Rainforest Pets — Local services in League City

SO here’s my story... I came here originally to buy materials for my dart frogs tank that I was planning on building, but after seeing how they had their tanks set up inside the store, I asked one of their workers if they could build me a custom one which they said they could, and gave me a reasonable price (MUCH lower than what I expected). They asked for what breed my dart frog was ( I think because certain types of frogs require different set ups. If they are usually on the floor, tree climbers, etc.? + certain types of plants, moss, soil etc.?) SO, I gave them all the info and dropped my tank off and within a couple days it was ready. Let me tell you, when I saw this terrarium they built me! I was SHOCKED! I had ideas of how I wanted it to look by surfing Pinterest, but this completely blew it out of the water. It looks like they took a chunk out of nature and placed it into a Zoo Med tank, and EVERYTHING was natural, all the plants, the wood, the rocks. I was extremely impressed by how real and neat they made it look. It really looks like art instead of an amphibian terrarium. Like something out of the Houston zoo ( but better). I can’t even comprehend how they built it (and I watched a LOT of YouTube tutorials) because all the foliage is layered in such a way where it’s all holding itself together, along with secret pathways and caves my frog can go through. They also designed it in such a way where there is a small pool of water in the center of the tank (shown in picture). They even put little insects which I believe are there to clean up the tank and fertilize the soil? It’s pretty much self sustaining! Keep in mind, I didn’t ask for any of this because frankly I don’t know much about these types of things (I’m a beginner) but I am sure glad they went all out with it! After taking delivery I kept contact with the Facebook page and they gave me a LOT of tips on upkeeping and keeping my frog happy.

Rainforest pets truly cares about what they do, there’s a level of detail and professionalism in their work that stems from passion rather than profit.

Edit: the word I was looking for was ECOSYSTEM, they build me an ECOSYSTEM...

We purchased a Sulcata Tortoise hatchling that ultimately died about one month later due to respiratory infection. I don't fault the store for this. Our vet said its hard to spot...

What I take issue with is the information given to us concerning the care of Sulcata's by the staff members. I joined a tortoise forum and after a few days talking with expert breeders across the nation, I quickly realized we were given incorrect care instructions. They DO NOT like dry conditions. Hatchlings need a minimum 4 foot by 8 foot ENCLOSURE, which is huge for most homes. Humidity needs to be constantly maintained as well as temp. The tortoise tables are not good for these guys. Also, CFL bulbs used for the UVB needs of the tortoise, will blind the tortoise. If you are shown pictures of one of the staff member's tortoise, notice the pyramiding of the shell...That is metabolic bone disease and its due to the incorrect, dry climate approach to raising these tortoises that the staff members of the store push. Also, the staff is big to tell you the tortoises can eat vegetables and fruit. Fruit kills the stomach bacteria needed to break down the tortoise diet of grass, just plain old grass is all they need. Their digestive system is destroyed with grocery store produce (do your research). Bottom line is, if you want a healthy tortoise with minimal to no shell pyramiding, be ready to spend $$$ on everything you need to responsibly raise one of these. Our vet told us all the money and care in the world couldn't save ours, but we sure did try and I was only a few bucks short of "all the money in the world" for this thing...

If you love these tortoises, do them one better by not feeding this industry that promotes the mishandling of them. In fact, you shouldnt have any wild animals. Our species spent a many millenniums focusing on breeding animals of true value. We have great dogs and cats needing homes, who are meant to be pets to people. Animals that aren't native shouldn't be here, but that's another debate.The staff was friendly and "helpful" but I'd argue they should research what they are...

Enjoyed the place so much I reactivated an ancient google account so I could help spread the word of their helpfulness. I had a 4yr old and a 18mo old tag along with me in an effort to give mom some deserved "me" time after I got off work and decided to stop in so the boys could see some neat creatures.All of the animals appear to be alert and active which to me shows that the place takes care to give each unique pet (and dang they have some unique pets) the proper environment to thrive. I am a noobie freshwater aquascape fan and freshwater shrimp are my recent obsession. This place has a variety of unique shrimp far beyond the typical cherry or ghost (to be fair I did buy the last of the coolest). The water plants are healthy and green or colorfully if applicable. I couldn't agree less with a few of the comments about high prices that I have read bin past post (just a few unreasonable people but still...) They are at least 10% lower on the items I have been buying for my tanks at the larger stores. And it isn't fair to compare a local shop to Amazon pricing and the buying power that an internation firm would have that allows stupid low prices at time to time (and long delivery and uncertainty of a healthy live animal). Besides Amazon doesn't give advice or the same joy to the face of my young boys this place gave today. So please be realistic when comparing locals to the mighty Amazon. We went in today to kill time and maybe buy an item or two. But left with a bag full of items I've been searching weeks for. My only regret about our pop-in visit today is that I didn't get the name of the staff so I could give a proper thank you in this post. Again they are wonderful and uber helpful. They even got my son to eat cookies made from crickets, he loved them. We will...