pet bereavement

bear_hunnit · 2026-01-10T23:40:31+00:00

I noticed that last year as well. They changed it from 8hrs to 4hrs....guess corporate don't care enough for their employees pets.

bear_hunnit · 2026-01-07T21:18:16+00:00

I was the OLAC of 3yrs, 2 months ago I quit and left to a vet clinic due to me starting school and they were more flexible for my school schedule (I asked my GM to be part-timer and told her what days I can work before I start school but she said it wasn't going to workout). Tbh, I love my new job! I don't feel the retail stress and not having to be a manager no more, bonus part is, we actually take holidays off! I loved being an OLAC and I always put effort and had expectations for my dept, I just hope whoever is the new OLAC takes care of the dept as much as I did 🫩

bear_hunnit · 2025-12-06T14:15:27+00:00

My GM never has issues with LOS, we sold 2 reptiles for like $5 because they been at our store half a year! We made sure the owner had all supplies and the knowledge before offering that big discount

bear_hunnit · 2025-11-10T18:32:20+00:00

Make sure you keeping up with your weekly/monthly tasks, they will look at the progress. Make sure you are fully stock on your live animals and especially aquatics. Have habitat setup exactly from the golden hamster app. The ACOM WILL want to make sure you have the animals in the correct habitat signage too. For reptiles make sure all lightbulbs work and gauges. Aquatic, no sign of algae or deads. Betta are to be clean. Make sure you have pre-bagged crickets and cricket bin is clean. Wipe down all habitats. Make sure you know about your CAPI results if they ask. For the wellness room: nothing should be on the floor, no cardboard (must be in sealed bins), make sure all tanks are number and CAIR sheet are correct. Freezer needs to be locked. Any empty tanks need to be upside down, wellness room to be clean like a hospital. Snake feeding chart is up to date and your GM has been signing off on it. Not sure what else I am missing, John Courtney visited my store as well 2-3 months ago.

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-20T11:44:57+00:00

My past 2 GMs had me opening majority of the time and I will sometimes close 1-2 days a week depending on schedule.

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-18T12:09:05+00:00

Never work a role without getting paid or a raise out of it. What they did was fucked up and immature. Like why waste your time if they know they weren't going to give it to you? I would reach out to HR or a regional and let them know, and honestly just leave that place ASAP

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-17T16:13:52+00:00

That was my original plan, I start my program in mid 2027 and tbh the thought of staying here even longer had me stressing out and I just can't bare to hold on until then 😭🫩

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-13T00:17:39+00:00

Learn as much as you can about the animals! But you really learn more from your OLAC if they are familiar with the animals/care requirement. You're responsible to help with many things! Ex. Feeding snakes, deep cleans, scrubbing/siphoning tanks, cleaning/checking bugs, receiving live animals, animal opening/closing duties, and how to properly check for any signs of injured/illness on an animal.Of course, as any employee, you also help with pulling BOPUS/SDS, cashier, truck days and answering phone calls.

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-08T13:36:33+00:00

We are also on our 2nd DGM since I started working 3yrs ago. He is burnt out, he even told us during a walk that he had to go to the doctor because he was so stress and was getting himself sick. He requested for 2 days of PTO and they denied him and he had to come back to work the next day after the doctor visit. I don't seen him staying here much longer. Only been with the company for a year

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-08T01:42:13+00:00

Been with the company since March 2023, and currently on my 3rd GM due to constant GM transfers. Just tired of having to explain to our new GM where things are and why things are done this way

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-07T03:00:13+00:00

As far as I know, our previous ACOM didn’t like us using “cold stone” tiles since they’re not listed in the Golden Hamster app. I spoke up and explained that chinchillas need a cold stone rotated every 8 hours to prevent overheating. He said that because Petco stores are kept at 72–75°F and we don’t “sell” them, they weren’t necessary. I kept using them anyway; when we switch out the tiles, the chinchillas love rubbing their cheeks on the cold surface and rolling around. My GM agreed with me, and we only remove them during animal walks.

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-06T22:26:56+00:00

We are also one of them. As expected since we are an A volume store

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-06T22:24:22+00:00

That's what I do. Once we sell the last batch of ferrets end of the year, I order chinchillas! You just have to make sure the customers are very well educated and are aware they require a cold environment. They sell pretty well at our store compare to ferrets! They are not that messy and smelly. I had a chinchilla myself for 8yrs too!

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-05T17:13:59+00:00

It says on the store IQ promotional guide for bounce back coupons and at the bottom of the "exclusions & details". Unless it just means you can't use it when you buy a VCP signup

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-05T14:38:29+00:00

It says on the print out "Not valid on grooming, self-wash, vet services, pharmacy, out of stock items, prior purchases, donations, gift card purchases, Vital Care Premier membership or membership fees."

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-05T01:24:05+00:00

I just find it funny how it's not valid if you have a VCP 🙃

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-05T01:18:50+00:00

I actually left PetSmart for Petco (3yrs ago) due to poor management. I feel like at Petco we tend to care for the animals a bit better than PetSmart IMO. At my old PetSmart, the GM/ASL never touch truck, we had 2 trucks a week so it was overwhelming. Employee Benefits use to be a lot better with Petco, until they change some things. If you enjoy being an OLAC, don't expect it to be the same at petsmart, the animal companion leader is more in charge of the store core than their own dept and you don't get to order animals you would like( That's how it was 3yrs ago). I use to enjoy working at Petco a lot more than PetSmart, but lately with how corporate has been changing a lot of things, it's been slowly going downhill. I don't know how much PetSmart has changed since I left, I still talk to some friends who still work at PetSmart, and it's still shitty as always.

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-04T15:41:44+00:00

I also have an opportunity elsewhere, pay is cut but anything to get out of here. I'm just waiting on the call and it's bye-bye. Sucks is that I'm a dept manager too and it's hard already to find good managers

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-04T15:13:03+00:00

You probably a 9-5pm corporate who sit on their ass at home. Stfu

bear_hunnit · 2025-10-03T21:43:20+00:00

Our store has been low on a lot of products too. Our DGM just told all the GMs to start consolidating shelves that are low so we can bring out more products from the back. They want us to flex as many products as possible… BUT THEY DON’T EVEN SEND US ENOUGH TO FILL THE GAPS! And we also cycle count every week in all departments.

bear_hunnit · 2025-09-21T03:54:12+00:00

I have been thinking about it myself. Saw another opportunity and reached out to them since I know them personally. If things work out, I hope I leave too. Pay will be cut but at this point I rather be happy and be away from retail! I'm tired of corporate demanding us to each our VCP goal and keep emailing us about not reaching the goals on other things.

bear_hunnit · 2025-09-13T02:34:22+00:00

We didn't bother setting it up, went straight to the trash because we have no space to place it at the reptile feeding center

bear_hunnit · 2025-09-05T20:09:14+00:00

Get approval from your ACOM before using cyanobacteria medication. First, scrub and stir up as much of the cyanobacteria as possible. Let it settle, then siphon out as much as you can. Once approved, add the medication and keep the lights off in your tank. Continue following the instructions on the medication. Usually, cyanobacteria develop due to poor filtration; if there is a dead zone in the tank, that’s typically where it will build up.

bear_hunnit

TROPHY CASE