As a person who loves all animals, I often see people who shy from reptiles and amphibians because of their differences from the usual household pet, cats and dogs. That’s completely fine, but regardless of preference, no animal deserves to suffer. However I was truly shocked by the lack of responsibility and decency exhibited by pet store corporations, specifically PETCO. 

Every week I need to feed my ball python, and every week I witness sickly reptiles in inhumanely small enclosures. Leopard geckos that are so malnourished that they can barely lift their heads, underfed chameleons, multiple dead fish left in fish tanks, and even sickly and depressed birds who receive 0 interaction. Today I saw a legless lizard with burns, missing scales, and infected scales. It does not take anything other than common sense to  realize that these animals are not healthy, and are being exploited for a quick buck. 

On top of this horrible mistreatment, children and parents enter the store looking for an animal they know nothing about. Petco employees merely hand them a “care sheet” which is not sufficient in information nor likely to be used, and send them on their way. Petco is setting these animals up for failure.