I recently spent just under $100 at the Critter Barn Pet Shop Exeter Ontario pet store buying turtle supplies and 2 red eared baby slider  turtles. The owner wasn’t very helpful and was pretty rude to my friend but I decided to still get them since I’ve been looking for turtles for a while.
The one seemed to be pretty lethargic from the time I got it but I didn’t think much of it. 5 days after I bought it’s passed away. No worries I figured, every pet store I’ve ever dealt with has a 7 day guarantee to replace the fish, etc that passes in that time.
Not this lady, she doesnt guarantee her animals once they leave the shop. Apparently if it had died on the ride home she just doesn’t care. I of course know its a business, but this is bad business. I would of continued to buy my supplies etc from her but now shes lost a customer. She was so rude to me on the phone that when I hung up my husband said wow she is not a nice lady at all.
I’ve never been to a pet store that absolutely doesn’t care if their animals die the second you walk out the store. 0 compassion from this woman. I’ve always had replacements should something go wrong. I grew up with turtles. I am not a novice. Would of it been that hard to replace it with another turtle that she probably paid $2 for? No.
Anyways I urge everyone whos thinking about going there to go to a larger chain, at least theyd replace your animal in a 7 day period. I’m out my money, a turtle, and my kids are very saddened. I’m just disgusted at the way she conducts business.
sally says...
Also filed with the BBB this isn’t right. I should of been told that she wont warranty them at all at purchase. I’ve owned animals all my life and never had such a problem.
Ginger says...
Maybe contact the Consumer Protection Agency as well, if you don’t get anywhere with the BBB?
Gazpache says...
I don’t have much experience with turtles but I’ve had hamsters for the last 6 years or so. I desperately say please don’t ever ever buy your hamsters from Petland. I’ve had 2 from there come home with wet tail and die from it despite trying desperately to care for them and a visit to the vet.
When my first one died I talked to a few of the associates there who told me that if I were to return the hamster alive, with the wet tail, they would just allow it to die in the back room. Wet tail is a terrible death, it causes dehydration and rectal prolapse.
I’ve learned my lesson.. don’t buy hamsters from them. Other pet stores will either cover the cost of the medical bills you incur or take take the hamster back and do everything they can for it. Petland just allows them to die cruelly. I now buy mine at an independent small pet shop here..
There’s no reason for the shop owner to not give you a guarantee. Almost every pet store does! Good for you for standing up for your rights!
Ashley says...
Wow. I didn’t think stores were selling turtles anymore, which is a good thing considering people don’t take care of them correctly. A lot of people don’t know they need to eat real fish in order to get proper nutrition and those flakes they get fed in the pet store has zero nutrition for them, which keeps them small and attractive to customers as pets.
We once had a sick turtle which we had to soak in warm tomato soup several times a day because it wasn’t eating and when turtles sleep they inhale water and by putting him in the soup he was inhaling food and getting some nutrition.
While it’s bad business to make a customer angry I doubt that a individually owned and operated pet store is under any obligation to replace your pet as they would make their own policies.
This is why companies like wal-mart are able to take over, they offer so many convenient aspects to our shopping rituals that when we shop somewhere else we often regret not shopping at the larger chain with all the deals/customer service/policies.
sally says...
We grew up with turtles, they never ate store food, always small minnows etc once they were big enough.
Hayley Hoffman says...
I am a local and I love going too look at the animals but the lady that owns it as u have been talking abot is VERY! disrespectful!!! I agree with you 100%
Anonymous says...
She kicked me out when I walked up to the dogs because they started jumping and it was a hott day, then she called me a “dumb blonde” - everytime i was there before that she was rude to me aswell. Never going back.
Stephanie says...
The lack of warranty is bad but I always have to say that if you walked away with 2 turtles and supplies for under $100, you did NOT have a proper setup for them (which is 75% the stores fault and 25% yours foor not doing the research first). I’m a manager in a pet store and anytime I sell a turtle, the kits I put together never sell for under $250. Do you realize how big those little red-eared sliders get? The pellets are only PART of the diet, along with fish…and bugs..and oh ya, vegetation. We can’t only survive off bread, animals need variety too!
Come on people, this whole thing combines two of my biggest pet peeves. 1 - Stupid little pet stores that don’t care about the animals or the success of the customers. 2 - Customers that go buy animals without knowing that they need beforehand.