Fur and Feathers (Pets at Home)

Member Name: Shazzy

Product:	Pets at Home
Date:	21/10/01 (238 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Large and diverse product range, Prices generally lower than traditional pet shops

Disadvantages: Assistants not very helpful

Now incorporating the stores formally known as PetSmart, and based on the success of pet superstores in the US, these chain store pet product outlets seem to be in every town of reasonable size that I’ve visited. You can usually find them on those chain store retail parks, along with B&Q, Curry’s and the likes, although there are plans to open smaller stores, located in more central locations (press release – January 2001).

I’m not keen on supporting chain stores. They kill the small trader and they lack the personal service that smaller shops offer. Rarely do the personnel know their products, and in my experience, Pets At Home is no exception.

I’ve been in the stores countless time, but have never found the assistants to be of any real help, regardless of whether we were choosing a live animal, food, equipment or even a name tag for our cat (the assistant didn’t know how to use the engraving machine). They’re mostly young people with little real interest in pets, and even less knowledge. They say that staff are fully trained in pet care and able to answer questions from anybody, from junior pet owners to old masters, but I can’t say I’ve noticed. But then a long period of training wouldn’t be cost effective and they have to keep their prices down. They do have basic care guides that are free. I’ve never been offered one when I’ve bought at pet, but you’ll usually find them in a rack near the check out.

The stores are generally very clean, well laid out, and carry a huge range of products. Our local store is smaller than others I’ve visited, but still they seem to have stocked everything we’ve needed. Because they’re bigger than traditional pet shops, they’re suitable for a family visit, and dogs are most welcome.

They animals I’ve seen have always looked healthy and the cages are impeccably clean, although I don’t l
ike the idea of the small rodents being kept in glass tanks with overhead fluorescent lighting. Those tanks have felt far too warm and there are often too many animals for the space available.

They don’t carry a huge range of live pets. You won’t find puppies or kittens here and they only sell pets that are bred in the UK. For this reason they no longer stock lizards, snakes, spiders etc. However, if it’s a hamster, rabbit, guinea pig, budgie or canary you’re after, they’ll undoubtedly have some healthy examples available.

Some of the larger stores offer a pet grooming service, and I’m told that others have an in-store veterinary service, although I’ve never seen one myself.

I once asked as assistant what they did with unhealthy animals, or those that were too old to sell. She told me I’d have to ask the manager. The manager wasn’t available. Euthanasia must surely be carried out, it wouldn’t be cost effective for them to keep old animals or pay for veterinary care for sick hamsters, but I’m still in the dark as to what the procedure is. I once saw a TV programme that outlined the way that personnel at the old PetSmart stores simply threw small rodents on concrete floors to kill them, but this may have changed after the new management stepped in at the end of last year. I’d still like to know though.

With over half of British households owning at least one pet, there’s no doubt that pet products are a profitable market. We may not be quite as eccentric as our US counterparts when it comes to pampering our pets, but we still spend a lot of money on them. By buying in bulk to the extremes that Pets At Home do, they’re able to keep costs down and we can afford to pamper our pets just that little bit more. Whether you own a parrot, poodle, moggy, goldfish, rat or stick insect, you’ll most likely find the equipment you need to keep them happy. Ju
st make sure you know exactly what it is you need before you go though, because as I said, the assistants probably won’t be particularly helpful.


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