With approximately 1,650 pet stores in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico, PetSmart is a popular choice for buying everything from pet food to toys and, in many cases, home veterinary clinics. Veterinary care services. But are dogs allowed in PetSmart to shop with you?
The answer is yes! According to the PetSmart website, dogs are welcome “in PetSmart stores as long as the pet is appropriately protected (leashed or securely locked) and vaccinated (suitable for a particular pet type).”
What other pets are allowed in PetSmart?
Are you considering bringing a pet other than a dog or cat to PetSmart? You may also be welcome.
According to the PetSmart site, These animals are welcome as long as, like dogs, they are safely leashed or confined and vaccinated:
- Bird
- Small animals and reptiles sold at PetSmart (including, guinea pigs, hamsters, chinchillas, gerbils, mice, rats, geckos, bearded dragons, specific snakes, certain types of frogs body, certain types of birds)
- Other non-venomous reptiles
- Mink
- Rabbit
- Sugar glider
- Belly pig
Which dogs should not go to PetSmart?
The best dogs for shopping excursions are those that love to experience and respond to your commands, walking on a leash, stopping and sitting quietly while you watch.
However, if your dog is new to shopping, PetSmart is a good choice as other shoppers are also pet lovers!
If your dog is still working on some manners, that’s fine. Make sure you can safely maneuver your dog in and out of stores and parking lots – but if you’re worried your dog might bark or whine, others will. understand. Bring treats and positively reinforce the behaviors you want to see in your dog.
I was at PetSmart and a newly rescued dog owner told me she was doing her dog socialization and asked if I wanted to give her dog a treat. She has a whole bag full of treats to hand out to shoppers to give her new dog some good experiences with strangers. What a great idea!
PetSmart is a great socializing experience – however, if your dog ferocious For other dogs, PetSmart is not the place to shop with him or her due to the high probability that you will run into other dogs.
6 Tips When Bringing Your Dog to PetSmart
After Barli completed her first training classes, it became a regular part of our routine to go to PetSmart after each Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog class. Here are tips to make our visits more successful:
1. Eat before you get to the store!
Just like us, dogs also get sick when surrounded by temptation in stores. If Barli comes to PetSmart directly from home, I guarantee that he will eat before we even get to the store. If he went straight from the training class, he’d be fully rewarded after an hour’s treat!
2. Keep your dog on a short leash.
The store is NOT a place for long, retractable chains. Barli always wears a leash up to 4 meters in length in public; it helps as he continues to walk on a loose leash next to me and also prevents him from getting into anything before I can reach him.
Your dog will also be safer when moving to the parking lot on a short leash.
3. Let the dog get used to the stroller.
Let’s face it: shopping carts are a little scary. Practice walking around the store with just your dog on the first visit, then start introducing your dog to the stroller gradually, as you slowly push the stroller with your dog along.
If you have a small dog and are going to put your dog in a stroller, protect his paws from crevices by bringing a crib pad or blanket to place under the bottom of the cart.
4. Consider time off.
Barli’s classes are on Sunday afternoons so we often visit PetSmart after that. I liked that the store was busy so Barli had more experience walking among strangers – but when he first started visiting PetSmart, we went on weekday mornings when the store was quiet. than.
PetSmart staff are also less busy at this time, so Barli got some personal attention at checkout, helping to cement his love of shopping.
5. Take the dog for a walk outside first.
The open area outside PetSmart is a treasure trove of dog smells, a great place to spend a few extra minutes on arrival.
6. Start slowly.
Once we get to the store, we usually start our tour by walking past the adoptable dogs in the front of the store without distraction (for his part or mine!), then Then we walked to one of the less crowded aisles for a few “rounds” to practice walking the aisles without distractions.
Looking for more pet-friendly stores?
We have compiled a list of more 100 dog-friendly stores where you and your dog can shop together, from hardware stores like Hardware Ace to home decor stores like Tuesday morning.
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