Originally Posted by
Chelle
Due to the overall genetic shittyness of today's rodents, they are having more and more health issues. Ethical breeders are working to fix this, but since all stores get their stock from mills or back-yard-breeders (NO reputable breeder would sell stock to a pet store) then they're just being bred with no regards for health. Most pet stores get their small animals from small animal mills (and I'm sure we all know the horrors of puppy mills) so you can imagine why they're so fragile health-wise. The best way to help the state of today's small animals is to adopt from a rescue/humane society or buy from an ethical, reputable breeder (which are VERY hard to find - for example there are NO ethical rat breeders in all of Canada). If enough people stop buying from mill-supplied pet stores, we could shut down mills entirely (pipe dream, I know, but we all have to start somewhere!).