I was so disillusioned by this place that I made an account just to warn others.
I walked in wanting to love this place, as all the past reviews were glowing. I walk in and find I'm the only customer. There was a group of teenagers hanging around that I thought were customers, but it turns out they were just friends of one of the employees. I had thought they were customers because none of the many employees standing around didn't bother to greet me.
I was in a rush so I quickly looked around for what I was looking for: a female guppy and female platy. I had to walk up to someone to get help and they gave me a guppy no problem. The issue started with the alleged platy.
I specifically asked for a platy and saw one in a platy labeled tank. I kept saying I wanted a platy, mind you. He pulled one up for me and then I went to the front and got it.
Since I was in a rush, I didn't have time that day to look at the fish carefully. The next day, however, I noticed it couldn't be a platy: it was too slender looking. It was a young swordtail. I would have been fine with that if I had the space, but it would definitely grow to be too big for my tank.
All this so far I would have been fine with if it wasn't for what happened next.
I call the store (having to call 4 times before someone even answered) and say that I think I was given a swordtail instead of a platy. The guy who answered was the guy who pulled the fish and remembered me and said, yes it's a swordtail. I said, well, I asked for a platy. He insisted he told me it was a swordtail at the store when I never once said "swordtail" and never once heard anyone say so. I specifically asked for a platy too. Is it suddenly my job to make sure he gives me the fish I'm asking for? He said he had said so right before I rang up, while he was far away and yelling from the other side of the store. Even if that was true (it's not), he could have said it was a swordtail, not a platy from the start.
I get that mistakes happen. I'm fine with mistakes that have solutions to them. But while I was talking to him over the phone, he kept arguing and offered no solution when I kept saying I couldn't keep this fish. I told him it was too big. I told him I can't keep it. He stayed silent. Seriously? I don't know your policy. I don't know how you fix things like that. Even when I directly asked him what I can do, he just said "that's up to you." It was like pulling teeth trying to get him to tell me what their policy is.
After a grueling amount of time, he told me I can exchange it. I thanked him and... he hung on me. No bye, no thanks. Just hung up. I've never had anyone be that rude.
I go to the store and expect it to be busy because my phone calls kept going to voicemail just an hour before. Nope. No one. And there's about five guys just standing around talking to each other. No one greets me either.
I again go to the front and have to tell them I'm here for an exchange. The guy I had been speaking to nods and has someone else handle the exchange. As I'm looking for another platy, the kid who handled my exchange leaves the area. They literally had nothing to do and still decided to not help me.
The kid isn't experienced and can't tell female and male fish apart so he brings the guy I had been talking to to pick a female one. As I wait, I notice a fish in another tank has what looks like swim bladder disease- it had a hard time swimming and just kept floating up on its side. I tell the guy helping the kid and he just ignores me. This is about the 5th time he's been rude or indifferent.
I had come into the store wanting to buy a plant using some of the little extra store credit I was going to be given, but this was the last straw. The lack of customer service, the need of this guy to argue me over a fish when the solution was simple, and the overall apathy and lack of manners drove me up a wall. It wasn't just one thing- there was something frustrating at just about every step of the way. What an atrocious experience.
The cashier must have noticed my frustration when I said I didn't want to buy anything with the credit left over and offered me a refund instead of store credit. He was really the only one who cared about not being an indifferent jerk.
Still trying to give the benefit of the doubt, I guessed that maybe they just had a vendetta against me and only treated me like this. Nope. Another customer had walked in during the second visit and they also ignored him.
I don't know what happened between now and the last positive review, but it was a very disappointing experience. I wanted to stray away from Petco, but it looks like I'll have to keep going there. At least they know how to deal with problems and offer solutions to them instead of argue you over details and not help you not once, but both times you visit during an empty store. read more
