# PetSmart against pitbulls



## 0ni (Jul 8, 2008)

IN THE DOGGIE DAY CAMP SECTION:


Requirements
Frequent User Program
FAQ



Requirements

Who may attend?

Dogs at least four months of age
Dogs who have been socialized with
other dogs but are not of the “bully
breed” classification† or wolves/wolf
hybrids
Dogs who are in good health (no fleas, ticks, or contagious illnesses)
No intact (unneutered) male dogs, pregnant females or females in heat
Dogs who have the following vaccinations: Bordetella, Rabies, Distemper, Parainfluenza and Parvovirus
†Dogs in the "bully breed" classification (e.g. American Pit Bull Terriers, Miniature Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Bull Dogs, Bull Terriers or mixed breeds that have the appearance or characteristics of one of these breeds). For the safety of all animals and associates, and at the discretion of PetSmart, some pets may not be permitted.

For the health and safety of our guests, all dogs must be current on their vaccinations prior to participating in day camp. Vaccinations must be given at least 48 hours before arrival by a licensed veterinarian. Written proof of the following are required for all guests. We do not accept home vaccinations.

We prefer vaccinations to be administered 7 days prior to check-in.

Dog Vaccinations:

DPP* One or three year vaccine required
Bordetdella Required every six months. Please note, many veterinarians administer this vaccine only by request.
Rabies One or three year** vaccine required

*Distemper, Parvovirus and Parainfluenza
**Rabies per local ordinance
If Doggie Day Camp doesn’t seem like a good fit for your dog, we also offer Day Care at our PetSmart PetsHotel locations. Click here to learn more.


so they want our money but they don't want our dogs seen there or even near there i will never spend another cent in petsmart again i think we should start a strike against petsmart this is wrong so if bull breeds are not allowed why are little dogs allowed small dogs are known as the most non trained and aggressive dogs they bite people and just cause its small they don't expect anyone , the fact that they start fight with dogs that makes them not only a danger to people but to them self and other dogs but is all so cute when they do these things because there so small i swear i with i could turn all the little dog into normal size dogs then we will see which dogs will be seen as bad dogs


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## Sydney (Aug 14, 2007)

why did it put my post up here?? it was supposed to go after sampson's


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## Sydney (Aug 14, 2007)

It is not putting my posts in the right order


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## Sydney (Aug 14, 2007)

ARE YOU SERIOUS!...it is probably up to the insurance company what breeds of dogs they cannot have, and I still say they shouldn't be accepted if they did then people would take them there, and bad things would happen on occasion...giving the media more fuel for there fire. 
I think the disclaimer is good because no knowledgable-responsible pit bull owner should put there dog in that poistion. I also think a couple other breeds should be added to the list, but that is JMO

I know I wanted to do therapy work through my church with the dogs, but plain and simple the insurance company doesn't allow pitbulls, rotties, or dobermans. That's just the way it is.


I say pick your battles...and to me this one is not worth the effort.

**Again this was supposed to go after Sampson's Dad and I think Blue Family's post is in the wrong place too


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## bluefamily (Aug 8, 2007)

*pet Smart???*

:goodpost: Don't forget PetSmart is a business. They are in the market to make money any way they can including inflaming the perception of the ignorant massess. This is also a chian store and they depend on casting their net to the widest audience. Not all people know much about their own dogs or cats or fish then they would mine. The staff is not knowledgable and they don't care about your dog or any dog. The staff for the most part is there to get a paycheck and if they learn a little something along the way, then "bully" for them...(to coin a phrase...)
If I want to more knowledgable folk to learn from, and it isn't here, then I go to my local feedstore. But then not all places have feed stores.
What PetSmart SHOULD DO is take the opportunity to educate nopt only about bully breeds but other breeds as well, like the Saluki or the Westing Terrier or the Corgi.....They should set themselves up to actively educate, not just have a book display and hope the staff can read them...


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## Sydney (Aug 14, 2007)

OH PLEASE....this is for doggie day care. I don't think "bully breeds" should be in doggie day care. It ranks up there with dog parks, but I think it is worse. You, the "knowledagable one" aren't there to break things up if things go south, and you aren't there to defend your dog when fingers point toward him just because it is a "bully breed" These people are minimum wage hired off the street *usually *they love animals, but don't have to really have any "experiance" to "watch" dogs, let alone a understand bully breeds and how to handle them...


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## gilbe-n-313 (Sep 23, 2008)

i agree..with sydney..you never know whose going be around to handle the bully breeds..i take mines in to PETSmart sometime..and the workers say ..aww "he's so cute can i touch him, then does he bite..i reply "he has teeth don't he"..lol.that goes to show you how much training these workers really have. I know i not about to go to anybodies dog trying to touch him/her..you never know what the dog-bullybreed or not is thinking..


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## Sampsons Dad (Jul 4, 2008)

As I believe that bully breeds should NOT go to Doggy Daycare....I also think making rules like that TEACHES THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT THEY ARE DANGEROUS AND PAINT A BAD PICTURE OF OUR DOGS.

This group should get everyones signature and send it to Petsmart saying that they wil lose business for such a BSL type wording of that document.


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## 0ni (Jul 8, 2008)

i see where u are coming from but why should i spend my money or another pit bull owner spend the money in a place where there dogs cant even go i can bring him in petco and concord pets and some of these other higher price places but i cant bring them in a petsmart I'm sorry but thats wrong and i refuse to even shop there if i cant even walk my dogs even near the place


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## lil bit pit karma (May 10, 2008)

I was there last week at the grand opening of the Petsmart hotel for dogs. I ask the manager who was giving the tour and she said they will allow them in the hotel, I never asked about the daycare. She told me that because of her breed she will be kenneled away from the others and play time and potty will be by herself. I am ok with that and we are thinking about using them when we go out of town for a few days, since the other place wont even do that.


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## Deucek2 (Aug 18, 2008)

I work at a doggie daycare and we don't allow pits at all. There's some mixes we get. But that's about it. Pitbulls are the only ones we don't allow. We get rotts., dobermans, german shepherds, etc. We get a lot that are considered bully breeds. A lot of places around here won't accept Pits.


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## Sydney (Aug 14, 2007)

0ni said:


> i see where u are coming from but why should i spend my money or another pit bull owner spend the money in a place where there dogs cant even go i can bring him in petco and concord pets and some of these other higher price places but i cant bring them in a petsmart I'm sorry but thats wrong and i refuse to even shop there if i cant even walk my dogs even near the place


PetSmart allows pitbulls inside their establishment...where do you get the idea that they don't???


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## Carriana (May 13, 2008)

Right. Just because you can't enroll your pit in doggie day camp doesn't mean that you can't still have your dog in the store when you shop. 

Personally, I think leaving your dog with complete strangers along with a bunch of other people's dogs is a recipe for disaster anyway - no matter the breed.


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## 0ni (Jul 8, 2008)

well maybe the one u all go to but not ours


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

i've seen a couple of people stupid enough to put pits or pit mixes in doggie daycare. believe me it doesn't work. i kept telling this one lady i worked for this dog named "little man" was a pit. his owner believed it was a lab mix because he was small and black. the lady i worked with thought pits were bigger the 45 lbs. so she just blew it off. This happened because she was to inexperienced to understand dog behavior. which is the problem with most doggie daycares. anyway little man ran the entire pack. i kept telling this woman it was stupid to leave him with those dogs. once a dominant terrier came in and crossed him. once.. And though i hate petsmart and think they all should burn, i believe it would be stupid to allow pits to socialize in their facility. There are alot of idiots with dogs and they create lawsuits. Always make sure the people who handle your pets have a ton of experience and have a good vibe. all kinds of stuff happens when people aren't there..


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## Phoenix (May 3, 2008)

Carriana said:


> Right. Just because you can't enroll your pit in doggie day camp doesn't mean that you can't still have your dog in the store when you shop.
> 
> Personally, I think leaving your dog with complete strangers along with a bunch of other people's dogs is a recipe for disaster anyway - no matter the breed.


 You are absolutely correct. 
I used to work at a boarding kennel that offered "doggie daycare".
The only dogs that use it are dogs that are ill-behaved and dominant.
I broke up fights everyday,prevented as many as I could;being the ONLY ONE supervising 30-40 dogs.....:rain:
Dogs are pack animals.The Ideal pack structure for a canine is a "STABLE" pack.
This cannot be achieved when the members within the pack change daily.Every hour its a different pack,with new arrivals and dogs going home.
That means "pack order" needs to be sorted out all over again.
I don't recommend "dog daycare" for ANY breed or mix;
ESPECIALLY NOT TO PEOPLE WHO DO NOT UNDERSTAND, OR WHO WISH TO DENY ,THE NATURE OF THE DOGS AND HOW THEY BEHAVE.
This goes for dog parks as well.


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## Deucek2 (Aug 18, 2008)

i deal with 50 plus dogs a day. and i rarely ever have to break up fights. Like i said before. there are some pit mixes that come in. But i have never ever had trouble with them. The only ones i do have trouble with are the labs. I take deuce to it. and he does amazing. Granted he did get bit there. which was by a beagle. I am seeing aggression from every dog. BUT PITS.


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

Deucek2 said:


> i deal with 50 plus dogs a day. and i rarely ever have to break up fights. Like i said before. there are some pit mixes that come in. But i have never ever had trouble with them. The only ones i do have trouble with are the labs. I take deuce to it. and he does amazing. Granted he did get bit there. which was by a beagle. I am seeing aggression from every dog. BUT PITS.


not all pits or pit mixes are dog aggressive. some won't show any signs of dog aggression until they get up to 4 years. every pit i owned has been good in daycare, but that isn't always the case with the other dogs. i have also seen my dog get in a fight with another dog. it's not worth risking it i can assure you. pits are sweet with people and often times other dogs, but rest assured it isn't a flaw for it to be dog aggressive. often times the other dogs in the pack can see a dominant dog in ways humans can't. this can trigger a need in the other dogs to show pits they are the alpha in the pack. usually some asshole dog comes running up and start humping the new dog or perhaps biting him on the neck. the problem is if the dog is not submissive then a fight will occure, and usually the rest of the pack will jump in. most dogs respect the order, but seriously i wouldn't risk it with a pit. many are completely unsubmissive. I've been working around 50+ dogs a day for a very long time now. I have seen it a few different times. No tell telling which one has the dog aggressive jean or when it may manifest itself. Also one may just get tired of being second and decided one day he wants to be alpha. I've see that as well. True Story; I was working at a boarding/daycare/grooming facility. The day care had two pits that were best friends, they were number 1 and 2 in the pack. a family came up to love on the dogs and the two dogs a pissing match over the affection. You see the older larger dog was second in the pack because the younger male was there first. He finally got tired of it. I had to pry a hundred 100lb bully's jaws off of a 55lb game dogs face. Then the Game dog bit the Bully and I had to do the same thing. It was quite scary to put my hands in the middle of a fight like this. All the while, the other dogs where nawing on the little guy. It was wild, nobody saw it coming the dogs had been friends for years. I mean you can do it, but I wouldn't. It's a crap shoot really.

Oh and just because they aren't being aggressive doesn't mean when push comes to shove they won't make mince meat out of a dog. They are sweet, but if they fear for their life, good luck cleeaning that up.


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## litter mates (Jun 5, 2007)

janet use to work at a doggie day care and wanted to take our girls so she could play with them at work. i was dead set against it and we got into a heated arguement!!! i told her that you are looking for trouble. i told her what happens when you show another dog attention and ours get jealous?? so she did not take them and realized that i was right because the owners st. bernard tore the crap out of another dog and it cost him over $500 in vet bills. i do not believe in doggie day care or dog parks. don't be lazy and have someone else do your work for you. spend time with your dogs and train them the way you want them to be trained!!!! if you don't want to do that then get a FISH!!!!:hammer:


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## Deucek2 (Aug 18, 2008)

well then. if pits shouldn't go to Dog day cares and dog parks. Then neither can any other dog. 

I think it's stupid how everyone gives other dog credit but not their own pit.


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## MetalGirl30 (Apr 15, 2008)

They will only allow pits to board there, but they have to be by theirselves away from other dogs and not allow in the play area with other dogs. They are walked away from other dogs on a different schedule.

My best friend works in the day camp/hotel at the PetSmart in Mauldin.
They do it that way to appease the other customers. Like my friend says the pits are better behaved then most of the dogs she takes care of, but they are just treated poorly and unfairly.
She says that they have a GSD that comes in everyday wreaking havoc and jumping and fighting with all the other dogs, but he is still allowed to come everyday. The dog even belongs to a vet.
They were boarding a blue pittie there and the owners never came back and picked the poor girl up b/c the board bill was over $1000.00. She has been there for almost 2 months in a kennel all by herself in the back..no interaction with other dogs or anything. They do take her out and walk her as much as possible and let her play in the play area by herself though to get exercise.
One of the managers up there is fixing to take her home once the owners come and relinquish their ownership of her.


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

Deucek2 said:


> well then. if pits shouldn't go to Dog day cares and dog parks. Then neither can any other dog.
> 
> I think it's stupid how everyone gives other dog credit but not their own pit.


When a pit fights it's over. They can be extremely tolerant, but when they finally snap on whoever I assure you nice dog bad dog whatever they all do the same thing. It is in their blood. They are great with people, other dogs not so much. Few breeds will fight the way a pit does. Pitbull owners should know what their dogs are capable of. They won't stop until you somehow physically get involved. It doesn't matter if it is a sweet dog. If another dog takes it there and whatever they got going on in that head of theirs clicks, you are in for a blood bath. This isn't the case with all dogs, but you can fully expect to see this from a pitbull. Now, there are certainly many subjects from all breeds that shouldn't be in daycare. If you are to leave your dog in a doggy day care you need someone with more than 10 years experience with dogs to be monitoring them. You need to take your dog to a place that knows when not to let certain dogs play whatever the breed, usually it's just certain dogs from every breed.. I worked for a place who didn't know anything about dogs but wanted to start a boarding/daycare/grooming facility. The guy had a bunch of money, but no clue about dogs. Before the end of the third year in business he had already given nearly a dozen of his customers dogs full funerals, most from fights. He would throw these elaborate funerals and parties for these dogs after they died in his facility. He was lucky he was so rich that he could buy off his clients before he figured out that dogs don't play in fantasy land. The problem with day care is that soooooooo few people, even those in the industry truly understand, dog behavior. Day Care was made by people in fantasy land, for people in fantasy land. Thus the reason I only take dogs 35lbs and under in my own day care. I'll take people who are in fantasy lands money because they have a bunch, however I won't lose my business over it.The only problems I have currently is with a beagle named daisy. She has become to dominate and is snapping on other dogs more and more each day. She has been coming for a long time but I still have to tell the customer no more.


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

and don't get me started on dog parks. now your dealing with tons of people who don't understand dog behavior. taking your pit there is VERY risky. Dogs can pick up bad things around untrained dogs as well.


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## chic4pits (Aug 25, 2008)

who needs pet smart anyway?! they must not be to smart otherwise they would have trainers who know how to handle these breeds of dogs...
i mean, if they really were all for the animals they would have knowledgable staff and trainers who would know how to address ppl in the class with other breeds who might be fearful of these more powerful breeds, but nooo, the eaisest thing is just to run from the fear insted of teach..


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

Mr. Bleezy said:


> and don't get me started on dog parks. now your dealing with tons of people who don't understand dog behavior. taking your pit there is VERY risky. Dogs can pick up bad things around untrained dogs as well.


However I do think it is great for pits at an early age. Socializing your dog early can ward off alot of the dog aggressive tendencies. If you have a pack of dogs whom are friends of yours then it is good to let non aggressive pits continue socialization, but I wouldn't do it at a park or a day care after they grow out of puppyhood. If you do take him or her to dog park you will probably notice the other dogs giving him or her a hard time. this is because a pit carries itself in a naturally dominate manor which threatins other dogs. They will work over time to let the pups know their place, even start a fight with them. You will see this on intact dogs the same way. The others just know. It's wild!


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## Carriana (May 13, 2008)

chic4pits said:


> who needs pet smart anyway?! they must not be to smart otherwise they would have trainers who know how to handle these breeds of dogs...
> i mean, if they really were all for the animals they would have knowledgable staff and trainers who would know how to address ppl in the class with other breeds who might be fearful of these more powerful breeds, but nooo, the eaisest thing is just to run from the fear insted of teach..


You are forgetting that this is a low end pet store chain. Their employees are probably paid barely over minimum wage at best. They sell these products and services for profit, not for the love of the animals.


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## reddoggy (Jan 31, 2008)

I see alot of bias going on in this thread. There are reasons why you don't take your pit to a dog park or a doggy daycare, so why should training with other dogs in a small area of a store with inexperienced people??? The APBT was bred to fight, and though it may be much like racism to lump all pits into the DA classification one must expect a pit to fight. I mean, how many times has it been said on this very site not to trust a pit not to fight??? I take mine to petsmart all the time, and my business is welcomed, and I for one could care less about them not allowing my dogs into their classes, they have a responsibilty towards all of their customers to keep their dogs in a dafe enviroment. Should they be more educated? Yes. Are they gonna be? No. As Carriana said, they pay little, so the turn over rate is probably extreme. They have vet centers and groomers and that's really the only areas of the store I expect anyone to know anything other than where could locate a specific brand of food or where to find the cichlid vitamine salt.


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## Mr. Bleezy (Apr 4, 2008)

reddoggy said:


> I see alot of bias going on in this thread. There are reasons why you don't take your pit to a dog park or a doggy daycare, so why should training with other dogs in a small area of a store with inexperienced people??? The APBT was bred to fight, and though it may be much like racism to lump all pits into the DA classification one must expect a pit to fight. I mean, how many times has it been said on this very site not to trust a pit not to fight??? I take mine to petsmart all the time, and my business is welcomed, and I for one could care less about them not allowing my dogs into their classes, they have a responsibility towards all of their customers to keep their dogs in a safe environment. Should they be more educated? Yes. Are they gonna be? No. As Carriana said, they pay little, so the turn over rate is probably extreme. They have vet centers and groomers and that's really the only areas of the store I expect anyone to know anything other than where could locate a specific brand of food or where to find the cichlid vitamine salt.


Yes this is correct. Racial profiling has no relavence with a dog. Look I managed the ATL Petsmart Groooming Salon for a few years. In downtown Atlanta you might want to watch the pits you stick your hand out in front of. Now maybe in smallville where there is only a couple of pits they might not have any problems, but it would never work like that in Atlanta. They get so many lawsuits, policys are made regularly as a reaction to events that take place. Petsmart knows good and well they aren't going to put those dogs in with others. Hell I had a pit nail me on the leg there and the owner said she had never done that before.. that's what they always say..  Most employee's at Petsmart know nothing about dogs. They are trained there and they usually don't work there very long. By the time an employee actually figures out what is going on, they have enough experience to know, they want to work else where. Their dog training methods are crap. Their grooming is crap. Their vets are crap. These are all very hard jobs to fill with good experienced employees. So hard in fact they can't supply enough employees for their demand. What happens is they have to teach newbs themselves. Basically the people you talk to at a Petsmart only know what Petsmart tells them(which is a bunch of crap for consumers who are in fantasy land). So lesson here is only buy dog food at Petsmart because their services are crap. :flush:


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## LiiL_L0cz_Red_N0se (Sep 15, 2008)

you know, i went yesterday becuz i used to go to petsmart all the time, and i wanted to see this for myself, so i could punch someone really  but i was talking to the trainers and asked to see the requirements for the doggy day camp, and it didnt say ANYTHING about terrier mixes or pitbulls or bullies or ANYTHING..... i dont know if that is just where ur located, but my petsmart allows them in the classes.....

where are u located 0ni?

i still refuse to go to them just so you know imnot defending petsmart hahaha.


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## NesOne (Feb 7, 2008)

litter mates said:


> if you don't want to do that then get a FISH!!!!:hammer:


:rofl:I have fish, and I neglect them more than my dog, lmao. But it's o.k. though, they can go a couple of days without getting fed :thumbsup:


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## chic4pits (Aug 25, 2008)

gilbe-n-313 said:


> i agree..with sydney..you never know whose going be around to handle the bully breeds..i take mines in to PETSmart sometime..and the workers say ..aww "he's so cute can i touch him, then does he bite..i reply "he has teeth don't he"..lol.that goes to show you how much training these workers really have. I know i not about to go to anybodies dog trying to touch him/her..you never know what the dog-bullybreed or not is thinking..


*rolls laughing* 'he has teeth dont he' ....that's great stuff...gotta memeber that one!

i bring kolby with me sometimes to petsmart workers dont really say much to me, sometimes i'll get a 'aww he's cute' but most of the time nothing..just a doggies biscut that i give him! (despite the cashiers are the ones suppose to do that) i do notice that people will pick their kids up and put them in buggies and some ppl wont even stand by me in line. those are usually the people i look at and ask if they want to meet him. those are the ones i like going after. 
but from the things i've heard about petsmart and their training classes why would anyone want to bring their dog there..exp. a breed as powerful as ours..it's soo clear that the people there , even their 'trainer's' dont know how to handle these dogs, so why would we want to bring our dogs their and trust them with the well being of our family ? just another way the 'MAN' is sticking it to us...
but us owners are like the great city of New Orleans, you'll never hold us down, we got heart and soul, WE WILL STAND! 
Whoohoo! GO ALL BULLIE BREEDS!


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## reddoggy (Jan 31, 2008)

Shoot Nes, I keep African cichlids..... I went 6 months without feeding, thats' what their bodies are built for. Rift lakes have like no life in em' so the fish eat far and few


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