DO NOT PATRONIZE THIS STORE OR GIVE IT YOUR BUSINESS.
This is the WORST experience I've ever had shopping at any big pet store! As Lexington does not have many choices, I've been to many pet stores in this area, and Petsupermarket is by far the WORST. I have nothing against Petsupermarket or the employees, but the manager, Cassie, left me absolutely horrified and appalled when I left.
I love hamsters and have owned a few in the past, and figured I would get one from Petsupermarket. When I asked to look at the hamsters, she said, "We only let you look at them if you are buying." which is one of the worst business plans I've ever heard of. If I was not already set on buying a hamster, as a customer, I would have walked out and went to another pet store if I was still undecided, so I could maybe look at them first.
After I said I was already planning on getting one, she roughly grabbed the house off the sleeping hamster, which obviously startled the poor thing. Now, just to give a very brief explanation: Syrian hamsters are very sweet and docile, BUT anyone who knows anything at all about them knows that they cannot be housed with another Syrian hamster past a certain age because they are extremely territorial and WILL fight and kill if they are placed with another hamster. It's common knowledge. Apparently this hamster had just killed another one it was housed with the night before, and the manager proceeded to, with the most venomous tone in her voice, call it a murderer, and the "most brutal pet they have in the store". At this point I was beginning to question if she even wanted to sell me the hamster, because if I had not 1) already been decided, 2) known that that is the nature of Syrians, I would have left immediately.
When I asked her the sex of the hamster, she said "Oh, we don't sex hamsters here," which is OKAY but not great because that's something you should know as a manager, but then proceeded to say, "Based on how it literally ate the other hamster yesterday, I would say a male." Which is the most baseless assumption I have ever heard of. Oh, and it was a female.
After I said I wanted the hamster, she proceeded to pick up the house and JAM it roughly against the corner of the cage. At this point the poor hamster was beginning to hiss/squeal and lay on its back, and when that wasn't working, she tried to scruff it. But you don't scruff a scared hamster, especially not one that is not tame. So obviously the hamster tried to bite her, which at this point she FLUNG the hamster and thankfully it landed loudly on the top of the cage, but it could have fallen a few feet to the floor (which at the size of a hamster, could be deadly!).
I had to be the one to intervene and ask her to use the house to scoop it up, otherwise who would have known what other methods she would have used to put the hamster in the box! I honestly, from the bottom of my heart, feel like the poor hamster must have been mistreated by this manager, because it is the most terrified hamster I have ever owned. She shakes when I even approach her cage.
I have to add that I was also incredibly appalled at the size (or lack of) of the box. Syrian hamsters are quite large (about the length of the palm of your hand) and this box was about the size of a mug! There was literally no room for the poor hamster to move around. Even another large pet store (which I will not name) has take-home boxes that are large enough for them to move around in!
Overall, this experience left me with an EXTREMELY bad taste in my mouth. I have never felt more upset and angry at a pet store and will never, ever shop at this store again as long as the manager remains the manager here. You would expect someone who is a manager at a PET STORE to love pets and treat them gently and humanely, but this lady was horrible to the hamster. I can't imagine just how cold and heartless someone has to be to treat an innocent pet the way she treated mine.
I have been so upset by this that I have called customer support and am waiting on a call back from the district manager. read more
