Don't purchase reptiles from Petco.
We visited Petco and seen two Chinese Water Dragons in their enclosure huddled up together at the back of the cage, and we weren't even sure if they were alive at first. They were dark in color and not moving, and the humidity was only around 30% when, for that kind of reptile, it's supposed to be around 80 - 90%. I told someone at the pet store and they took them out and apparently went to give them a soak in water. The lizards didn't move much when they were picked up and looked lifeless.
A couple of days later we came back to see if they were still there and there was only one lizard in the enclosure and he wasn't looking good still. That's when my husband and I decided to purchase, who we now call Eli, because we are big reptile lovers and couldn't bear seeing him in such horrible condition.
He was very dark brown in color, cold, and dehydrated, and his tail looks like it was rotting off.
We set his cage up with high humidity and made sure he ate, and days later he started shedding. I socked him for a while and started pulling the shed off, and that's when I noticed that the shed was very thick. There was at least 2 or 3 layers of shed stuck to him because the humidity wasn't high enough for him to shed.
After I removed most of the shed you could see the beautiful green and blue under it, and he was looking so much better and has been a lot more active and eating well since we have provided him with the right husbandry.
We took him to the vet not long after because his tail wasn't getting any better. We have had him on antibiotics for 3 weeks, but the tail is getting worse. The vet said that it might be necrotic.
So now, after already spending almost $300 for the vet, we are now facing having to pay another $900-$1000 to get a bunch of tests done and to get his tail amputated before the necrosis spreads too far up his tail and causes more issues for the poor little guy.
I called Petco to ask if they would help cover any of the costs considering he was ill when I purchased him and that it has been confirmed by a vet. I spoke to the manager and the manager was extremely rude and told me that they would only refund the cost of the animal and nothing else. I then started to tell him all of the things that is wrong with him and that I am now facing having to pay another $1000, and he rudely interrupted me saying that there was no way the vet would cost that much and said "we could argue for hours about what is wrong with him" . I then said "no, we don't have to argue because I can send you the vet evaluations right now stating what is wrong with him". He didn't say anything to that. In frustration and just complete disappointment, I hung up the phone.
We also have brought a Bearded dragon from Petco, and when we got home we realized the very tip of his tail was broken and bent and that he was dehydrated. Lucky for the beardie, there was no infections or anything like that and it fell off naturally. He is now a very healthy bearded dragon, but as for Eli, he hasn't been so lucky.
I recommend for people to get reptiles from a professional breeder who knows how to looks after reptiles. You will know that your reptile will be as healthy and happy as it can be, and you will get professional advice for the best care for the animal as well. read more