This is a copy of the letter I am sending to Petco regarding the disturbing video of signature gatherers being harrassed at Walmart by an alleged employee of their store.
June 3, 2026
Management
Petco - Poulsbo Location
Poulsbo, WA
RE: Formal Complaint Regarding Employee Conduct and Request for Action
To Petco Management:
My name is Rachel McBain, and I am a long-time loyal customer of the Petco location in Poulsbo, Washington. My relationship with your establishment is not casual -- I adopted my budgie, Twitter, from your store in 2021, a fact that speaks to the level of trust I have placed in Petco as a safe, reputable, and responsible retailer. It is precisely because of that history that I feel compelled, and indeed obligated, to bring a serious matter to your immediate attention.
I have recently viewed videos that have been widely circulated online in which an individual, identifiable as an employee of the Poulsbo Petco location, is shown directly confronting and harassing individuals who were lawfully gathering signatures for Initiative Petition 26-645, an effort in opposition to Senate Bill 6346, commonly referred to as the "Millionaire's Tax." The conduct depicted in those videos is aggressive, targeted, and deliberately intimidating. I would note for the record that such behavior may constitute criminal harassment under RCW 9A.46.020 of the Revised Code of Washington. I am not raising this as a political matter -- the political opinions of any employee are their own affair. What is not their own affair, and what cannot be permitted to stand without consequence, is the decision to act on those opinions in a manner that is threatening, unlawful, and visibly connected to Petco's brand and premises.
Should it be confirmed -- as the available evidence strongly suggests -- that the individual shown in those videos is in fact a Petco employee, I strongly urge Petco management to refer the matter to local law enforcement without delay. Businesses are not passive bystanders when their employees engage in conduct that may be criminal in nature. Your organization has both a legal and a moral responsibility to ensure that individuals acting under the association of your name do not threaten, intimidate, or obstruct members of the public exercising their lawful civic rights. I also wish to make management aware of a practical concern: when incidents of this nature circulate widely online without institutional response, there is a meaningful risk that members of the public will take it upon themselves to identify or locate the individual involved. That trajectory serves no one well, and it is one that prompt, transparent action by Petco can and should prevent.
I would also draw your attention to a prior incident involving what I believe may be the same employee. On a previous occasion, I shared a photograph of my budgie, Twitter, and mentioned that he had been adopted from your Poulsbo location -- a remark offered in the spirit of goodwill and customer connection. The response I received was dismissive to the point of contempt; in substance, the employee communicated that they had no interest in the matter whatsoever. At the time, I attributed the exchange to ordinary rudeness and let it pass. In light of what I have now seen in those videos, I no longer view that incident as isolated. Rather, I view it as part of a consistent pattern of disrespectful, contemptuous behavior toward the very customers this business depends upon. That pattern warrants serious consideration in any internal review.
I must be direct about the practical consequences of these events. I no longer feel that the Poulsbo Petco is a safe, welcoming, or professionally managed environment for myself or for my pets. Effective immediately, I will be taking my business to other establishments -- permanently. Additionally, I have a broad personal and professional network, and when friends, family members, or acquaintances seek recommendations for pet care retailers in this region, I will not be directing them to Petco. The reputational cost of inaction is not hypothetical; it begins with customers like me who came to you in good faith and are left with no acceptable alternative but to leave.
I call upon both Petco corporate leadership and local Poulsbo management to treat this complaint with the gravity it deserves. I expect a thorough and genuine internal review of the employee conduct described herein, appropriate referral to law enforcement if warranted, and a clear, concrete demonstration of Petco's commitment to maintaining a lawful, professional, and respectful environment for all customers and community members. Silence, minimization, or inaction in response to this letter will not resolve the situation -- it will compound it. Your customers deserve better than what has been displayed, and I trust that this communication will serve as the impetus for meaningful, accountable change.
Sincerely,
Rachel McBain
Bremerton, WA read more
