I would like to address a serious problem: pet stores!

Most people don't realize how much non-profit charitable organizations have tried to fight for adequate care of animals within pet stores. Animals are not always properly cared for, clerks frequently "forget" to give the animals food and fresh water before closing, and they don't offer the proper information about pets to the potential buyer.

Here's a personal experience of mine: I walked into a shopping mall pet store (who shall unfortunately remain nameless) and noticed a ferret, no more than 6 weeks old, alone in a glass-enclosed cage, in wood chips, with no food or water. I immediately walked up to the person working and asked why this ferret did not have any food or water. She told me that he had spilled his water and it was going to be replaced soon. When I informed her that wood chips are not appropriate bedding for a ferret, she snapped back and said that she had been doing that job for 15 years, and she "knows what she's doing". Well, I beg to differ.

I never walked into a pet store after that incident.

Another important issue: Any animal lover should be concerned about where these pets came from. A common response when you ask is "from a local breeder". It sounds harmless, doesn't it?

Scary fact? Most puppy mills ARE liscenced. Animal welfare standards are so low that next to nothing is done to ensure the proper care of these animals. But please remember, despite the fact that puppy mills get the most media attention: the same goes for other animals such as kittens, ferrets, gerbils, bunnies, etc.

Please remember that there is no "good" pet store.

Now that I freely express my opinion of pet stores, a few people have come up to me and approached me about their little experiences.

I would like to encourage people NOT to buy pets from pet stores. Adoption is a wonderful thing you can do for both you and your new pet. Please, don't be taken in by those puppies and kittens playing in that glass-enclosed cage the store has them in. We all know they're adorable, and hard to resist, but do the right thing and save a life by adopting.

Animals in shelters have been abandoned by people who did not know how to handle them, or who have become unable to care for them. These animals absolutely need a loving home, and if you feel that you can offer that kind of home, there are several organizations you can contact if you are thinking of getting a pet and would like to adopt. Links are below.

Friends of Abandoned Pets

Humane Society of Ottawa-Carleton

SPCA (Gatineau - French Page)

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