I have been keeping both betta fish and hermit crabs for years. I only buy them from places where I know they are not wild-source, because I believe taking creatures out of the wild for our enjoyment is wrong. But that's a whole other topic. I have been to multiple pet shops over the years in different places and 99% of them promote and sell supplies for both bettas and hermits that are so bad for them. It's absolutely disgusting and ridiculous that these people who claim to have knowledge of and care for pets, have neither!

They sell plastic plants and decorations that have rough edges for betta fish. These will harm their fins, sometimes tearing them in such a way that will cause the fish to die from either shock or a bacterial infection. They also sell tons of different types of bowls for them, claiming they're perfectly fine in a tiny bowl where they can barely swim when it's recommended to have at least 1.5 gallons with filtration and sometimes a heater for a single fish! For hermit crabs, they have cages made of wire mesh - hermit crabs require an 80% humidity level to breathe. Putting them in such a contraption basically causes them to suffocate and die slowly. And yet companies that claim to care about animals, companies who claim to know wtf they're doing keep promoting these things!

I know companies are 'all about the profit margin' but for fuck's sake, they're supposed to care about animals! It's absolutely horrendous the way they are. I've half a mind to write the heads of these companies and tell them that what they're doing is disgusting, but I don't think it would do any good. And in the meantime, you have people buying pets and getting 'advice' from people at the pet stores who recommend these things and they go home and their pet dies a week later and they wonder why! It just pisses me off to such a point that I start raging...on the internet...which basically does fucking nothing!!

screams and cries and tears hair out

I do agree with most of what you said, but I will add that filters for bettas aren't always a good idea. They actually prefer still water, and the water movement created by a filter can cause them a lot of stress. If you're going to put a filter on a betta tank, make sure it's on a low-flowing setting (if it has that option), or is designed for a smaller tank than the one it's on.

So, while with most fish you never want to change too much of the water all at once, and certainly not frequently (for example, I only ever do a 25% water change once a month on my 30g tank) - bettas actually benefit with less filtration and more water changes compared to other fish (though you still never want to change all of it at once; doing so will strip out all of the good bacteria that breaks down waste/uneaten food).

And, yes, pet stores can be frustrating - even their employees can be misinformed if they didn't care to educate themselves. That being said, this is not always the case. I worked in the pet care department of a pet store for 5 years; I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I did learn quite a bit, and if I were approached or noticed someone looking at/considering purchasing an item I knew to be hazardous to the animal they were intending it for, I would do my best to educate them and steer them in the right direction (and any of my coworkers that lasted more than a month would do the same). Most customers would be grateful, some would be stubborn and insist they knew better - in any case, I did try (and yes, I was definitely allowed to deny live animal sales if I thought they would be irresponsible pet owners =P).

I don't know much about fish, but seeing the reptiles in such tiny little square tanks in pet stores makes me sad. ;^; There's always so many in such a small space too.

Same with the chinchillas. They're not meant to be in that small of a place. :c

Yes, I suppose I should have added that fact about the filters. There's also a fix for filters that don't have a low-flow setting, where you just put a fish-safe plastic mesh sort of thing on the bottom of the filter tube where the gunk gets sucked in, so that if the fish gets too close, it won't hurt him. I'm happy to hear there's at least one well-informed pet store employee out there though!

Right? I really hate that too. It makes people think 'well if they're ALL living like that together, ONE will be perfectly fine in that size tank!' when really, even a single creature of whatever species should have something twice or three times the size of the store tanks at least. D'aaww, chinchillafluffs. ^_^ The local pet store in my town actually takes really good care of their chinchillas - they have them in really big cages with hidey holes and things. I'd love to have one, but my mom equates them with rats, so it's a no-go for my house.

I hate going into pet stores for this reason. .-. I get really mad when I see the way the betas and goldfish are kept and because the staff almost always perpetuate the myths about them.

I feel your pain. I am such an animal lover and have done research on so many different species from all angles. People are easily convinced nowadays, no one goes out and does their own thing. But anyways I had no idea about this, I have few knowledge on betta and hermies now yay.~ x3 If you got an army it might bring about awareness but unfortunately not many people take these things seriously, because apparently that new phone is so much more important. -.-