Walmart betta rant >:(

[shoelace]

Two days ago my boyfriend and I went to Walmart, the bettas were in such poor condition, their cups were practically opaque with filth, you could barely see the bettas in them! They also smelled like death. Like they hadn't been cleaned in months... As we were checking out I went to customer service and told a worker that someone needed to clean them ASAP and it was disgusting they were treating animals that way. She seemed concerned and told me she would let someone know immediately.

We had to run into Walmart again today to pick something up and of course we went straight to the fish to see if anyone actually cleaned them, and guess what, they didn't. They were worse! One of the prettier bettas was floating on its side barely breathing :(
I told one of the CSM's about it, how awful they smelled, how cruel it was, how they were dieing and how you couldn't even see the fish through the cups. In reality that will not help their business. Who is going to be interested in a fish if the cup smells rotten and they can't even get a good look at any of the bettas? Anyway, she basically told me it wasn't her problem, she wasn't concerned in the least bit, and I needed to talk to someone if the pet department about it. I told her I didn't see anyone back there and she assured me someone was there. She wouldn't radio anyone, or send a worker to do it. No, she told me to go back to pets, find this guy and tell him to clean the fish. I was so mad! I walked back to my boyfriend and started crying and we walked out, I sat in the car pouting and he went back in and yelled at an actual manager, threatened them saying we were very well known fish breeders in the area (which we aren't but he's very convincing, heh) and we would ruin business and complain to corporate and send them pictures we took of the bettas.

I'm so maaaaaaaaad! I mean the other Walmart in my town has decent betta care! Like, sometimes the water level is low.. but they never have spoiled water in them! Also at all the petshops around, I've never seen their condition that bad. It broke my heart. I feel like no one cares about fish, but that is animal abuse!! They are slowly killing them and when I complain to someone about it they don't even care!

Okay this rant is over. I'm still in shock though and refusing to shop at Walmart ever again.

[BeautifulBetta123]

No Wal-marts in Canada I think carry Bettas but I am not entirely sure. However I have heard stories and think they are retarded!!! Also think they should go back to selling nothing!

[shoelace]

Ugh I know! They need to get rid of their fish section. It's not a pet shop..

[registereduser]

Originally Posted by BeautifulBetta123

No Wal-marts in Canada I think carry Bettas but I am not entirely sure. However I have heard stories and think they are retarded!!! Also think they should go back to selling nothing!

http://www.r-word.org/

[Skyewillow]

I'll have to box up some of my "mean" and mail it to you. I seem to have too much lately, and it takes nothing less than ill-tempered to get anything done when it comes to big box stores, and companies.

Our Walmart has one associate/shift for pets, and that person also works in crafts, photo (for frames and such) books, children, electonics, and toys. Which means they're pretty thinly stretched. So it's not always the associate's fault that they just couldn't get to it, but the store's for not having employees for that section that are assigned there specifically.

I don't always have time to complain to the store about the conditions of their fish, so if I'm in a rush, I'll move the dead fish that people keep hiding in the back of the shelf to the absolute front.

It's worse for me, I think, to see dead fish at Pet Supplies Plus, or the shoddy Fish Doctor location by me. Even the nearest Petco takes better care of their bettas!!

[White Mage]

The Walmart near us just stopped selling fish because they didn't have anyone to keep the tanks clean etc. They sell supplies, but not fish. Yours should probably do the same. Poor fish :c


I was at an aquarium store Saturday and saw the (numerous) bettas in very tiny cups, the same cups people put food samples in at the grocery store! Like, the fish took up all the space with no room to move! I went to someone who was working there and said "don't you think those cups are, just possibly, a bit WAY TOO SMALL?" she said no, because they live in mud puddles in Japan. Oh god. >.> of course, I explained to her that they really live in rice marshes in thailand which have big bodies of shallow water. She immediately went to a back room and came back with several little plastic fish bowls (about the size of the petsmart cups, but in a fish bowl shape) and started putting the fish in them, apologizing for being uninformed. At least that store cared. D:

[Skyewillow]

We're planning on doing a printout for our local "fish guru" (read as: ill-informed high king poo-poo at our crappy fish store) who told me that I needed a mudpuddle to recreate my betta's natural habitat.

I want to spam their front door, and mail box with photos of rice paddies and Klongs!

[5150wicd4fish]

+1 @ registereduser...I think they missed your message :D

[registereduser]

Originally Posted by 5150wicd4fish

+1 @ registereduser...I think they missed your message :D

[bettacrazygirl86]

All of the walmarts I've been do near me don't sell fish anymore. I know they used to, but they all got rid of them. I think it's actually illegal now, to sell animals if you're not a real pet store. I heard it was from somewhere, anyway.