Hi Melissa, We, too, have a "Family Pet Center" at our Holyoke Mall here in Massachusetts. The conditions of the puppies and the ferrets are frequently horrendous. The nice thing about a mall store is that you can complain to the mall management and usually get something done. Mall management has jurisdiction over the stores in its mall, and complaints about animals kept this way should go to them. You can also contact your local SPCA or animal control officer and let them know that within their township there is a store mistreating pets. They will take it seriously, and they have to investigate complaints. I understand completely your hesitation/desire conflict to purchase the ferret and save him/her. The problem is not only that it will put money in the store's pockets, but also that when they sell ferrets, they just get more in and keep them in the same deplorable conditions. Saving one ferret just puts another one in his place. However if the ferret looks ill or seems to be suffering, do whatever you need to do to get the ferret to a vet, especially if the store won't do it. Veterinary documentation later on only makes the case against a negligent pet store that much stronger. We've had considerable trouble with this chain here in Massachusetts. A local ferret shelter has received several ferrets directly from the store when they came in sick or biting. The dogs are kept in unspeakably small cages and like you, I've seen them have no food or water and look very hungry and ill. But people keep buying the puppies, so the store thrives. Sad! Please contact the mall management, your animal control, and the home office of Family Pet Centers. The phone number for their main office is 1-800-595-7175, it just gets to an answering machine, but leave a message, hopefully they'll respond! Good luck. Hopefully this helps! Sincerely, Heather W. in Massachusetts [Posted in FML issue 3818]