown pacu) chances are the average hobbiest will leave with no purchase. That is what proper fish keepers do--explain what they know will happen and should not be yelled at for telling the truth. Most of the time big business taints everything!!!!

-----Chris

 

[jcardona1]

That's great and all, but I'm pretty sure those customers drove down the street to a Petsmart where they bought the fish they wanted, regardless of what you told them.

 

[JteSchertz]

I worked in a non chain pet store when I was in highschool. Our owner went with the strict policy that when it comes to the animals, there welfare is more important that the customers happiness. If you were to have sold them the fish they were asking about and the enevitable happened, they would blame you and thus the store you worked for. That would be losing a customer so you definately did the right thing. This is why I do not buy from Petsmart or Petco. All they care about is the bottom line.

 

[MadRussian79]

Welcome to "Corp America"!!!!!

And the LFS is different how? They are all there to make money. Some managers find a way to do it, some don't. This is specific to the individual and the same for ALL industries. Caring for the animals if done properly helps the bottom line. If he was just too stupid to grasp this then so be it.

Also as someone who's been put in charge of older employees. If a subordinate treats me like a child I will be put off to say the least. So your actions were justified with the customers not with your boss. Responding calmly when someone gets stupid works much better. Also taking a bit of flack from the boss but still selling like crazy keeps more fish alive then telling him off and getting fired. That way the customers look for you and after a few ask him when you are working most bosses will back the hell off. Especially at petco since you make his bottom line look good. If not then he's just a nut and you move on.

 

[dlobom]

Way to stick it to the man, you should have chugged a beer on the way out!!

 

[Saterus]

My most recent excursion to Petco was purely to take pictures of dying/dead leopard geckos as a reminder to myself why I will NEVER purchase something from them again. I go in there occasionally to look and laugh sadly at everything. A "handfed", year old, no longer friendly jenday conure for $600? Laughable, very sad.. Correcting the employee telling a customer that the "loach" they are about to bag is a clown knife and NOT going to do well in a 20g communtiy tank, FUNNY at times during the argument, incredibly sad..
However. Telling 3 different employees WHY their leopard geckos are dying by the dozen (and yet they're ON SALE?!) and getting a near identicle response to the effect of; "oh, I guess I should go tell a manager" when I point out the ones too weak to lift their leg are clearly beyond help. Just plain sickening.
I watched them (the geckos) for ten minutes while some 20ish guy explained the "care" of the reptiles to some girl he was hitting on and he told her they eat the ginormous crickets and mealworms that clearly were not being eaten by a single one of those poor little hatchlings.
When I pointed out that they need foods no wider than their head or they may not eat them, a vitamin supplement dusted on feeders, and that they don't appreciate the UV lights being nocurnal, oh, and that they should be bright eyed and colorful not pasty white skeletons.. I was basically asked to leave since I scared off the girl he was hitting on.
I guess dying baby lizards aren't sexy and Petco isn't cool with you pointing that out.

 

[cyberhog05]

i have to say that I have been to petcos, petsmarts all over the Pacific nw and my local petsmart is quite responsible towards giving good information to future customers. Sure there stock is most generally crap but I have picked up some fish from there and with a good qt they have thrived. I have eavesdropped many many times just out of fun and listened to customers ask for Geo's, ghost knives, pacus etc and they have always been turned away from the purchase on the basis they didnt have a proper tank set up. When I bought my geos from there they asked me what size tank I had, what my ph was, if I had city or well water etc. I was amazed! I think they were more amazed I knew what they were talking about. Any way I just wanted to give my experience with my local chain store. Which really is my only option for some stuff.

 

[Columbian Shark 3]

Good for you dude..

 

[DCOWBOYS]

Well i guess i just mark this off as a life experience,but for $7.50 an hr it was just not worth it,also i have no problem having a boss 20 something years younger than me,but i refuse to be looked down on or spoken to like i am less than human,also the fact that i probably have forgotten more about fishkeeping than he or any of his employees know.