opinion on Petsmart:buying leopard gecko

[PitbullsareAngels]

Whats your experinces and/or thoughts on petsmart, were the animals healthy or did you have issues. I accaly getting a tangerine or fancy (I know not true morph its gernlization of any morph but normal/wild kind) but if looks nice might get anyway and I wanna make sure theres nothing bad on that store/make a mistake. I cant but online since dont have credit card and dont trust online much anyway and plus shipping fees and like seeing lizard in person before buying. I know not to trsut pet store advice unless double cheack from resources to make sure telling truth. Is there anything look out for when buying from pet stores. Also there pets seem healthyier then any other pet store like petland (which try and give mager false advice) and arent housed in any loose substrates.

 

[Embrace Calamity]

PetSmart is such a huge chain that the quality of their reptile care cannot be equal among all of the stores. It depends entirely on the manager of that particular store. Some of them are truly horrific, while some of them are quite good.

I'm not necessarily anti-pet store, but if you're looking for a gecko, I would personally check other places first. You might get lucky and find one for sale on Craigslist/eBay classifieds locally that's not a normal (many people buy geckos without realising how much time and money they are and decide they don't want them), or you could look for any rescues in your area for ones for adoption. You could also check for local breeders or especially reptile shows, where you can find gorgeous geckos for usually cheaper than pet stores.

~Maggot

 

[bud1988]

I actually bought my Leo from PetSmart and she has been very healthy. Bought as a hatching and now she is 8 months old and is a very tame Gecko.

 

[EyeintheSky57]

Just like Maggot said... depends on the store.

I am a complete newbie with any tank based pet but luckily I found these here forums as I was going through the buying process.

So, in an attempt to do my due diligence, I went to every pet store in a 20 mile radius with included a Petco and 2 PetSmart stores.

Here were my observations:

1. Prices between all places varied somewhat drastically. One brand name part might be cheaper at the local pet shop and others were cheaper at the chain stores.

2. The local pet stores (except for one) all seemed dirty with poor looking reptiles in general. Not to mention, their cricket setups were horrid, etc. The chain stores seemed to be a little neater.

3. The "Except for One" store I mentioned was a breeder of fine geckos. Animals looked great but were pricey (in the $150+ range each). Not what I was looking to spend for a beginners setup.

4. Petco was clean but the staff was just plain dumb on the subject ("It's special sand so the geckos can never get impacted").

5. One PetSmart seemed okay but still pretty clueless. We winded up buying an Exo-Terra tank there because, well, the size we wanted was in stock.

6. The second PetSmart store was awesome. But for one reason only... the guy helping us was an avid hobbiest. He was very familiar with this website and all the literature I had been reading etc. etc. We left with 3 hatchlings who are extremely healthy 2 months later.

So, the key is, learn enough from here so you feel comfortable then go buy the right geckos for your goals (pets, breeding, etc) anywhere that has what you want in a healthy animal. If you can get to a show (like a ReptiCon) that is a great idea but ordering online seems to be without issues too.

 

[avsfreak13]

I agree when I was looking at stores only a month ago I checked all of the local stores around me. The Petco by me was terrible they had at least 10 young geckos in maybe a 5 gallon set up with no humid hide. It seemed the only thing they seemed to do right was not have sand. The Petsmart on the other hand, only 5 minutes away from the Petco, had a larger tank with only 3 young geckos at anytime. They provided them a humid hide and the 2 reptile specialists I talked too were actually very knowledgeable. So like others have said it depends on your local stores. If you find a good store and a healthy gecko you'll be happy!

Jesse

 

[PitbullsareAngels]

I think I'm gonna go with the petsmart near me, pretty much all who work there have exprence with reptiles and/or have owned or still have some and give good tips (reccheacked the info they gave to make sure not bad info). Also keep only 2 at a time in a nice sized tank, with humid hid, no sand and all there animals look healthy close up. They held back the geckos they were getting and i was planning at looking at because, they thought (the store person who ordered) they were abit too young for the trip and thought on safe side to wait another week before transport to store. I admit was little disapointed but glade they took the care too do that even with people already interested in buying, they could have let them be transported and probly be fine but it was just incase.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

I would recommend only purchasing a healthy hatchling from the pet stores IF they do not appear skinny/sickly and have not been housed on sand and also not housed with adults.
If there are any reptile shows near you that could be your best bet too!
There are so many amazing breeders out there though, I understand you dont have a credit card, but they have Debit card options like something called a "rush card" where you can deposit cash at a convenience store, OR some breeders may accept a money order- if I were you I would explore options with breeders just a little bit more- dont write them off yet, I personally wish I WAITED before purchasing from pet stores and went with a reputable breeder.