Given the advice from some of my other questions, I went to the PetSmart webpage to investigate certain issues for my dogs. Offhandedly I noticed a "doggy daycare", though it a cute idea, and checked it out. Imagine my shock to find that a major pet store practices breedisim... they will not accept *any* "bully breed" or any dog that looks like a bully breed. They have bought into and are *promoting* the bad rap against our beloved pets! here's the question: Do you not agree that this deserves a boycott?
2006-11-22 14:41:58 · 21 answers · asked by MotherBear1975 6 in Pets ➔ Dogs
http://www.petsmart.com/doggiedaycamp/index.shtml
2006-11-22 14:42:33 · update #1
Hey, Skipper, My T-Bone (staffie/pit-bull mix) plays with Doxies, pugs, and chiuwawas, all the way up to Neopolitin Mastiffs... I have never seen a dog his size be more gentle with such small critters...
2006-11-22 15:05:12 · update #2
Another reason to boycott them, or at least this specific store:
Posted: Nov 23, 2006 2:11 PM It has been PetSmart policy since they first opened, that you can bring your dog inside to shop with you.
about six months ago, i also encountered breedism inside a petSmart
after about 5 minutes of walking around (and being followed) an employee came up to me and stated that "other shoppers" were complaining about my dog.
my dog was being well behaved, aside from sniffing everthing, as dogs do.
i complained that I had only been there five minutes, not even long enough for anyone to even realize i was there.
i was threated with police action, after trying very hard to be civil, and left.
**** PETSMART, i'm glad i'm not the only one to report this foulplay.
ma and pa petshops are always nice to support, but always a little more expensive
Guess its the price we gotta pay to take our pits shopping with us
From MySpace Group...
2006-11-22 17:05:46 · update #3
I would imagine that they have to do this because of fear,ignorance or intolerance of their other clients. It's probably just a financial decision to not allow these breeds because the majority of us who don't own or have experience with those breeds are fearful of them. I've worked for my police department for 17 years, and most of our dog bites have involved Pit Bull Terriers, but it was because of bad owners, not because of the dog... they can't help how they are raised. And don't jump on me, but because of the only contact I've ever had with this breed, a flash of panic does run through me when I encounter one at large. I think that people wouldn't take their dogs to this daycare for fear of their dogs safety... irrational as it is. They may also have not been able to find or insure workers to doggie sit these breeds because of their undeserved reputation. I don't honestly feel Petsmart has purposely singled out these breeds for ridicule and condemnation, I think it's more a financial/liability issue. They should have a Bully Breed Day Spa for those breeds they won't allow on the playground with the others. "Bully Breed" ridiculous name.
2006-11-22 15:18:00 · answer #1 · answered by ihave5katz 5 · 4⤊ 2⤋
I wont Boycott Them PetSmart donates Millions of dollars To Shelters around the Country to help homeless Dogs..Including the Bully breeds! I'm sure they have legal issues that keep them from being able to take the Bully Breeds into their Day cares or they would do so...Imagine what their insurance policies would cost? If you are the owner of a Home and a Bull dog (Pit) you will know what I'm talking about when you look at the added cost(Homeowners Insurance) that you have to pay for owning a Pit. Not the Dogs fault...Bad rap because of the Idiots that Fight them
2006-11-22 14:54:06 · answer #2 · answered by roxie_29812 4 · 6⤊ 1⤋
I agree with Petsmart's decision and think that Rottweilers should be included. Some people have argued that there are dogs in these so-called "bully breeds" that are not vicious but I disagree. I think that they have a genetic predisposition to be vicious and while the dog might be perfectly well behaved with the owner in a situation such as doggy daycare where the dog is surrounded by strange people, strange smells, strange dogs such aggressions may come out. I have a small dog she currently weighs 5 pounds and will be no more than 10 pounds when full grown I would not feel comfortable putting her in daycare knowing that these "bully breeds" were present. Suppose she took a toy one of them wanted or approached their food bowl how would they react? I say more power to Petsmart and I wish more doggy day-cares would do the same.
2006-11-22 15:10:31 · answer #3 · answered by ESPERANZA 4 · 4⤊ 3⤋
No, I don't think they should be boycotted.
I think they are being smart. I wouldn't leave my dogs any place there are "bully breeds". You are asking for trouble.
Not all Pit Bulls and the so called "bully breeds" are dangerous. BUT, you never know when they are going to be dangerous and kill another animal or person. If I went to pick my dogs up and they were dead because they took a toy away from another dog I would be too crazy for words.
Face it, not everyone is willing to take a chance with these dogs. Call it whatever you want to but they would end up without any dogs at all if they allowed the "bully breeds" in to any doggy day care.
2006-11-22 17:36:12 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
No, it doesn't deserve a boycott. PetSmart is one of the few chains out there that is trying to HELP animals (their Adoption Days are wonderful opportunities for local groups to get their animals adopted).
Just because they have to set limits and restrictions based on the possibility of an idiot owner not properly training their dog doesn't mean that they deserve to be boycotted.
YOUR pit may be absolutely wonderful. But you can't be naive enough to think that there are NO dangerous pits out there and that there are NO pits out there that would attack strange dogs if given the opportunity.
If you notice, they also don't allow intact males. Why? Because intact males historically are more aggressive. They also ban "Dogs with ANY aggressive tendencies regardless of breed."
They have decided to err on the side of caution rather than take a "We'll ban specific dogs after they've attacked other boarders" approach. And I can't blame them.
A note to Jo - they don't ban "bully breeds" from their stores because when they're in the stores, they're on a leash and under the immediate supervision of their owner, not in an "open room" setting with a bunch of strange dogs and a strange person supervising them. There is a HUGE difference.
2006-11-22 15:49:18 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 1⤋
Already boycotted when they assisted with the mandatory spay/neuter law in SoCal by funding S/N's. Not to mention a bad business move for a company that makes money off dogs and dog ownership. So yes, they are promoting other anti-dog idealogy as well.
There unbelievably crappy obedience classes are another thing. They are doing a great diservice to the pet owning public with their one-size-fits-all furbaby training.
I am not a fan of daycares though. The ones I have seen are staffed by people who have no idea how to manage a large pack of dogs. Accidents waiting to happen. A daycare certainly COULD be done right, but from what I have seen, I would NEVER leave my dogs at one. I highly doubt Pet(not so)smart is any better considering their 'trainers' (term used loosely).
Pet(not so)smart, to be sure! Seem to be ARlite as well.
They must have some old men in suits who have never had dogs making the companies policies, because they sure as heck don't know much about dogs.
Tirya - "But you can't be naive enough to think that there are NO dangerous pits out there"
And YOU can't be naive enough to think that there are not dangerous dogs in any breed! If *I* were to ban every breed that had shown aggression in my obedience classes in the last 25 years, I wouldn't have any dogs there! Most trainers that have been around awhile know that the ones most likely to bite are Chihuahuas, Cockers, and, IMO, Miniature Schnauzers, and PRT's.
2006-11-22 16:38:50 · answer #6 · answered by whpptwmn 5 · 3⤊ 3⤋
No, I don't think a boycott is deserved for this policy.
While the bullys can and should be super-sweet with humans, they do have a tendancy to be dog aggressive. At a doggy day-care, the dogs romp together with limited supervision.
I would never bring any of my Malamutes to such a facility, as my breed is also dog aggressive. And both bullys and Mals can be SUCH good fighters that they could do a lot of damage to another dog in a short period of time. There is also the extreme risk to humans trying to intervene in a fight...
2006-11-22 14:59:57 · answer #7 · answered by Lori R 3 · 7⤊ 1⤋
Most dog daycares don't even have enough people per dogs as it is. If a fight does break out who is going to stop it and at what risk. My littlest dog is fourteen pounds and he would be the first to start trouble and the one found dead because of it. He does not go to doggie daycare because of this.The stronger dogs are going to be the ones who are going to cause the most harm, even if they did not start it. So no, I don't think this is discrimination as much as it is preventing the worst doggy care incident that you can think of. Maybe someone could come up with a temperament test for all dogs, before they enter a doggie day care, but even then, there are no guarantees about who will come out alive.
2006-11-22 15:10:22 · answer #8 · answered by Animaholic 4 · 3⤊ 1⤋
This was sort of a surprise to me. But I went to the site and looked at it and it clearly bars Bully breeds. I know a trainer who worked with PetSmart and she had Pit Bulls that she brought to her classes. I am wondering if something happened that caused them to have to make this distinction? Basically they are friendly towards any dogs that come into their stores. I would want to ask my local store why they made this criteria. Maybe it has something to do with liability in case something were to happen. In that case it makes sense because the one dog that would bite could do serious damage in seconds.They don't ban Bully breeds from coming into their stores.
2006-11-22 15:14:02 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
One thing you have to realize is that bully breeds were originally bred and created to be animal aggressive (NOT people aggressive)(if you don't believe me, do some research on the breeds), so it's a liability for places like Petsmart to allow potentially dog aggressive dogs to interact with other dogs in a daycare situation, as the animals are usually allowed to run loose together. I'm not saying I agree, but I can see why they make rules like that.
2006-11-22 15:03:53 · answer #10 · answered by BC 2 · 5⤊ 1⤋