Can I get a gecko from petco?

[Indecisive]

I recently lost my first gecko to MBD, I only had her for five days and by the 3rd day she severely fractured and dislocated her front leg, she obviously had to be put down.



I miss her terribly and since I can't have her back, I've been looking for gecko breeders and reptile stores. I live in the midwest so hardly any breeders and I'm only 17 so I can't just drive hours away and get my gecko. All the reptile stores I've checked out so far have been less than satisfactory and I'm stuck between ordering online and going to Petco. I'm worried about several things from both though.

For Petco I'd be able to specifically choose which gecko I'd like and examine it but I still run a larger risk of disease due to neglect and being enclosed with all the other geckos. Would I be able to somehow kinda reverse the effects of MBD if it's just starting and give her/him a bunch of calcium and phosphorus? Is there a way to physically see early mouth rot or MBD? Basically I'm worried about it's health and if I can actively do anything for it.

For ordering online I could get my gecko from a breeder but I'm worried the stress of shipping will do to the gecko and the condition of its shipping box.

Any good breeders who ship?
Any way to reverse diseases in the beginning stages?


RIP pippa ):

 

[dolphin_ac]

Hi,
I live in Canada, but I assume Petco is like a PetSmart here. I didn't want to buy a gecko from a Petsmart, because of fear of neglect and transmission of diseases. I ordered a gecko from a breeder online, after doing a lot of research of breeders and reviews. I felt they really took care of their animals, and I was able to contact them even after I received the gecko whenever I had a concern. Whenever I talked to a person at Petsmart, they didn't really know about the reptiles they were selling. Mine was 6 months old when I bought him, and he already had a nice fat tail, which was reassuring. I bought from The Urban Reptile (theurbanreptile.com) and they ship to the U.S. as well. If they don't ship to your area, prehaps they can give you more information. Good luck!

 

[kholtme]

You have to option to buy from a petco, but if i were you I would not. Ive given myself a rule that i will never buy a live animal from a chain pet store unless its a fish, but i dont really care about fish haha. If you could find a local pet store that is self owned and can confirm they take care of all their animals that would be better than petco. Be aware that some self owned pet stores still do not take good care of their animals. Ordering from a good breeder online would be much better than petco. Shipping cost can be a little more than i prefer, but that money would be going towards knowing your gecko is healthy and a lot less likely to have health issues. Also from an online breeder that shipping cost is a lot less money than a vet cost you will likely encounter with a petco gecko. It sickens me to see the leopard geckos at my petco and petsmart.

Try using craigslist to find breeders near you, but be aware many craigslist post are of people trying to get rid of their gecko that was not taken care of properly, prepare yourself that you will see geckos in bad shape, and unless you want to lose another gecko due to illness i would not try to save one of these geckos.

What ever you do, I would not buy from petco.

 

[majahawt]

Agree with kholtme, some private pet stores are excellent. There's one in my area that we stop by all the time (reptile store) and they always take good care of their animals. We got our gargoyle from them :3 They're definitely set up better than in the big chain pet store, where they keep the beardies on sand, etc.

 

[LEOPARD1]

Its all been said. I used to manage a Chain Pet Store and I was amazed when I started how their animals are kept ( at least in Nebraska I had a manager at Petco tell me sand was the required substrate for LG's) I lived in Kansas City at the time and ovethauled all the Reptiles and gladly took a rip from the GM when she did a walk through. I saw so many shipments come in, I mean we were tossing out upwrds of 5-10 LG's a week during the Winter order and about the same with the baby Red-Tail Boas (they were our money makers).

Order from a Breeder and pat yourself on the back for not lining the pockets of murderers.

 

[smpalesh]

Another vote here for the Urban Reptile. We got our gecko, Topaz, from them in January and it was a great experience. Our gecko is healthy and doing well and we are happy to not support big chain pet stores.

 

[Aimless]

shipping generally runs around $50. it can seem pricey when weighed against the overall cost of the animal, but when you consider the fact that a properly cared for leo can live to 20 years or longer, it just makes good sense to spend a little more in the beginning for a healthy animal that comes with good support.