I do not like writing negative reviews but I think it's necessary for people to be warned about this place. Immediately after entering the store I was assaulted with the pungent odor of feces, urine, and a chemical smell I can only describe as ammonia. Genuinely the smell made me nauseous and I still cannot put my finger on the exact cause of the odor. I had seen a previous review by a pregnant woman and disregarded it, thinking maybe it was just a sensitivity due to pregnancy. No, this place smells like absolute death. It stuck to my hair, my clothes, and all the items I purchased. I bought $200 worth of items for a snake tank, all of which were soaked with the odor. I attempted to hose the items down, sprayed them with heavy chemicals, and let them air outside for 4 days. The smell stuck to everything despite the intense chemical treatments and my hardest efforts. My receipt let me know everything was final sale and nonrefundable, something I wish I would have been told prior to purchasing. However, I did call the store to tell them I cannot use the items. I was told I would not get a refund, but I said I would like to return them anyways, otherwise I would just throw everything away which felt wasteful. They were understanding and sweet, giving me a $50-$75 store credit and a sealed bag of bedding for my troubles. Although the bag itself smelled, thankfully the bedding was not penetrated by the odor due to being completely airtight and sealed. I don't think I will be returning to use the store credit but I'm grateful for the efforts made my the staff. I did appreciate that and I know it is not the worker's fault. I feel absolutely horrible for the employees working in these conditions. On both occasions of visiting (initial purchase and returning the items) all of the employees I spoke to were so kind and helpful to me - that is the ONLY reason I give this place 2 stars. I would seriously never recommend this establishment to anyone I liked. read more

They are definitely worth a revisit. New management and staff are helpful and considerate. When it comes to your reptile care, they will not steer you wrong. read more

I haven't came here in a while due to the previous experiences I had with the old management and employees. I came in today and they are under new management and have new employees that are extremely welcoming and kind. They are very knowledgeable and even told me some tips and tricks about when you get an animal from any other pet stores and even expose. I will definitely keep doing business with them and will get feeders and who knows maybe I'll add another reptile to my family when the time is right for me. Over all had a great experience today and all the animals were very health and happy. Love what they're doing and how well the animals are being taken care of. read more

This is the best store to go to as we just went there, and they were closed but they open for us and helped us with a heat blanket for our tortoise as we just built him a new cage and he was cold and we didnt want him to die please go here and give them your business very helpful and friendly thank you read more

as soon as we approached the store I smelled the pungent smell or urine and feces. Upon opening the door youre Blasted in the face and overcome with it. I'm pregnant, and was unable to remain in the store While my kids looked. I rushed out to the dollar general and had to throw up. My kids and husband looked around for a bit. Seeing many malnourished animals, among their dirty enclosures and cages. When my family left I could smell the store on them. All the kids coats had to thrown directly in the washer and the kids showered right away I've never smelled a smell so strong, and I've never had a smell follow me the way this smell did. the odor absorbs into hair and fabric and remains so potent. my family was in the store about 20 minutes. These animals are abused in every way. If humans can't stand it I feel horrible for them in their cages unable to escape their waste. I have dogs, cats and a snake. Been to many pet stores and zoos. Never in my life have I encountered such a neglectful environment. read more

Under New ownership - We made a visit there recently because we were looking to get a pet snake. We met Nate and he was very knowledgeable and kind, He gave us alot of ideas and advice. We ended up buying a snake that he knows the breeder very well. Overall very happy with our purchase! Highly recommend this place! Nate is so kind and helpful. read more

I expressed that the live feeder always treats the bag. Clerk said oh I double bagged it. Almost crashed on 696 after it crawled up my daughter's leg. read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - So as I'm driving on 696, my daughter is trying to catch the rodent that's running rampant looking for the nearest exit. - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

Great customer service , Great knowledge of all species ... highly recommend for your purchase !!!

In June, I was going through a family crisis, so I brought my two bearded dragons to the manager and explained to her that I needed someone to watch them for 1 to 3 months. The manager told me how they can pet set and reassured me there's nothing to worry about. I signed two separate contracts and was able to leave them there trusting the manager as I did for many years. I returned 7 weeks later to pick up my beardies and was told that I surrendered them. I corrected the employee and said I have a contract. I did not surrender them. The manager I spoke with knew my situation, and I'm here to pick them up . The owner explained to me that he fired the manager and that they tried to call me multiple times. Another employee said he tried calling me, and the call went straight to my voicemail, and that was full. After showing them my call history with no missed calls from their establishment. basically, I'm being told they could not get a hold of me the one time they tried to call because my phone had died, and my voicemail was full. Obviously, my phone was off, or the battery died at the time of their call. I would think they would have the courtesy to call another time because the only time my phone goes right to voicemail is when the battery has died. They sold both my bearded dragons. The owner and employee told me they assumed the bearded dragons were abandoned because of other situations they have dealt with in the past and commented if I cared about them so much why didn't I call to check on them ! I trusted the manager whose care I left them in and assumed if there were any problems she would have called me. One of the bearded dragons I've had for almost 8 years and the other one I bought from this establishment 4 years ago. The owner said he would do what he could to find out who purchased them. The employee was able to pull the receipts for their purchase but did not have any contact information, only a name. The owner briefly did a Facebook search but did not find anyone local that matched the names of the person who purchased my bearded dragons. The owner gave me his cell number and asked for some pictures to help identify what mine looked like. I have not heard anything back. I miss them terribly:-( read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Priscilla - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

Do not buy any animals from here. This store sells sick and injured animals. Look at the reviews on Google as well. We purchased a 7 month old bearded dragon 2024 Christmas eve. We noticed on Christmas day that he was dragging his front legs. We immediately took him to Parkway Exotic animal hospital on 12/26/24. The veterinarian established that our bearded dragon was suffering from a pre-existing condition and we were sold a sick/injured animal. The Veterinarian put this in writing. We then called Great Lakes Reptiles, and provided them with the letter from the veterinarian stating the animal was sold with pre-existing conditions. At Great Lakes Reptiles we spoke to Nate, Christine and Shelby. Each said their hands were tied and they would have the owner call us. The owner never called. This continued for over a week. We took the bearded dragon for a 2nd vet visit on Monday, 12/30/24  to see how best we could help him as we felt that taking him back to Great Lakes Reptiles would result in a death sentence for him considering their complete lack of responsibility to their animals. The employees at Great Lakes Reptiles will tell you that the store is under new management and the previous bad reviews are due to the previous managers. DO NOT BELIEVE this. The new managers have no authority to do anything and are required to call the store owner, Ryan Diforti, who in return appears to not care about the animals nor his customers. Do not buy any animals from here unless your looking for immediate vet bills. read more

Run, do not walk, away from this place!! I wish that my family had seen some of the reviews on Great Lakes Reptiles!! One star is too good for them!! They purchased a male panther chameleon for me, from Great Lakes Reptiles last week. The lady claimed that he was 1.5 years old & had been eating roaches and crickets just fine. But said that he would be a little stressed from the move. Well after a few sleepless nights with the chameleon & a trip to the vet, we found out that the chameleon had been starved for so long that he was lacking the muscles in his legs. In fact he only weighed 30 grams. I'm told that an adult male panther chameleon should weigh between 120-140 grams. Anyone that has owned a reptile (or any animal) knows that in the span of a few days, they do not lose 2/3+ of their body weight! I'm going to include a picture so everyone can see that he was clearly starved for a great deal of time. The vet also said that it appeared there was an infection in his mouth. We had to give him antibiotics & force feed him because he was too weak to eat on his own. When I called to let them how sick & starved he was, I was told that there was no guarantee on "the animal." That if we thought he looked sick, we shouldn't have bought him. This being the first time my family had purchased a chameleon, they didn't know he was sick. He was all puffed up due to stress, something I have since learned they will do. So his ribs were not visible. However the pictures that I took of him clear show that not only was he starved, but also dehydrated!! Sadly he passed away in less than week from when he was purchased. This place needs to be shut down. There is no excuse for this level of neglect! read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Starved panther chameleon from Great Lake Reptiles. - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

This place needs to hire someone that will interact with the customers and help when they ask questions not have friends hanging out while you work or sit on the phone shut this place down or get someone who wants to actually work. If I had the option I'd give this place a negative star read more

On Sunday March 4th, my girlfriend & I rescued a White Throat Monitor lizard from GREAT LAKES REPTILES in Roseville. They told us that the monitor was on sale because he's been there over a year and become depressed, thus causing him to lose weight and have a rough time shedding. That he just needed a home with some love and care. After bringing him home, setting up his heat lamps/bedding/and bathing him, we notice he was NOT OKAY. He was deformed, malnourished, two sores on his lower mouth and under chin, terrible shedding issues, and could not walk properly or use his back leg for any support. Most likely from spending most(if not all) of his life in a 5'x2' cage. Over the course of a week, we tried feeding him eggs (boiled and none), mice, worms, etc, and ended up having to syringe feed him a vitamin/calorie supplement. On Sunday, March 11, one week after we got our boy, he passed away in the night. Being upset at the terrible care and lies the reptile store had given us, I returned to confront the owner today. In which time he gave me these excuses - - we have a lot of reptiles so it's hard to care for them all - he was on sale so what did we expect - There was a previous EMPLOYEE that may not been feeding him "properly" - We SAW him before we left the store so clearly should have known he wasn't 100%. For those of you that do not know reptiles, a monitor lizard can lose up to 40% body mass and survive long periods of time without food. MEANING - this poor baby was being starved and not taken care of FOR MONTHS. In the photos you can see his sunken in hips, eyes and legs. Disfigured hip bones and toes from being in a cage so long. It is complete negligence that Great Lakes Reptile store places on their animals!! read more

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Have seen and heard awful things. They neglect all their animals, there's a bunch of them dead, they're overcrowded and housed in improper conditions. Owners are rude and lazy and sell sick animals then blame you when you tell them it died a week later or gaslight you and say it's your fault because you saw the animal before you bought it. Disgusting disgusting place. read more

First of all idk why this place has such bad reviews. The guy that is always running the show here is the bomb. He is extremely knowledgeable of the animals there and has always been a great help to me. There was a manager there that wasn't very pleasant but he doesn't seem to be there anymore. I think the most important thing about a business is how they treat their customers and the new manager is amazing. He remembers us when we come in and he remembers my snake. You can tell he really cares about the animals in the shop as wel read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

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They sold a friend a dead tarantula for $75 on Saturday and told her it was molting. But it was definitely dead, so she went to take it back on Sunday to exchange it they told her no exchanges or returns. Terrible customer service to sell a dead animal and not own up to it. read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Dead tarantula - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

I am sick to my stomach reading these reviews, 2 days ago my bf got a snake (ball python) and it was a male they charged him 700 dollars for it which is extremely CRAZY for a snake let alone a ball python .. didn't even have it home for 24 hours he came home from work it was dead with something all over his stomach, (was like that when he got him) I have had a ball python from a different place for about a year now and had no problems my family has breaded snakes my whole life I'm not new to this , they gave him no type of paper /receipt I called up there the lady basically was trying to blame everything on us and told us there is nothing they can do about it , also not to mention all the snakes were in a cage together.. as I'm reading all these reviews about how they never have water and there overpriced and there being left dead in the tanks and all this is truly disgusting and I hope they get shut down . read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Excellent selection of reptiles and accessories. The manager answered all my questions and gave me a lot of valuable information. Ended up buying a Basilisk and am very happy with my purchase! read more

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Would rate 0 stars if I could. This place should be shut down for how they care for their animals. Dead/starving reptiles in dirty enclosures with no water. Smells awful, and I mean awful for a pet store. No pet store smells good but this one smells like a pet cemetery that doesn't get rid of decomposing bodies. This place is horrible. 0/10 recommend. If you want an animal that's going to live longer then a couple days after buying it, don't go here. read more

I'm very disappointed at the experience I had at this store, I went in expecting to get a a nice healthy bearded dragon, I went in and the people there where nice but that's not the point I went and I got a bearded dragon after I paid for him, I noticed there was a deceased bearded dragon in the tank my bearded dragon came out of, I took my bearded dragon home 7 days ago, yesterday he wasn't okay he was very sick , and he was only 2 and half inches I had to take him to the Emergency room and they recommended that I put him down because he was suffering, and the ER. Told me that they most likely didn't care for them and that it wasn't my fault, may the bearded dragon rest in peace, I will never go here again. Please don't go here, and if you do please take your new reptile to a veterinarian asap to make sure they'll be okay 7 days later after you got the reptile I highly don't recommend this place. And I told the people that worked there that there was a deceased bearded dragon in the enclosure and she ignored me 5 times and then I said HELLO! She finally responded and took the deceased bearded dragon out of the tank like it was nothing there where like 20 more bearded dragons in that tank please don't go here. read more

I wish I could rate it negative stars. This place was absolutely atrocious, EVERY animal in that place didn't have any water & when I told the women who worked there she tried to tell me they got water twice a day. Unfortunately I witnessed two dead & lizards & one was severely decomposed & she tried to tell me it had only been dead two days.. there was also puppies with no water & she told me the lizard had died because of how hot the store was but didn't do anything to provide water for anything while I was there. This place is so sad & I wish I could buy all the animals to give them better homes & I will be reporting this place to whoever I need to. Don't buy your pets here. It's a death store. read more

I'd like to post a review on Facebook, but they've disabled the feature. This place truly looks like hell for the animals. Tiny, dirty cages. Dead reptiles. Horrible smell. We have reported them to the city! The picture on the website look so nice and that's NOT the store at all. The one picture of the guy sitting on the pond, holding the snake. That's the store. The rest he must have found online or something. It smelled so bad. The cages desperately needed to be cleaned. Dead animals in many of them! Horrific conditions!!! read more

A year ago I bought my daughter a crested gecko from a local pet chain. It was a baby. We had it a few weeks and it passed away. Great Lakes Reptiles talked us through it and we realized it was sick before we even bought it. I took my daughter here for a healthy new gecko. We purchased another baby. I'm happy to say that Gecko is now about 1.5 years old and thriving. We ran in today because we were in the area to purchase crickets. They're so much cheaper and healthier than what you would pay going to the chain store. I love small businesses and this one is definitely a winner. read more

We are new snake owners and bought a beautiful ball python from them. They made sure we had everything we needed and were very helpful. After bringing our snake home I've had to call them numerous times with questions as they arise and they have been more then happy to answer them. Our snake is healthy and absolutely gorgeous! read more

Last week i came into this store and seen that they have three or four ball pythons in one cage with no hide and barely any water in the dish. I went to this store again today and seen a tree boa (I don't remember exactly what type) on sale for $179.99 , I look at the snake and can clearly see it is dead. I have a pet snake and know when a snake is breathing and this snake was clearly not. read more

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if i could give this place zero stars i would. All the snakes had mites and some were even soaking in their bowls due to them. they had rex rats and they were in a SMALL robo hamster cage, there were five of them and they were all sneezing. this place is terrible stop supporting their animal abuse. read more

They open at 10am.... I've been sitting in the parking lot for an hour waiting for whomever is late to their opening shift. I've kept coming after two sold animals died... we usually buy our feeder mice here. (Make a 45 min trip for it mind you) but I think this is the straw that breaks the back. Officially done with this place, they have no regard for customers and whomever reads this ought to be done too. read more

my boyfriend and i recently got a 3 year old ball python from this place who they used for breeding(600$). when he was there he noticed how they had her in a cage crammed with a bunch of other snakes (she's massive). we took her home and she's been doing fine but we did notice that she has spider wobble which they DID NOT tell us at all. this means that they unethically breeded her for 3 years and are selling snakes full price with this condition without telling people about it. they also gave us a red heat lamp for her enclosure and red light is not good for snakes at all. do not come here unless u intend to rescue and deal with people who don't care ab the wellbeing/health of these animals. read more

Purchased what I believed to be was a molting tarantula this past weekend. Upon inspection getting it home I realized it was dead. When I tried to bring her back they told me to wait a week as she was molting. No she hasn't moved in days and she's curled up dead. When I asked about replacing or refunding I was told that was against policy. Buyer beware. Glad to be out hard earned money read more

Great Lakes Reptiles - Singapore blue tarantula - Pet Stores Near Me - Roseville, Michigan

Honestly heartbreaking walking around this shop. There is a monitor and a caiman in cages far too small for their size, baby monitors that look like they're in awful health, stuck shed/sores on snakes.. I notified a worker that a monitor looked unwell and without even turning his head in that direction told me "he's sleeping". I own reptiles, and I've never seen a lizard sleep with its eyes open and no visible movement from breathing. Overheard another worker who couldn't give any confident answers to the couple asking about Tegus. I couldn't even justify buying insects from this place and left feeling quite uneasy. I hope that they are having an off day and in the process of correcting these problems, because WOW. :( please, for the animals, do better. read more

I purchased a "kenyan sand boa" turns out hes a Saharan sand boa. Most likely means he's wild caught. He didn't eat once we got him, and when he did, he regurgitated his meals after a week or so. He's always happy and explores his enclosure, and I don't bother him after eating. Also, the workers said he always ate frozen thawed, he didnt, or still doesn't, eat frozen thawed. The thing I have the most is that it was a saharan sand boa, being treated as a Kenyan sand boa. theres Also lots of other cases of poor treatment of these animals, I hope you guys get shut down, or at least learn to respect animals and care for them read more

Great store just got my bearded dragon a few days ago he doing great recommend a lot!

The smell is HORRIBLE. There is a container of feeder horn worms on the front desk, and over half of them are dead and rotting. The animals are covered in mites. The husbandry for said animals is poor at best. They have an insanely strict no refund policy. Sketchy. Do not waste your money here. read more

Spent well over $1000 over the years, bought some bedding for my dragons, decided not to go that route, just asked for an exchange. They said no, screw you guys, take my business elsewhere. read more

The best reptile shop around! I was so pleased with this shop. It's very clean and welcoming and they have a great selection of items and pets. As a mom who doesn't know much about reptiles, I needed some educating when my kids wanted a bearded dragon. The employees were awesome and got us exactly what we needed and we're happy to answer all the questions we had. Their prices are also great...you won't find crickets for less, anywhere else. I won't go anywhere else and I always recommend this shop to anyone who mentions the need or want for reptiles and/or supplies. A+ from a very satisfied customer! read more

I called Great Lakes Reptiles about 15 minutes before they closed on July 3rd, knowing I wouldn't be able to visit that day but asked if they have any tarantulas available for sale. The girl said they have a ton. I asked about a couple of different species and the girl on the line told me she knows nothing about Ts and that their expert would be in the next day. Surprised, since that day was the Fourth of July, I asked about their hours. She specifically said, "we're open from 10 am to 3 pm". I said, "great, I'll be in tomorrow!" and thanked her. The next day, I showed up at the store at 11:45 am. I reached for the door handle until I saw a sign that said, "CLOSED for the HOLIDAY. Sorry for the inconvenience". I would've naturally ASSumed they'd have been closed on the Fourth but since the employee TOLD ME they'd be open, I went out of my way and drove all the way over to that wretched place to shop. I'm rather thankful they were closed, though, because upon further inspection - and advice from numerous friends - there's no way in hell I'll ever shop there. I wouldn't even buy feeders for my existing spiders from them. So far, on top of the reviews I've read here, I've heard of very shady practices, sick and infected animals, a shop owner who couldn't care less about the animals he sells, and shady employees who sell pets they're "babysitting". I'm out. No thanks. I feel bad for the animals who have to endure living there. read more

The place is a dump. I didn't like what I saw. I didn't like what I smelled. You can definitely tell the owner is not around as much as he should be. The piss stained carpet should be replaced. Some animals were kept in good condition. Others were kept in crappy conditions. I'm definitely not buying A reptile from there. Place has a lot of potential but I'm sure with the current ownership it will never be reached. read more

Went in the other day for a bunch of frozen mice and he wouldn't sell me them because of freezer burn. Not standard for shops that supply frozen mice. Usually they'll charge you for whatever you're willing to pay for. Also noticed less doubling up on cages than in the past. Don't know if that's a fluke but I'm upgrading my earlier review to four stars based on all the above. read more

Me and my friend both bought Sulcata tortoises back in august, was never told how to take care of him and then had to reach out to other reptile stores and other resources to properly care for and handle them. Less than two months later the both passed away less than a week from each other. DEFINITELY should have read the reviews first. Would buy from a breeder rather than a reptile store! read more

I recently bought a baby water monitor from them about a week ago for 300 dollars I thought it was just tired because it wouldn't open its eyes but come too find out it had respiratory infection mites and parasites and it ended up dying a day and a half later I called them and told them my water monitor was sick before it died but they told me he was fine and it was my fault and they have a no return policy so if it dies its on me read more