This is good to know, thanks for the heads up! We don't have a Petco here (only a Petsmart) however we were out of town on Saturday and I went into a few different Petco's just to look around and I bought something (well, several things actually LOL) and need to take one thing back that was $20 (whenever we go back) - but thankfully it was NOT a clearance item, so I BETTER be in the clear as I do have my receipt! :rolleyes:

That really is such a crock that they told you that no place excepts returns on clearance items. BULL. :rolleyes: I have returned clearance items before at more than one store with no problems what-so-ever :rolleyes:

I will say that I do like alot of Petco's ITEMS better (they have the better dog food brands, better shampoo's and better treats in some cases) than Petsmart does....HOWEVER, Petsmart always seems soooo much cleaner and so much neater. Every single time I go into a Petco it is FILTHY and such a MESS! Whoever is supposed to straighten up those stores never does their job it seems :rolleyes: Geez. By the time I am done and ready to leave my hands just feel so disgusting and filthy and dirty (thank goodness I keep Purell in my purse and in my car! :D It's better than nothing in a pinch, and it least it kills 99.9% of germs - LOL!)

Oh and not to mention - when I was in one of the Petco's on Saturday I went into the bathroom to wash my hands because when I picked up a bottle of shampoo it was all nasty and left shampoo all over my hands (just another example of how the stuff in the store is always so cruddy :rolleyes:) and anyway, when I walked into the bathroom I almost puked. :eek: It was D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G!!! And...they didn't even have 2 separate bathrooms for men and women...and right before I walked in some guy walked out...and he left the toilet seat up - OMG!! SOOOO GROSS!!!! :eek:

I have taken back clearance clothes to Petco before. I've never had a single problem.

I really like the petco by my house. They are always friendly, Ive never had a problem returning something and its clean. I go there all the time

Wow, it looks like we have the worst Petco of all here. I see that most of the others seem to take returns on clearance items. That stinks that mine doesn't. I have noticed that the people that work in our Petco aren't very friendly anymore. The people that worked there a couple of years ago went out of their way to come greet Daisy and Teddy as soon as we walked in the store and they knew them by name. The nice ones are gone now and the new ones seem rude and act like they don't care if you shop there or not.

I have noticed that the store is filthy too. The doggie beds are covered in filth where they have been set or dropped on the floor. Also when clothing hits the floor it is filthy. I wish they would clean their floors. It's too bad. I don't think I will be shopping there anymore.

Thanks for the heads-up! I drove to PetCo this evening to buy Prada some clearance outfits but they were closed. Luckily I guess. I'll definitely be taking her with me if we go. I've never been there, but I don't know if I want to if they're going to be snobs. Who could work at a pet store and not be stoked about all the cute pups all the time?!

I just recently bought some clearance items from Petco in NYC and made sure that it could be returned since I had to try the clothes on Orion first to make sure it fits. In any case, half the clothes fit and the other half was returned. I had no problems at all returning the item. However, it did take a long time since their register is completely antiquated. They really need to update their system like what they have in Target.

Also check the back of the receipt to see what their return policy is. Normally if the clearance items are indeed not returnable, usually they will stamp or write the word "final sale" on it. If you plan to go back again, I would try to return it again. If they refuse, tell them that according to the receipt you are allowed to return it...just make sure that the tags is still on the item. Good luck!

I also don't like Petco everytime i"m there no one is around to help with any questions or to carry heavy bag of dog food.

I prefer Petsmart - much friendlier and quick to help out. Apple and I love going just to hang out and read doggie books LOL (not that I don't have a life but trying to socialize her more :D)

Omg I know what you mean! I refuse to buy any toys from out PetCo again. Have you ever paid attention to the crud at the edges of their shelves? Omg, it's sooooo gross. Not to mention, ours always smells SO BAD. Like, I understand it's a store where you bring your pets in and stuff but ooooooh goodness, my boyfriend almost got sick from it the last time we were there!

I shop at the Petco by me all of the time. It's the only place that I know of that carries the DVP Natural Balance. Everyone seems nice and the store is always clean. I will say that I have made some purchases off of their clearance bin in the past and they were SMOKIN deals. Mostly out of season outfits but I paid literally pennies on the dollar. :cool: Best of all one of the cashiers have a yorkie rescue that I get to chat with her about which of course makes the trip even better! Whenever I go, I put all three of mine into the shopping cart on a blanket like LadyJane does and we are the hit of the store :D I was told by my vet that you need to be careful in pet stores because they can pick up illnesses from the floors there. :eek: You should NEVER bring a puppy into a Petco, Petsmart or for that matter a dog park until they are fully vaccinated. PARVO can live for a very long time on hard surfaces and can kill a puppy.

I made a comment about my Petco experience online and this is part of the reply I received...

"...Thank you for contacting PETCO regarding your concern with our store in your area. We are sorry to hear about your recent experience and see your frustration.

What is listed there is our online policy only. I do apologize if this was not clearly noted to you. However, going forward there are always NO RETURNS ON CLEARANCE items at our stores...."

I mentioned to them that the policy they show online does not say you can't return clearance merchandise. I don't understand why my Petco seems to be the only one refusing to take returns on clearance merchandise. They told me they were sending me a $10 gift card for the misunderstanding, which is $2 more than my purchase was for. I also have a coupon for $5 off of a $25 purchase on Valentines Day, so I will go and make my last purchase on that day with my gift card and coupon.

I have also noticed the bad smell in most of the Petco's I have been in. And also they keep the stores ungodly hot in this area. It always feels so stuffy and hot in there. It's too bad because as others have mentioned they sell some good food there.

Omg, no...but I will definitely pay attention to that next time I am in there! It doesn't surprise me though! :rolleyes: That is so disgusting! :thumbdown

Edited to add (for the other posters in this thread): I am not saying that ALL Petco's all over the US are like this, LOL....but all the ones that *I* have been to are....and it's always such a let down, cause alot of their products, IMO, are better than Petsmart's.

Good to know! I prefer PetSmart too.

I do not like the petco up here as well, the store is just yucky feeling.