Aug31
Undercover Photos Reveal Frogs at Brookstone Living in Filth
Posted at 05:16 PM | Permalink
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Comments (46)
Anyone out there know of a gadget that makes rotten retailers stop selling live frogs and snails in tiny prisons? Anyone?
Didn't think so. That's why we're calling on you to drop whatever you're doing right now and tell gadget magnate Brookstone to stop selling Frog-O-Spheres ASAP!
Despite complaint after complaint, Brookstone—a company that apparently has a heart of stone—is continuing to "package" frogs and snails together in pitiful plastic prisons and sell them to customers who don't have a clue about how to take care of these extremely delicate animals.
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A distraught Brookstone employee has sent us undercover photos and horrifying details confirming that frogs and snails are sold with little regard for who will care for them:
"Most parents will exclaim right in front of me that they are not going to help the child to care for these living creatures. Then when I offer to sell them the additional food they will tell me flat out that the frogs won't live that long. It kills me that these frogs that can live to be 15 years old [won't] even last 1 year as a pet in a controlled [environment]."
The whistleblower went on to describe how animals are forced to languish and suffer on Brookstone's shelves without any veterinary care:
"We did have a frog that had a growth on its bottom. We eventually transferred that aquarium to the stock room and the frog died. No vet was called …. There is absolutely no policy or [veterinary] contact in my store for sick frogs. … [W]hen they do die we are told to "flush" them. … The snails die even more frequently. We have a bag full of over 15 snails that have died in the last month."
But, hey, no worries—if Kermit dies before his 30-day warranty is up, Brookstone will replace him for free! So long as you have your receipt, just flush and replace.
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Let Brookstone know that these frogs aren't just a drop in the bucket. Please take action now!
Posted by Amy Elizabeth
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Comments
Brookstone... this is pure, blatant cruelty.
& This is destroying your reputation...
Posted by: david | August 31, 2009 06:03 PM
Things like this make me proud to support PETA.
Posted by: Jacob | August 31, 2009 06:18 PM
Questionable "evidence" yet again PETA.
Posted by: Mel | August 31, 2009 06:22 PM
This atrocious irreverence for the lives and welfare of frogs is egregious, ungodly and sinful.
Posted by: Brien Comerford | August 31, 2009 08:34 PM
Omg how sad
Posted by: Harley | August 31, 2009 10:32 PM
Please take a look at the horrible conditions these poor frogs have to endure day after day, please do something about it
Posted by: sheila gersmann | August 31, 2009 10:36 PM
I am done with brookstone
Posted by: roxnne | September 1, 2009 02:41 AM
That is totally disgusting.
Brookstones needs shut down.
I would be happy if they never opened another store again.
Living creatures are not disposable commodities, these people are in a very unheathy state of mind.
Posted by: ava | September 1, 2009 08:12 AM
I would give ANYTHING to make sure these animals and all animals will NEVER suffer again!
Posted by: Jenny | September 1, 2009 01:26 PM
If it doesn't work like it's supposed to, it shouldn't be on shelves anyway.
Posted by: Edward | September 1, 2009 02:22 PM
If a parent told his child in front of me that they were not going to help the child care for his new pet, I would tell the parent I am not going to sell them the Frog-O-Sphere and advise them to leave the store. If I got fired for that I at least would have no part in the killing of a defenseless creature.
Posted by: Rev. Meg Schramm | September 1, 2009 04:25 PM
This is blatant cruelty that cant go unpunished
Posted by: Ries | September 1, 2009 04:43 PM
The new JCPenney Christmas catalog is also selling some sort of frog terrarium as well.
Posted by: Kelley | September 1, 2009 07:13 PM
everything is blatant cruelty according to PETA. People buy animals from pet stores everyday. Next thing you know its going to be cruelty to feed your snake a mouse... Animals live then die... so do people... thats what life is.
Posted by: Mike | September 1, 2009 08:09 PM
The Paper Store (25 locations in Eastern MA) has a huge Hallmark sign but Hallmark says they can't tell them what to sell or what not to sell! They carry stacks of horrible small plastic cubes with African dwarf frogs enclosed inside them and it's supposed to be a teaching tool along with the book that goes with it.
All it teaches is that animals are ours to do with as we please! I have written to the store and have gone twice to see if they have stopped selling them. They have not. I told them I love the store (I do!) but will not come back until they stop the disgusting act of animal cruelty. My 4 year old grand-daughter politely told them also. My "guess" is that Hallmark could influence them. I told HM that I wouldn't be buying any of their cards ANYWHERE.
Posted by: Mary DeSimone | September 1, 2009 09:06 PM
I actually have a frog o sphere but i actually take care of my frogs and snail.
Posted by: Jade | September 1, 2009 10:58 PM
mike people and animals live and die..its life.......yes it is life that we all die, its the circle of life, but that doesnt mean we have to die by cruelty and the same goes for animals they shouldnt die like this, so your saying if your wife and kids die at the hands of a cruel murderer then your fine with that because 'its life' 'they'll die at some point anyway'?? dont be so ignorant. and yet again mel surprise surprise not enough 'evidence'.. what do you want, people to knock on your door and invite u to witness some cruel act before you belive anything? there are many people who have seen these frogs and snails and theres photographic evidence but yet its 'questionable', why dont u get a job working undercover at these horrific places if thats what its gonna take for you to be convinced, every single video and photo on here you say is 'questionable' what do you want..one of the workers holding a big sign above the tank saying 'yes i work here and yes we are cruel' c'mon.
Posted by: emma | September 2, 2009 10:22 AM
If you went into a pet store and decided that you were going to buy ANY pet for whatever reason it is a give-in that you should be educated about the pet your interested in. If it dies for any reason other then neglect or ignorance due to the owner... the yes thats life. But If when you were a child and your mother or father were too stupid to reproduce and didnt know how to feed you or take care of you and you died because of this... that is ignorance & cruelty. Why wouldnt the same morals apply to having a pet? Because humans have the power over a defenseless animal or amphibian which cannot speak for itself. Therefor If your this person and things commonly go bad for you... I would hope you believed in Karma. Its simple really. Educate yourself.
Posted by: Melissa | September 2, 2009 02:42 PM
pet stores everywhere do the same thing to the poor fish that they sell. my sister and I wanted to look at the fish and the employee there told us that if we bought any and they died within six weeks we could get new ones for free. it was really sad.
Posted by: Juliana | September 2, 2009 04:03 PM
To the girl who said "questionable evidence".. what more evidence do you need? You would have to be a complete moron not to know that these things happen all the time in MANY stores. Plus, if you are so mistrusting of PETA's evidence then do yourself and everyone else a favor and keep your idiotic comments to yourself and do something else with your time.
Posted by: Melissa | September 2, 2009 04:30 PM
Why can't Brookstone just stick to selling GADGETS, and not live animals?! From what I can tell through the pictures, it looks like they are kept in just plastic containers filled with water with nothing for them to climb on to breathe. Frogs are air breathers and they cannot be in water forever. Get a clue, Brookstone! Jeez!
Posted by: Kermit | September 2, 2009 07:27 PM
In defense of Mike, comparing human lives to snails is ludricrous.
Mary, one company can't tell another company what to sell. Wal-Mart can't tell what Pizza Hut what to sell. With your method, you would be boycotting all supermarkets because they sell meat.
Posted by: Edward | September 2, 2009 08:59 PM
Hello, i actually recently purchased these frogs at brookstone and have been taking care of them as best to my knowledge. After reading this, I really want to make sure they have everything they need to be happy. Does anybody know what the ideal tank size is for the two frogs?
Posted by: Stephanie | September 3, 2009 03:25 AM
To those whom are challenging Mel in regard to "questionable evidence," PETA mentioned in a blog a week ago from this blog that Brookstone was issued a cease and desist.
The story is - dated Aug. 24 - "Brookstone In Trouble for Running Illegal Pet Shops." Easy to find, and PETA includes a link to the citation
Ergo - she does have a logical reason to question it. There could be some that are breaking the rules still - however, no business in their right mind would continue to break a cease and desist, which brings fines and other issues that could effectively shut down a store.
Posted by: Jade | September 3, 2009 02:02 PM
Please honor all living creatures because all life is sacred and we're all connected to the to one life force which is conscious spiritual energy. Love is the way, kindness, respect, and always, zero cruelty.
Posted by: Sue Trayling | September 3, 2009 07:24 PM
These people are sick! To treat any living being in this way is outrageous, & I am mad as hell. They have to be stopped!
Posted by: Felicity Brach | September 3, 2009 09:54 PM
Brookstone used to be a classy place, now it's joke.
Posted by: Pamela Ernest | September 4, 2009 09:25 AM
I am a vegetarian because I could not knowingly harm others, be they human or non human because it would be in my interest to do so. Those of an opposite attitude, such as Brookstone, are by and large, a perennial danger to all sentient life. I have written this to inspire others to embrace a concept that may conduce to a less painful, and deadly world.
J.B.Suconik
Posted by: Jack Suconik | September 4, 2009 10:14 AM
Right on Melissa, thank you for that.
Jade, the NJ cease and desist letters had absolutely nothing to do with this--those stores were breaking a state law. This is from a whistleblower at presumably a completely different store, so you're comparing apples and oranges and not making much sense. As for the always skeptical Mel, PETA owes it to the animals and this brave employee to show the public what is happening, and no one really cares what you think of the evidence.
Posted by: Elphaba | September 4, 2009 10:25 AM
Go to their web site and post a "review" on how cruel and NOT necessary this is. They have a letter from Philip Roizin, President and CEO, saying they will continue to sell these frogs & they have a specialist in each store! Ha ha ha, right.....sure they do....a frog in a plastic prison, is NOT a "pet".
Posted by: Christine Proden | September 4, 2009 12:57 PM
Stephanie - The rule of thumb is at least 10 gallons per frog. You most likely want at least a 20 gallon tank and you will need to change the water quite often. I had one (not from Brookstone) in a 20 gallon tank and the water needed to be changed every week to ten days and this was with a filter.
Posted by: Erin | September 5, 2009 01:43 PM
So many people have no regard to other living beings. It's disturbing and sickening. Juliana is right, that is the policy at most pet stores, to replace a fish that dies within 30 days of purchase. I have heard terrible things that pet store owners train their staff to do with sick fish. They put them in the freezer or cut their heads off. They also put sick birds in the freezer. If the employee refuses to do it, the owner will do it himself. They don't make much money from selling these little animals so they treat them like garbage. If you take a dead fish back to them, they'll drop him or her in the trash. Only very rarely would you find a pet store worker who cares enough to try to save a sick fish, and they would have to take the fish home to do it, not leave him or her at the store for customers to see. I wouldn't buy anything from most of the pet stores here, or from anyone who can be so cruel to these little animals.
Posted by: Jennifer Ki | September 8, 2009 06:10 PM
Yes, isn't it easy for some people to pull the covers over their own eyes and say "oh, I don't see any cruelty." It's much easier to deny isn't it, than get away from your video games and TV and actually do something to make the world a better place. All living things deserve to be treated with respect. No living thing deserves cruelty. That simple enough for ya? If it isn't, then this isn't the forum for you.
Posted by: Laurie | September 9, 2009 12:33 AM
Is this the best we can do? use animals as novelty items and ignore their suffering and eventual death in the name of profit? this MUST stop! boycott this store not now but going forward until it goes under. Sure people will loose their jobs but if your job is to torture animals with a slow death what more should you expect?
Posted by: Tyler | September 9, 2009 07:46 AM
Whatever happened to compassion for ALL living things? Frogs are a major part of the chain of life, and they are becoming extinct at a fast rate. Eventually it will be us, we really need to think about what is going on. Thanks PETA for doing your job, and having a voice for the ones that dont.
Posted by: Tanya | September 9, 2009 09:00 AM
that's a shame...
I wish I could go buy them up and come back every day and say it died to get a new one... but they prob wouldn't ever sell out... just keep stocking... I'm sad.
Posted by: L | September 9, 2009 11:41 AM
Most people that work in the retail stores for Brookstone are either completely apathetic about these frogs or extremely disgusted. I actually gave my notice when these frogs came in because I didn't believe that Brookstone should be selling them. It is a store meant for specialty electronics and the random gift. Not a pet store.
I digress. The frogs in the store are kept in the aquariums they are sold in. When they are in the back, they are in a rather cool area, but the ones on display at the front of the store are subject to the heat that radiates from the lights within the shadowboxes they are displayed in.
And those frogs are the lucky ones! Each store was given a supply of ten "back up frogs" to be placed in the aquariums in the event of a death. These ten frogs are kept in one tank, not much bigger than the ones you see in the store.
Furthermore, they are only fed two pellets per frog, two days a week. Any person that actually owns an African dwarf frog will tell you that these frogs can and will happily consume more. Brookstone's logic seems to be that if they do not eat more, they will not outgrow the tiny aquarium they are sold in.
Brookstone policy requires one person in management to be designated the "Frog Specialist." They do not undergo any type of special training. All employees are "trained" from a handbook that doesn't even fill up a one-inch binder.
It's a sad predicament for these frogs, considering that they can also be shipped from the warehouse! Also, the higher volume stores may eventually sell out of these frogs, but what happens to the frogs that are left at the lower volume stores? They will probably just be left to die and then flushed down the toilet, per the Handbook's guidelines.
Unfortunately, I don't think Brookstone will see the error of their ways any time soon.
Posted by: Brookstone Employee | September 11, 2009 03:24 PM
To Kermit....The fact that the frogs are in a bucket of water "with nothing to climb onto to breathe" is the least of their worries. African dwarf frogs are actually completely aquatic. They will swim to the surface of the water to take a breath of air, but other than that, they are bottom-feeders and don't need a surface to climb onto. They DO like caves and rocks and stuff to hide under, though.
Stephanie and Erin....Actually, the rule of thumb for most fish and frogs is that you want a gallon of water for every inch of fully-grown animal. I have my two frogs in a three-gallon tank with no filter and they are doing well. I alternate between replacing half the water and changing the entire tank every 4-5 days. Make sure you are using a water conditioner to take chlorine and harmful chemicals out of tap water! Also, if you do have a filter, make sure the frogs can't get stuck in the tube/grate...they are small enough for accidents to happen, I have seen frogs get limbs caught in a filter grate.
Posted by: Nicole | September 19, 2009 11:38 PM
FWIW, we had to go through a very strict training in order to carry the frogs at my store. We were not allowed to begin selling until receiving a permit from the state and until we had a vet on call for their care.
The direction was never to keep the "extra" frogs in a tank like that, so whoever was taking the time to take the pictures perhaps should have been taking the time to learn how to properly care for these animals and better set them up in the tanks.
Also, instead of protesting brookstone for carrying these items, perhaps your efforts could be better served protesting the congo where their natural environment has been attacked?
Posted by: Sarah | September 20, 2009 11:40 PM
O_O I saw this in the store the other day! I questioned it and wondered "Does PETA know? They can't be serious. This is sick!" I made a bit of a ruckus.
I'm glad there's people who are aware. I never bought from them, and I hope anyone who has stops.
There's some people with lower IQ's than those frogs and they're given licenses, not small, plastic confinements.
Posted by: Jenith | September 29, 2009 06:50 PM
I am going to tell everyone I meet or know not to shop at this store. The employees also need to be proactive in asking the management to withdraw these tiny creatures from the shelves and stop stocking them. Brookstones is not a pet store and if it were it would be regulated but unfortunately cruelty prevails in the least unexpected places and people continue to allow it to go on.Shame on you the management and the staff.
Posted by: carol frayne | November 5, 2009 02:12 PM
There is something nasty about any human saying he or she "owns" this or that animal, bird, fish etc. Who are we to buy and sell as if our worldly companions are commodity items.
The least we can do is make the captive animal as comfortable and well as possible once it has been bred or hoisted out of its natural habitat and this for the rest of its life.
Posted by: Alison | November 5, 2009 02:13 PM
Tesco Hymall in China has gone one better with live turtles and frogs for sale as food, like from a fish market, to be killed instore or at home by whatever means at the customers' disposal.Storage is bad and according to care for the wild endangered turtles used to top up the farms'gene pool are under threat of extinction. But how did these frog o sphere retailers ever get a trading license ?
Posted by: neville | November 6, 2009 03:33 PM
What are these people thinking??????
Posted by: Imara | November 7, 2009 05:39 AM
stop!
immediately!!!
Posted by: stefanie Baehr | November 9, 2009 06:15 AM
help theirs
Posted by: jennifer matonti | November 9, 2009 09:37 AM