If there is one thing that The Bull can not stand it is the existence of thieves in our society. One of the few things worse than your basic thief is one that steals from charitable organizations, and that, Dear Reader, is what we are dealing with today.
As you are aware, my dear wife, Lady Beth, operates one of only two or three IRS 501(c)(3), Tax-Exempt, exotic animal rescues in the entire Nation. The rescue is called Chaos & Critters. This entity operates solely on the donations and adoption fees. To help feed the creatures we house there have been a couple of donation boxes stationed at pet stores here in Mobile, AL. One of these boxes has sat at Mobile’s largest pet store, B & B Pet Stop, (operated by Mobile’s well known Trufant family), for almost a year. Despite the traffic that store garners, and it being the only store where exotic supplies are readily availible, donations have always been rather slim. It was assumed that this lack of production was simply because exotic pets are considered as ‘throw-away’ pets by the majority of society. We were wrong!
Today we learned that the real cause for such lack-luster donations is the specter of rampant thievery in that store.
Just yesterday Lady Beth had stopped by to pick up a couple of other items and had noticed several dollars in the lockbox. She stopped by there this morning to purchase food for several of the creatures and found that the majority of the cash had been removed. Not just ‘removed’, the lock had been compromised and the cash had been stolen! 
What makes this so irritating is the fact that this had obviously been done by either an employee of B&B Pet Stop or under the direct observation and backing of said employees.
Now, how in the world can I be so sure?
Quite simple. The lock had been forced by someone inserting a screwdriver, or similar, devices and turning forcibly so as to cause the retaining nut to loosen so the entire lock could spin and the cash box could be removed. Having installed the lock myself, I know it was installed both correctly and tightly. The operation necessary to loosen the lock could not have been done quickly. It took time. Most damning, the donation lockbox has always been located on the check-out island of the store under the direct supervision of at least one – and most often three – clerks.
This all boils down to one inescapable conclusion for The Bull. That conclusion is that the grand ol’ B & B has indeed become a ‘Den of Thieves‘. This , of course, is not the only example of thievery going on at that store. Oh hell no! They are forever finding everything from animals and other stock being stolen, to employees finding their personal items, (ie: wallets, credit cards, coats and such), stolen right out of the break room. For some unknown reason, the Trufant’s simply refuse to address these issues.
The Bull challenges the Trufant Family to clean up their act and bring B & B Pet Stop back to its former glory. Meanwhile, the creatures will be on reduced commons…
Bull, out!
Let me know if you require my services.