[Cody Dawg]

Hello All:

(Love the new look around here, BTW)

I have a problem and it revolves around a pet store here in West Palm Beach. I may name who it is later on but for now I'll keep the name out of it.

I bought a fish for our 4-year old son last Saturday. He loved Finding Nemo and we saw the fish in the aquarium (an orange-colored freshwater discus) and we wanted it. The pet store clerk could not catch the fish with the net so what does she do? She reaches into the tank and grabs it with her bare hand.

On the way home about 15 minutes later I noticed that the fish had a torn fin. It was in bad shape. I immediately called them and mentioned it and said, "Shouldn't I bring him back? You don't really do refunds I know for fish and pets, but I just bought it and he's very damaged from being grabbed by a bare hand. Maybe we should swap him out? I don't want him to die because my son will be upset." The man on the phone said, "Yeah, I guess you could bring him back and do a void on him or we'll give you another fish, but why don't you do this: Just keep him over the weekend and bring him back on Monday." This fish, by the way, was $40.

Fine.

On Monday he was not any better. I called and wanted to bring him back because my 4-year old was very upset about watching his fish die. I called the store and they were closed because they said that their power was out for some reason. The guy said, "Bring it back tomorrow and we'll give you another fish or give you a refund."

Well, I drove back on Tuesday. Got there and right away the guy behind the counter says, "There really isn't anything we can do. We don't do refunds on fish." I politely told him the entire story and said, "I was specifically told to come back today." He wanted to argue. I pressed my point. My 4-year old and 1-year old are standing in the corner of the store, right behind the counter, and are peeking out. He finally says, "Okay, I'll take care of you."

What does he do next?

He takes the fish out of the bag that I'd brought him in and he throws him in the garbage - alive - in front of me and the children.

My 4-year old started crying and was very upset - traumatized.

The salesperson comes back and starts to write out a credit slip and I said, "I want another fish and not a store credit because I never want to come back here. Please do not catch it with your hands this time."

He said, "We don't have another fish so you'll have to take a store credit."

I said, "Who is the manager?"

He said, "The owner is right there."

I walked up to the store owner and was trying to tell him the story and he cut me off with, "We don't do any refunds here. You should be happy to get a store credit."

The guy did not even care that his a$$hole salesman threw a fish in the garbage in front of a little boy!

He just wanted to argue with me.

I was really pissed off at that point and told him that I was going to call Animal Control or someone and he said, "I don't care what you do, lady." At that point I called him an asshole and left with their supposed store credit with my traumatized 4-year old son.

So, the question is, now what?

What should I do next? What would any of you have done in the same situation?

I'm still VERY upset about it.



Thanks for listening, er- reading.

[Randman]

You shouldn't have accepted the fish when the person used their hands.

You should have examined the fish before leaving home.

You could consider filing a complaint with the BBB.

You shouldn't have taken your kids with you when getting the refund as the store had strung you along.

You shouldn't be buying fish for pets for 4-year-olds anyway.

You should talk to the kids and explain things in a way they understand.

[Cody Dawg]

Okay, Randman.

You said:

You should have examined the fish before leaving home.

You could consider filing a complaint with the BBB.

You shouldn't have taken your kids with you when getting the refund as the store had strung you along.

You shouldn't be buying fish for pets for 4-year-olds anyway.

You should talk to the kids and explain things in a way they understand.

Thanks for the good advice that makes it ALL my fault.



We appreciate it.

[budster101]

Argue for a feeding tube, etc.. etc.. etc..

Sorry, that was cruel, I know, bad me... bad me...


-----

I would have pulled the manager and the salesman aside, away from the children. (Told them to go look at something cute for a while, while I have a talk with these 'gentlemen'.

Then, I would have berated them for several minutes, making them feel like the poor white trash they probably were, and then insisted on a store credit. Then I would have walked and purchased a non-perishable item with the store credit, promptly walked over to a cashier and gotten a refund in cash. With that I would have fanned out the few dollars under the manager and salesman's nose and said. There! AHA! I win.

Dude,

Just have a conversation with your children. Sit them down and let them know there are people in the world that have lost all sensitivity for other people's feelings. It is a rare thing, and there are far more good and nice people in the world, and when you come across one of the not-so-nice one's, know this.

Or,

You could just hire a gun-slinging lawyer and sue the bastard for a few hundred bucks and legal fees, along with therapy for your kid...

I don't know.
Walk away...
Just
Walk away...

And buy a PUPPY!!!
Your kid will say "What fish?" 10 minutes later.

[BoomStick]

Pet store owners are some of the most despicable people.

I don't know what to tell you except you should have beat the employee who dropped the fish into the trashcan with a shovel in the face.

[powerbook867]

wow, that's unbelievable. I do saltwater fish and if I were you I would contact:

the BBB

the humane society

if you are really p!ssed, contact PETA

It disgust me the way that some pet stores care for their livestock. I'm lucky to have 2 good salt water stores in upstate NY that only do reef tank setups...

Not to give you a hard time, but saltwater tanks are a lot of work and you may want to research a little before taking the plunge (if you decide to get another fish). Petco/Petsmart etc. usually do a very poor job w/ saltwater tanks/livestock. They give bad advice just to close the sale. I would look in the phone book for private companies that strictly do reefs/saltwater fish tanks,

for more info, check out:

www.reefs.org
www.reefcentral.com
www.nanoreef.com
www.salltwaterfish.com

I would definitely contact the BBB and the humane society. If you have any questions, throw me a PM...

[Randman]

Not all your fault Cody, but yes, you are not totally absolved of guilt in the entire matter.

[Socially Awkward Solo]

First that type of fish can be difficult to take care of in the first place.

Second, that is disgusting behavior on the part of the pet store. I went to a pet store once and saw that all the aquariums were in really bad shape so I called the human humane and reported them, they said they get a lot of complaints about that store. A year later that store was gone.

I also would have taken the fish out of the garbage.

[budster101]

Originally Posted by Socially Awkward Solo

I also would have taken the fish out of the garbage.

... and made the salesman eat it in front of the manager.

[Randman]

I guess this is more of a losing Nemo story, eh?

[Cody Dawg]

Thanks budster101 and Powerbook867 - I really appreciate it. The links (Powerbook867) are awesome.

I disputed the charge with my credit card company also.

The thing is, I honestly thought that I would just bring the fish back and they would take him, put him in a tank, and give us another fish. I told my 4-year old that "We were going to get his fish brother to come and stay with us instead." I never expected a problem. We have about 5 other discus fish and they're great - one we've had for about 2 years.

I appreciate the good advice.

[badidea]

Originally Posted by powerbook867

I do saltwater fish...

That's disgusting, you pervert!!!

[wdlove]

Such a cruel heartless act by the pet store. It seems that they don't do ant better with fish than dogs.

[powerbook867]

So maybe I don't "do" saltwater fish...just glad I didn't start talking about propagating corals!!!

[Cody Dawg]

Just to let you know, having an aquarium is REALLY a lot of fun. We have a 35-gallon tank and a 25-gallon tank and they're really a lot of fun. The discus fish are really cool. Believe it or not, fish have personalities. We have a little silver discus that pushes everyone around. One tank has a Godfather theme - all the fish have names associated with the mafia. If anyone has any aquarium/fish suggestions for a cool tank then let's hear them.

Hi WDLove! Good to see you!

[andi*pandi]

that's really horrible. What a huge jerk.

All the things I'd want to do, I would not do in front of a small child.

[Wiskedjak]

I think you were pretty much hooped when you accepted the fish caught by hand. You might have been able to argue for a refund/exchange had you been able to do it the same day, which is probably why they strung you along until Tuesday.

[Captain Obvious]

Originally Posted by Cody Dawg

On the way home about 15 minutes later I noticed that the fish had a torn fin.

I immediately called them and mentioned it and said, "Shouldn't I bring him back?

You don't really do refunds I know for fish and pets, . Maybe we should swap him out?

The man on the phone said, "Yeah, I guess you could bring him back and do a void on him or we'll give you another fish,

but why don't you do this: Just keep him over the weekend and bring him back on Monday." This fish, by the way, was $40.

That�s the only important part of that story.
You should have turned around and returned it. You had no proof another employee would have agreed to those terms a week later. And for a business that deals with living creatures a week is an awful long time to do a return. Since you seem to have known the story policy on refunds and exchanges you screwed yourself by waiting a week.
On top of that I am sure your usual tactfulness did not help the situation any.

No one, be it the BBB, PETA, or Animal Control, is under any obligation to help you get anything more than what the store may have offered you. Since you walked away and accepted the store credit this story is over.

The fact you go around calling people assholes in front of the kid probably means he is no more traumatized now by watching the fish get tossed than he already was.

[Cody Dawg]

Captain Obvious: You made a couple of good points. However, the one about my child knowing that I use the word "asshole" is moot. I've always used that word in front of my kids. I guess I'm no better than Sharon Osbourne when it comes to that. That's probably the only word that I shouldn't use in front of my kids that I DO use in front of my kids. I was driving the other day and someone cut me off and I honked and my 4-year old yelled, "Asshole!" It was amusing...but then again, not amusing. I guess I shouldn't use it. Oddly enough, I don't use other profanity. Just that word.

to myself.

[DeathToWindows]

Yeah, loose the unwashed hordes of PETA (yes, I don;t like them)... or maybe a little smackdown with a katana...

[ThinkInsane]

Completely off topic, but I was in WBP a couple of weeks ago, and since you brought up pet stores, what the hell is it with the pet stores just having a sign that says "PUPPIES". Don't businesses in south Florida have names? I also noticed places called "FISH" (relevant to the topic), "DENTIST", and "DELI". Seems to me that somebody should be fixin' to actually name a business now and again. And why are those people always fixin' to do stuff anyway? What the hell does that mean???

[Apple Pro Underwear]

dont raise your kid to be a pansie

this is nothing


sorry, but your kid is a boy and i think you should let him get shocked. the world is getting more and more nasty every year.

[nredman]

Originally Posted by Cody Dawg

Hello All:

(Love the new look around here, BTW)

I have a problem and it revolves around a pet store here in West Palm Beach. I may name who it is later on but for now I'll keep the name out of it.

I bought a fish for our 4-year old son last Saturday. He loved Finding Nemo and we saw the fish in the aquarium (an orange-colored freshwater discus) and we wanted it. The pet store clerk could not catch the fish with the net so what does she do? She reaches into the tank and grabs it with her bare hand.

On the way home about 15 minutes later I noticed that the fish had a torn fin. It was in bad shape. I immediately called them and mentioned it and said, "Shouldn't I bring him back? You don't really do refunds I know for fish and pets, but I just bought it and he's very damaged from being grabbed by a bare hand. Maybe we should swap him out? I don't want him to die because my son will be upset." The man on the phone said, "Yeah, I guess you could bring him back and do a void on him or we'll give you another fish, but why don't you do this: Just keep him over the weekend and bring him back on Monday." This fish, by the way, was $40.

Fine.

On Monday he was not any better. I called and wanted to bring him back because my 4-year old was very upset about watching his fish die. I called the store and they were closed because they said that their power was out for some reason. The guy said, "Bring it back tomorrow and we'll give you another fish or give you a refund."

Well, I drove back on Tuesday. Got there and right away the guy behind the counter says, "There really isn't anything we can do. We don't do refunds on fish." I politely told him the entire story and said, "I was specifically told to come back today." He wanted to argue. I pressed my point. My 4-year old and 1-year old are standing in the corner of the store, right behind the counter, and are peeking out. He finally says, "Okay, I'll take care of you."

What does he do next?

He takes the fish out of the bag that I'd brought him in and he throws him in the garbage - alive - in front of me and the children.

My 4-year old started crying and was very upset - traumatized.

The salesperson comes back and starts to write out a credit slip and I said, "I want another fish and not a store credit because I never want to come back here. Please do not catch it with your hands this time."

He said, "We don't have another fish so you'll have to take a store credit."

I said, "Who is the manager?"

He said, "The owner is right there."

I walked up to the store owner and was trying to tell him the story and he cut me off with, "We don't do any refunds here. You should be happy to get a store credit."

The guy did not even care that his a$$hole salesman threw a fish in the garbage in front of a little boy!

He just wanted to argue with me.

I was really pissed off at that point and told him that I was going to call Animal Control or someone and he said, "I don't care what you do, lady." At that point I called him an asshole and left with their supposed store credit with my traumatized 4-year old son.

So, the question is, now what?

What should I do next? What would any of you have done in the same situation?

I'm still VERY upset about it.



Thanks for listening, er- reading.

wow...sorry you and your kids had to go thru that cody. i would write up the story and send it to the local paper or hand it out to customers as they walk into the store.

[TailsToo]

So what was the name of the place Cody? As a former (and maybe future) resident of the area, I'd prefer not to give them any busines.... sadly, I think I know the place already, but I'd rather be sure

[alligator]

What you should have done was accept that the employees in the store were complete jerks, without a conscience. Then you should have accepted the fact that $40 is not a lot of money, and just left. Better to leave with your kids slightly angry than to end up angry yourself at the store.

You were put in a bad position. There's no other way to explain it.

[invisibleX]

Firstly I'm a little disturbed how many Discus you have. 6 in two rather modestly sized tanks is a bit much. Perhaps they're a smaller form but I'd never keep more than two in a tank. Also they're not really something I'd keep around children since they're known to be delicate, particularly if you want them to breed.

Secondly, killing a fish isn't really cruelty. Much the same as flushing a nearly-dead fish isn't. I don't really know why but in most cases fish aren't seen as equal to a dog or cat so I doubt there is anything that can be done. You should be able to discredit them to some extent as they showed a great amount of negligence just selling you the fish, never mind selling it without a mate.

Is it a store that specializes in rare fish? Particularly adults? If so try and reason with the owner to let go of the employee, he should realize that those fish are a huge investment that needs to be babied. If they just sell young, common, fish he probably won't give a rats ass how his employees treat the animals.

In the future always refuse any fish that you see treated badly. Always watch them for a bit before you buy and make sure there is at least a one week warranty (I prefer two weeks). If you can talk to the employees and talk to the owner, find out how they treat their fish.

[Cody Dawg]

Hi:

Thanks for contributing. Our discus are between one inch and two inches. That's all we have in the tanks except for a couple of one inch cichlids and a golden nugget algae eater. The children don't play with the fish...they are in a tank! They look at them only.

No, this isn't a rare fish store. It's actually run-of-the-mill. We went in there for something else (frozen bloodworms for the fish) and that's how we ended up buying the fish.

But, there is a good ending to the story. We went to a great store near our house called Splash Landing and we bought an almost identical discus and we brought it home last night and told our 4-year old that his fish was better and we'd brought him home. He believed us and the smile and happiness on his face was amazing. He yelled, "God made my fish better! Thank you God!" Do you know, he actually prayed to God "to make his fish go to heaven or come home?" It's amazing how attached to a fish that a little boy could get...but then Finding Nemo was one of his favorite movies.

Thanks for writing!

[REB3L]

[Cody Dawg]

Location: halfway between Oisin and Zimphire

[REB3L]

Posted by Cody Dawg at 05:44 AM EDT on a Saturday morning,

go get some rest

[Cody Dawg]

You're right. I DO need rest! I worked on a couple of projects totaling about 60 hours this week and I was finishing one early this morning. That on top of taking care of children, donating 3 hours at the local animal shelter, and dealing with the fish issue. I'm flying up to Boston this morning for a quick trip also.

But, at least it's a beautiful day.

[REB3L]

Originally Posted by Cody Dawg

But, at least it's a beautiful day.

Well that's the important part!

[Thorin]

Originally Posted by nredman

wow...sorry you and your kids had to go thru that cody. i would write up the story and send it to the local paper

That would be my suggestion - hit him where it hurts - in the wallet!

Sounds like your little boy is untraumatised for the time being anyway

[invisibleX]

Originally Posted by Cody Dawg

Hi:

Thanks for contributing. Our discus are between one inch and two inches. That's all we have in the tanks except for a couple of one inch cichlids and a golden nugget algae eater. The children don't play with the fish...they are in a tank! They look at them only.

No, this isn't a rare fish store. It's actually run-of-the-mill. We went in there for something else (frozen bloodworms for the fish) and that's how we ended up buying the fish.

But, there is a good ending to the story. We went to a great store near our house called Splash Landing and we bought an almost identical discus and we brought it home last night and told our 4-year old that his fish was better and we'd brought him home. He believed us and the smile and happiness on his face was amazing. He yelled, "God made my fish better! Thank you God!" Do you know, he actually prayed to God "to make his fish go to heaven or come home?" It's amazing how attached to a fish that a little boy could get...but then Finding Nemo was one of his favorite movies.

Thanks for writing!

Glad things turned out well, and glad I'm not a parent.