Good news out of New York: Following September's flood in which nearly 100 animals died when they were left to drown, PETCO has announced that its Johnson City store will not sell any animals upon reopening this month. The announcement is music to the ears of Johnson City residents, dozens of whom joined a PETA-led demonstration last September aimed at keeping PETCO from reopening. 

This decision will save many animals from being bred and warehoused to supply the store, which seems appropriate considering all those terrified animals who perished in the dark, cold waters. But PETCO still doesn't deserve our business until it does the right thing and stops selling animals in all its stores nationwide, given the neglect and cruelty that occur at those locations and that are rife within the chain's animal suppliers, in addition to the fact that the animal-homelessness crisis—which PETCO itself cites at its dog and cat adoption events—affects the very species the chain sells, too.

Kudos to Johnson City for forging such progress for animals in the pet trade from the devastation that struck there. And remember, folks—there's still a criminal investigation pending concerning the events leading up to those animals' horrible deaths …

How You Can Help Animals in Pet Stores

Please buy supplies for your companions only from retailers that do not sell animals.

The new year is already looking a bit brighter for animals: A PETCO store in Dickson City, Pennsylvania, has announced that it will close permanently on January 1—which is great news for the hamsters, gerbils, mice, fish, and other small animals who suffer and die every day in PETCO's stores and suppliers' facilities.

"Life" for the animals PETCO sells often consists of struggling to survive wild capture or captive breeding in horrific conditions, suffering from untreated injuries and illnesses, and fighting for food in feces-strewn, severely crowded cages. At the massive breeding mills that supply live animals to the pet trade, PETA investigations have revealed sick and dying animals placed in freezers to die, live hamsters placed in a plastic bag and bashed against a table in an attempt to kill them, animals deprived of veterinary care and left to cannibalize their cagemates' corpses, and other horrors.

For the sake of small animals, please say "No" to PETCO and other stores that sell animals.