casowner

P&K Pets has not sold puppies for at least 5 years, the business sold last November but is still managed by the same people.

Pets Domain is based in Tasmania, it isn't a franchise rather, run by directors on behalf of Investors, it is also affiliated with Natures Best Grains. They have over 15 stores so far but aim for close to 100. The only way to prevent the spread is to support the smaller stores before they get squeezed out. I believe they sold between 10-15 pups on the opening weekend at Gepps Cross. So Industry gossip whispered!

P&K Pets, 19 Magill Rd Stepney has Pro Plan for $90.00 (saving close to $40 bag) too, they do not sell puppies either. The special is for a limited time as they are bringing out 15kg bags (rather than the $17kg) that is made in Australia.

Hi, I was wondering if anyone has heard of or used a "Super Premium" pet food called Pro Pac? It apparently has no wheat, soy or chemical preservatives and is based on chicken or lamb without by-products. We have been approached to stock it but as I have no experience with it I thought I would ask what people thought of it.

I know this is a long shot, but if there are any experienced, capable groomers looking for employment close to the city (towards the South) please pm me. I understand that good groomers are as rare as hen's teeth and available ones are even rarer, trust me I know how hard it is to find them. This is for a new shop that has not opened yet and the owner is very committed to finding the right staff and setting up a modern, professional business. I will pass on any details to her, thank you for reading.

I looked into both types to see what I would rather stock, sizes and quality wise I couldn't go past the Patio Link. It was a personal preference really, but I just didn't like the pig in mud ones and we do sell KraMar products, I showed my rep the differences and told her that I was sticking with the Patio Link.

Compare them with the patio link ones, the sizes are much more generous. Check out the website www.patiolink.com.au

I was just wondering if anyone has tried or had success with the gutzy bowls? They are bowls that have raised pillars in the bowl to stop "piggies" from gulping down their food, they are meant to help reduce bloating or choking. They seem like a great idea, obviously you wouldn't leave them around as they are made from melamine and some "chewers" might find the nodules a bit too tempting.

Rice is from Asia as it is not sustainably viable to grow it in Australia, not sure about the corn I will find out.

The difference is that Advance don't substitute ingredients where Optimum will. Advance has a guaranteed ingredient policy or so we have been lead to believe.

We own (or I should say - owned, we recently sold it but I am still managing it) a large retail pet store in SA, I have been given all of the info from Masterfoods last week. I will dig it up from my black hole called a desk and give you some information on it if you would like. We have been approached to stock it, and I am undecided as we already have Hill's, Advance, Pro Plan, Royal Canin and Eukanuba, I don't know what the popularity amongst the Community will be. There will be no loyalty programs associated with it as all of the promotion allocations will be used for the nutritional advisors. To reassure any of you that saw the word pet shop, no we do not sell puppies, for many reasons, I believe in giving customers information and assistance. I support the Pet Industry I have been it it for over 20 years and have worked in all areas - grroming, shelter, training etc and have seen the positive and negative of all areas so now concentrate on the people that live or wish to live with their furred, feathered or finned family members. As I said I am happy to pass on any info that I have.

Masterfoods selling point is going to be that the salmon is farmed in Tassie - so it doesn't deplete wildstock, that the lamb is from NSW, they won't be using chicken "byproducts - head and feet" as they are trying to be as environmentally friendly as possible. They will use the inside of the corn, not the husk also apparently. It will be more expensive than Advance, but not quite as much as Hills. They only want limited stores to sell the product as they have nutritional advisors going into each one to give advice to the consumer. Only time will tell I suppose.

I have been grooming and training using positive training methods for 18 years and have spent most of that time trying to make people understand the benefits of correct handling. I truly believe that dog grooming is about 80% dog handling and 20% artistic skill and that every experience should be positive for the dog, owner and groomer. I have worked with some of the very best and some of the very worst groomers, and what I have learnt is that I don't care how skilled you think you are if you can't give each dog a good experience then you should not be in this profession. A true groomer never stops learning and evolving their handling, grooming and customer service skills. Owners need to be educated in how to make the grooming experience for their pet easier, in a positive way. I have seen groomers that profess to handle the dogs lovingly, make great relationships with the owners and then behind closed doors do the opposite. I hear bad stories about most groomers (even dol members) but do not attempt to bad mouth them in any way, as each person, dog and owner come with their owns behaviours and issues. Taking negative complaints as true gospel is not always the best way to win over a new customer as there may be one of yours doing the same. I am not saying by any means that complaints are false at all, but reiterate that some things aren't always as they look. Hasn't everyone had that customer that brings in a badly matted dog and said keep it long, there are no knots! Even once they are educated there is still that proportion that will go to another groomer and complain about you. At the other end there are groomers that will be so rough that they should be prosecuted and I have been left in shock at what I have seen. Having a good experience with an animal makes your job easier next time and isn't that the goal for all groomers. My comments about the Dogfx was based on my overall experience with them in their professionality, expertise and most importantly animal handling skills. They advertise "not to drum up business" but to make the public aware of their service, that makes good business sense, it does not mean that they handle the dogs any less appropriately. They have spent a lot of money ensuring that their facilities are well above the quality of most groomers and even went to the expense of going to Interzoo in Germany to source the best quality products available to benefit their customers and staff. I am not affiliated with them in any way, just through Industry events, however I will be sure to pass on your comments.

I believe Dogfx on Prospect Road is the best, they endeavour to lift the industry standards and are very genuine people. The proof is in the clip, they don't spend their time trying to convince people they are good - they just are. They also have a lot of experience is specialised clips as well.

Jake my Cental Asian Ovtcharka won't touch it nor will my burmese kitten, Snickers. They are Hills devotees and look great, I had over 100kg of it and even mixed Jake will eat everything but that.

Look at the Royal Canin Exclusive Protein Dry food, it was designed for this type of issue, not that I recommend or condone it, but if it will be done anyway at least it is a recommended food for this.

To all interested Groomers in SA there will be a grooming competition in Adelaide on September 11th and 12th (I will confirm dates) with an interstate judge, Nicky Renwood. So it is the perfect opportunity for all groomers to show that they can really groom, not just tell everyone that they can. Details can be found at the Adelaide Showgrounds website or at the PIAA website - www.piaa.net.au, even though it is not a PIAA event. I hope that people get behind this event, so that it isn't cancelled. I think there are 2 benefits 1. the general public sees how hard grooming really is (and that there is no magical machine that does it for us) and 2. To see what talent is in South Australia. The grooming industry in SA is going to have some pretty impactful changes in the next 12-18 months so now is the time to make yourself visible.

There is a great homeopathic remedy called naturapetics, the best one for any anxieties is rescuepetics. Now I am generally very sceptical about these so called natural remedies, but I tried it on my 8 year old stressy pomeranian when we moved recently and she calmed down and settled better than I could have imagined. I even put it in my drinking water for a few days before a very stressful event and it really worked. Look it up on the internet if you are interested in getting some more info, there are all kinds for dogs that don't like thunder, kenelling, or those that are whelping or convalescing etc. If anyone is interested in SA the only retail outlet that has it is P&K Pets in Stepney, it comes from Queensland though.

It is also available at P&K Pets, 19 Magill Rd, Stepney. They also have a frequent Feeder card program and a customer discount card as well.