March 8, 2014 - Complaint

To whom it may concern;

My name is Pat Phillips. My husband and I along with our seven parrots, one Canary and three cats, live in Parksville on Vancouver Island.

As I understand it, sometime last week, a customer of Bosleys, Parksville, complained to you about my presence in Bosleys, Parksville with my petition.

My husband and I have been residents of British Columbia for a relatively short time, less than two years. Prior to our move here, we resided in Scarborough, Ontario for 20+ years. I shopped and bought my pet supplies at the PetValu location at Kingston Road and Lawrence Avenue, in Scarborough, for as long as I can remember that store being there. I have consistently found the personnel at both stores to be friendly, knowledgeable and accommodating. I was therefore very comfortable requesting a little space, out of the way, for me, two of my parrots and a small table to hold my petition. After reading my petition and ensuring that it didn't reflect on or represent Bosleys in any way, the owner of Bosleys, Parksville, gave me permission to do so.

Now had you bothered to do your homework, here is what you'd have learned:

1. My petition does not conflict with PetValu's mission statement which purports to, " ...support organizations that advocate and provide services for the humane treatment and wellbeing of animals in BC." http://www.thepetitionsite.com/811/239/095/no-more-parrots/


2. My petition is not against The World Parrot Refuge, but for the 800+ parrots warehoused there. My petition simply states that The World Parrot Refuge should not take in any more parrots until it complies with the global community's standards for bird sanctuaries. www.sanctuaryfederation.org/gfas/for-sanctuaries/standards/

3. One customer does not represent the community at  large. My Petition created a problem for one customer, not the community.

4. One customer of Bosleys, Parksville complained about my petition; 50 customers happily signed it.

I understand that on the basis of that one customer complaint you've decided that no petitions are to be allowed in the store in future. That is a  thoughtless, knee-jerk reaction to that complaint that may just result in the loss of a loyal PetValu customer of many years. I believe that the owner of Bosleys, Parksville and I deserve an apology.


Pat