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Walmart!

5K views 40 replies 16 participants last post by  nel3 
#1 ·
I needed to put gas in my car today, and the gas station I go to is conveniently only a few seconds away from Wally World. So, I figured I'd stop in and see how the bettas were doing after I complained 4 or 5 times last week, and ended up taking one of them home with me on Thursday out of fear that he would die (Percy :love:).

Well, I made my way to the fish section only to find the same two little girls sitting in the same water I complained about last week :redmad: I know it's the same water, because there were patches of filth on the bottom of the cup last week that were even thicker and darker today. Some of the fish had been purchased, and the males were in dirty water also, but not quite ~as~ dirty.

5 times! 5 times I complained, nicely :frustrated:

Today, I was so upset, I took that disgusting little cup and went out to the garden department to ask for a manager. I was shaking like a leaf and close to tears (so much for composure and professionalism on my part :shake:). The 3 women that I talked to there rolled their eyes at me, and told me the pet department woman had gone to lunch. :squint: I suggested that they call someone else for me to speak to.

They paged a lady who decided to tell me to "hold on a minute" because she wanted to show someone to the vitamin section. Once she found the time to come back and help me, I told her how I'd complained about these same fish 5 times already, and written to corporate about it. She didn't say one word to me the entire time. She cleaned the 2 cups holding the females, while I stood there and watched her, and then walked away with out a word. I even thanked her for her time :roll:

I would like to think that I have enough basic intelligence to explain an issue without crying and shaking like I'm withdrawing from narcotics. Apparently, not. I was thrilled to discover a survey on the top of my receipt - I needed thermometers for the boys, and they're so much cheaper there (bad, I know) - and I will sure be telling them all about my "shopping experience".

I'm super close to going back for that little girl :-( No one wants to buy her because she's tiny and almost colorless (she's cute; she's pink with little red fins - I think). The other girl has been reduced to sitting at the bottom of the cup not moving; I thought she was dead.

Here's a little Kodak moment from last week -



Today, those filth splotches on the bottom of the cup were huge and almost black.

:BIGweepy:
 
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#2 ·
I hate to say this but people who do what you do and act emotionally are labeled as animal rights freaks. It's just a fact. Unless the workers care about animals as much as we do things will not improve because there are no laws about these things.

Doesn't mean we shouldn't stop trying and caring so
:yourock: and :thankyou:
 
#3 ·
I hate to say this but people who do what you do and act emotionally are labeled as animal rights freaks. It's just a fact. Unless the workers care about animals as much as we do things will not improve because there are no laws about these things.

Doesn't mean we shouldn't stop trying and caring so
:yourock: and :thankyou:
Thank you, Registered! I don't mind being a freak, but I wish I could use the freakiness to change some things.

As my roommate said, you shouldn't be able to buy a bike and a fish in the same store.

I'm super conflicted about leaving that fishy there - I know no one will want her because she's so small and colorless. If I leave her there, she'll probably die in that cup and be thrown away after a life of suffering; but if I take her home, they'll just replace her. :-?
 
#5 ·
I like what your roommate said about you shouldn't be able to sell a bike and a fish in the same store, it's so true. You want CSRs to KNOW what they are talking about and care about the fish but they don't, heck the Wal Marts here in Canada you literally have to CHASE down a CSR to get assistance with anything. Though I will tell all of you happily that all the Wal Marts I frequent have stopped selling fish and have been fish free for some time now. I commend you for sticking up for those bettas who need a voice to speak up for them, there should be more people like you out there and letting them know what they are doing IS NOT OKAY. So yay!!
 
#7 ·
Thanks, guys :)

I hope that this Walmart will stop selling animals altogether; if a company is too lazy or inept to train its employees to care for the animals properly, they shouldn't be selling them. The display sign for the bettas has "mandatory item for all stores" printed on it, where the price sticker would go. It must be an old sign, and I seriously hope they will do away with selling live animals once their remodel is complete.
 
#8 ·
The Walmart close to me stopped selling fish or animals of any type after they did a remodel of the Pet section. I expect they will all stop selling them eventually. Their pet section is actually really nice now just stocked with merchandise. They don't have what i'm always looking for, but then again no pet store or pet department does lol.

I had a neighbor that went out of their way to abuse my dog. I called animal control on her and they did a bad job of investigating the matter. When I confronted the lady about it and said:

"I should throw 10 pound chunks of cement at your grand kids and hit them with a broom, and try to feed them poisoned rotten candy when I see them standing in the yard next time I see them."

(My dog never barked or did anything to her before she decided to start beating her with things. I didn't have a video camera to tape what she was doing so I couldn't prove anything to animal control! I of coarse didn't mean what I said about her grand kids, although I hope the powers that be show her what an evil lady she is when her time comes.)

She got really angry at what I said btw... Gee I wonder why?....... Having the employees repeatedly blow you off about the fish is the same thing so I can see why you got emotional. No need to feel bad about it. It sounds like you were more on the breaking point from being frustrated with uncaring people. (I liked your visual of the narcotics though!!! LOL!!!! I never thought of it that way!!! :D)

If you can take care of the little girl betta you want you should go back and get her if you can't get her out of your mind. Maybe see if the other poor little thing is still alive in the other cup. If the other betta isn't doing well maybe see the store manager, explain the situation you experienced with the employees and the fact you reported the issue a few times to get blown off each time like you were unimportant. Sadly the manager will see the fish as "just a fish" but you can make it into a bigger deal in a calm matter with how you were treated by their company. Maybe see if he will give you the dying betta too and see if he will stop ordering more for the store until they remodel since the employees lack the incentive to take proper care of their merchandise in the pet department.
 
#11 ·
If you can take care of the little girl betta you want you should go back and get her if you can't get her out of your mind.

I have been thinking about her since I left; I think I will probably end up going to get her when I get out of work tonight. I'm fairly certain she'll still be there; of course, I'll try to get something done for the other, sicker girl, too.

Your neighbor sounds horrific! I can't even begin to imagine what I would do if someone started abusing my dog; I would totally lose it :evil:

I will be so thrilled if they get rid of the tanks after the remodel; I took my time inspecting the aquariums yesterday while I stood over that woman cleaning the betta's cups. I complained about the tanks last week, and someone cleaned them. They don't look as though they've been touched since, and debris is beginning to build up on the tank floors again.
 
#9 ·
I have 2 big walmarts that are literally like 5 minutes away from each other and both sell not only bettas but other fish like dragon fish, fiddler crabs, cichlids, snails, common large eaters and sharks and some corys. The bettas don't seem to last very long..not sure if they get bought or they die. I picked up a white CT girl last week from walmart as I need one to put into my soriety. I am almost 100% positive one of the girls is actually a still growing VT male.
 
#10 ·
One Walmart near me doesn't sell them. I try not to go to Walmart because I have seen/read how they are destroying our country, destroy small business, crime rates go up in a town when a Walmart comes in .. there are so many things that I can't even name them all. BUT I am guilty of going every once in a while with someone in my family.

So I found out that one near me doesn't sell fish. The other one had 3 bettas in tanks with other fish. One was dead and suctioned to the filter. One was alive. One was on the bottom of the tank, gills still moving but about to die. I asked for the almost-dead one and the guy didn't sell him to me because he said "nope, he's bottoming, he's almost dead. He won't make it to your house".

I felt really bad and wish I took him anyway, just in case. I agree with the person who said "you shouldn't be able to buy a fish and a bike in the same store".

I also believe pet stores shouldn't overstock fish. If I notice the same fish for 2 months, you are overstocking your FISH!!!!!!!! I know they don't care because they are probably so cheap to them it really doesn't matter if a bunch die.
 
#12 ·
I've complained to my walmart and they told me the cups are dirty because customers feed them. When there is dark brown GUNK covering the entire bottom of a cup, that is just ridiculous.

If theres a problem with customers feeding them, then put a sign that says " DO NOT FEED THE BETTAS- using our food is stealing & punishable" and check on them AT LEAST every other day (although every day is better)

:roll:
 
#13 ·
Our Wally-world sells bettas, too. Avery was a rescue from them. Ans as for your little girl in the pic- both my Sassy Lashes and Hot Lips look exactly like that one! Sad, i hope someone takes her home and loves her. But do we rescue, and contribute to the "supply and demand" loop? Hard to say- when they die, they just toss them out and replace them. I am glad for the ones I decided to take, personally. The $3.50 is worth it, IMO, and you not taking her won't change anything for anyone, except for her. I would do it! (Have done it- have only had Lips 10 days...)
 
#14 ·
you not taking her won't change anything for anyone, except for her. I would do it! (Have done it- have only had Lips 10 days...)

You're right - either I take her home and they replace her, or she dies there and they replace her. The best I can hope for is to give her a good life!

So, tomorrow morning, bright and early, I will be back at Wally World, and if she is still there (and she probably will be), I will be bringing her home to join the crew. If she's not there, I'll probably find someone else who needs me, and give them a good home.

Thanks for the advice, guys! <3
 
#15 · (Edited)
So, of course, about 5 minutes after I decided to go back for the fish tomorrow morning, I changed my mind and went to Walmart to rescue her.

She was still there, just like I figured she would be. Her sister was still alive, and I, being a sucker, couldn't take just one home, so I took both. The girl that I went back for is pink and in fairly good condition. The other girl is yellowy looking, and her gills are very, very red. She looks to me like she's got severe ammonia burns. Hopefully, I'm wrong about that...

There are 2 sickly little crowntail boys left on the shelf, and I accidentally jostled them when I picked the girls up. The blue one went crazy trying to eat the poo that was floating around him >.< I dug around in WM's fish cabinet, because I knew if I just ~told~ them to feed the poor fish, they wouldn't. I found their betta food - a can of flakes! - and fed the two little dudes myself. They were starving. I'm so upset.

But the baby girls are home safe, in clean water, and for right now I have them in two 1 gallon critter keeper type containers, each with a mug to hide in. I'm trying to figure out if I should put them in my 20 gallon long with some tetras, or if I should buy them each a little 3 gallon tank.

 
#16 ·
I work at Wally World and I can honestly tell you it is a cult. Where I work they keep hiring people to cover the Pet area, but then move them over to another department. They sell betta and crabs as well as snails and goldfish and various popular freshwater tropical fish species. The conditions have improved somewhat. Probably cause of my obnoxious mouth. :lol:

I complained rather loudly in the breakroom about how much I hate gravel being in tanks that aren't vacuumed regularly. About how it just traps the toxins from their waste and then releases it back into the water and poisons the poor little dears. I very vehemently said that ALL the gravel needs to be taken out. Period. And the water changed AT LEAST weekly. Now all of a sudden all gravel has disappeared and I'm hearing about the water actually being changed weekly. Miracle of miracles. :roll:

And then as I was cleaning up the pet area, I was discussing fish upkeep with a coworker to find that his betta only got fed once a week. No wonder it didn't live long. Actually, his words were, "It actually lasted a pretty good while." Betta aren't supposed to last a "pretty good while." I told him they have to be fed daily, kept in tanks that aren't tiny vases, and they can live for years. :)
 
#18 ·
Why don't they put YOU in the pet department? I mean they wouldn't have to hear you complain (not that there's anything wrong with it, I would complain too lol) but also they would have more fish end up not dying, therefore more money for them to make.
 
#19 ·
I would love it. But I'd get pulled somewhere else and I couldn't stop it. I seem to be doing more good in instructing (or bullying :lol:) others in how the fish need to be cared for. I love being there though. When customers ask questions, I'm probably (and sadly) the best qualified person in the store to answer pet questions. And they have me working on the opposite side of the store. :eyeroll:
 
#20 ·
Thanks, Teeney :)

Bethydan, I'm so glad those fishies have you to stick up for them! I, too, recently had someone tell me that their betta "lasted quite a while" (eating the roots of a plant in a vase, mind you), as though he was one of those Clorox Magic Eraser sponges instead of a pet. People's attitudes toward animals are just mind blowing sometimes -____-
 
#21 ·
The best part was when he said, "No, they don't need a lot of care! They live in dirty puddles in the wild!" All I could say was, "Oh yes they do. And they most certainly do not. Miles of water is not a puddle." I had to explain that what he had been told was misinformation that is passed around to a lot of people. But it's not accurate at all. He's not a particularly bright person and further argument would have been pointless. :-?
 
#22 ·
I am so glad you got these girls! Give them fishy-love from me- I am a sucker for the little lady-fish... most people like the males, but I am such a fan of the delicacy and their little "tough-gal" personalities! My sorority tank is my favorite tank to watch! :) (I have three in there, Hot Lips, Sassy Lashes, and Sha-Dynasty, an they are all all so freaking cute! I know they say three won't work, but everyone else I have was too aggressive-all older than these, and these girls just hang out together without any fuss at all)
 
#23 ·
I totally agree. Females are my favorite. Teeney is my first female, she chose me, and after having her I got another female... Just love em :)
 
#24 ·
This is only my opinion and I don't know enough about bettas to know if I'm even correct....but.... The bettas we buy from the store appear to be so out of touch with the true wild bettas as far as genetics go, I'm not sure the whole argument about "Bettas do not live in puddles..they live in miles of shallow water" has any merit with the fish we keep. The fish we keep are bred in tiny tanks and their kin have been bred and kept in tiny tanks for no telling how many generations, they have no thoughts of "Oh I miss my huge flooded rice fields and back water canals...I wish these people wouldn't keep me in these tiny tanks...Im so sad" All they know is what they have been bred into....and I have to wonder if a preference for smaller environments have also been bred into the fish unknowingly. I'm not saying, stick your betta in a plant vase and put it on a shelf somewhere and forget about it, is gonna make the fish happy.....but I do think...keep the fish's home clean, keep him fed and offer some entertainment for him and give him enough room to move around and he'll be plenty happy.
 
#25 ·
Well, Relic, there is merrit to what you say. I also keep fish, some, jarred right now. Partly because I am going to be moving them all into large, long, separated tanks with rooms for everyone soon. However, I change my water every other day for everyone, and while that sounds like a great idea at first, it is SO easy to just think "they can wait one more day"... and eventually, you get a fish forgotten, with no fresh water, no friends, and then they get sick and die. the point I am trying to make is this: whatever "tank" you use, please consider whether a larger one will allow you to care for your fish just a little better, especially if you find yourself "forgetting" them. Mine are all grouped with buddies, and since I am such a behaviorist, I spend a lot of time with them, just watching their interaction. But if a person isn't obsessed like me, please choose a bigger tank so a tendency toward natural forgetfulness does not hurt your pet. Whatever the case may be, bettas can NOT live in a vase eating a plant for nutrients. That is ridiculous and ghastly. You go live in your backyard and eat the grass you pee on. Then get back to me!
 
#26 ·
Yeah place a man in the bathroom and drop some food once in a while. He will live for years.

Anyway, if only chains like Wall Mart were the only problem. Pet store chains are even more horrible. They are supposed to be qualified and in the know. Yet they know not a thing. The keep all animals in absurd conditions not only fish.

I bought a canary for a friend. Man was he enclosed into a space equivalent to a betta 1 gallon tank. As for cleaning you can guess. The only thing i say he changed colour after he took a bath in my friends house.

Back to our fishy friends: I wonder how do the employees feel when they view the cups with the suffering bettas inside. An executive is an executive, he is not into conduct and if he had a heart he wouldnt be an executive in the first place, but the employess... I cant understand it after all on half of their job is to tend to the pets.
 
#29 ·
Back to our fishy friends: I wonder how do the employees feel when they view the cups with the suffering bettas inside. An executive is an executive, he is not into conduct and if he had a heart he wouldnt be an executive in the first place, but the employess... I cant understand it after all on half of their job is to tend to the pets.
It's the case of "It's just a fish." or the equivalent depending on the animal. This isn't the case so much in pet stores except maybe in the fish department in some cases. But in chain super stores it happens more. If the person is an animal lover they care more. If they don't like animals they could care less and view them as a pain that needs to be maintained with extra care then a box of dry goods.

As for my nasty neighbor yes she WAS an evil, vile lady. I moved from that place to an even worse neighborhood where our house was getting vandalized, but my dog wasn't getting abused.

Glad to see your new babies are doing well :) Hopefully they won't restock them with the help of your letter. That was nice of you to feed the boys. They are more likely to get purchased anyway seeing as they are the flashy ones.

When I went to petsmart I was looking through the bettas one day and found another betta lover who frequented a different forum, and was talking to an employee there who also loved bettas. Both of them didn't like the females because they were more plain. I like my little girl. She's old and lumpy now but she still has plenty of personality and really wants to breed with her neighbor I have in a tank by her, poor thing.

I just want to say thanks to everyone who is a truly good and kind person that has, and expresses good values. There aren't too many people like that these days young or old.
 
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#27 ·
I had a issue with the bettas of my local Walmart too. The vet clinic I work at was in desperate need of doggie potty pads that they sent me to pick some up. Turns out they keep the pads next to the fish, so I just decided to glance at them on the way out. To my horror, all of the bettas had hardly any water - none had more than 1/2", and some had to be tilted on their side to have enough to be submerged. I flagged down a worker and told them as such, and that if they do not get more water SOON, they would die. The lady seemed concerned enough and said that she'd tell the manager and they'd take care of it. Unfortunately, I was still on the clock for my job and couldn't stay to make sure they did it, but I resolved that I'd go back in a couple hours after work and check to make sure they followed through - fully prepared that if they hadn't, I would make a stink and likely make a report to Animal Care and Control. Thankfully, they did fix it - still not great living conditions, but a far improvement from a couple hours before. It was horrible. Sorry about the long winded story, but I had to get that off my chest :/
 
#32 ·
I agree i think that the bettas from walmart are treated badly and that the workers dont really care unless their goinig to loss their jobs.And also when i buy bettas from walmart I feel happy because i was the one who saved a betta.When we buy a betta from walmart we give the bettas a little bit of good experice:) therefore the ones who are in walmart die with alot of bad experice:( and i also agree that u rock toad for trying to change the way things go in walmart.:)
 
#34 ·
I agree i think that the bettas from walmart are treated badly and that the workers dont really care unless their goinig to loss their jobs.And also when i buy bettas from walmart I feel happy because i was the one who saved a betta.When we buy a betta from walmart we give the bettas a little bit of good experice:) therefore the ones who are in walmart die with alot of bad experice:( and i also agree that u rock toad for trying to change the way things go in walmart.:)
Thank you, my dear!

I know that we are contributing to the cycle when we rescue these fish, but, frankly, either we take the fish and store replaces them, or the fish die and the store replaces them.

The best we can hope for, it seems, is to complain and complain and complain so that they will change the way the fish are cared for ;-)
 
#35 · (Edited)
I'd never heard of Walmart selling bettas until I came here to these forums, so while I was at Walmart the other day, I was just curious to see if they actually sold bettas. So I found the fish stuff, and they just had maybe three small fish tanks filled with water, and only one of them had fish in it. I don't even know what they were. No bettas. I guess I should be glad they don't sell bettas in Walmart around here since all I hear is bad things about the way Walmart treats their bettas.
 
#36 ·
Orange, may I ask what side of CT you're on? Because I live in the NE corner of the state, a few minutes from the Mass and RI border.
 
#39 ·
It's awesome that you talked to so many people and stood your ground! I agree with you about the mistreatment of fish let alone bettas that they sell at Walmart. PlEASE go to my profile and click on "help band this tank" Walmart is trying to sell a lava lamp "tank".
 
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