OMAHA, NE—Calling the walkthrough among the cages and aquariums a key part of his morning routine, local PetSmart manager John Brubaker told reporters Thursday that he always does a quick sweep of the store’s enclosures for dead ones before opening up for the day. “First thing after I get in, I’ll flick the lights on, grab the wheeled garbage can, and head over to the small pet section to dispose of any guinea pigs and chinchillas,” said Brubaker, adding that his typical loop then takes him to the fish section to check for floaters that got stuck in their oxygen filters overnight. “The parakeets usually don’t take me that long—I just go through with a brush and sweep the stiff ones out of their cages real fast. Usually, I can have all the critters bagged and in the dumpster before the cashiers even start showing up.” Brubaker went on to say, however, that the sheer number of dead ones sometimes forced him to just hide a few in the backs of their cages and gather them up the following morning.

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