PetCenter — Local services in Old Bridge Township

(This review is limited to a puppy buying experience... and apologies for a long review!)

I had a great experience purchasing my Weimaraner puppy! I want to write a detailed review, cause I think it will be helpful to folks looking to purchase a puppy and the store deserves it:

1. Owners: First and foremost, the care and experience the store provides is outstanding, and they go above and beyond to make the experience painless and pleasant. It is super amazing that Tom (owner of the store) teams up with his family... He is exceptionally passionate and caring about the puppies... starting to where they come from, to the home they find, and ongoing care. We had slight hic-up where our puppy had some sniffles, and he worked through that experience with us in the best way possible.

2. Quality: I visited the store nearly dozen times through this experience, prior to picking up my pup. Every time, I was really impressed how they care for the puppies, attention they give them, and general care. Equally, the quality of their puppy selection is superb. Starting from my puppy in blue, to Australian spotted Sheppard etc... every single puppy there seemed it was ripe for competition :)

3. Prices: Its NOT cheap. And you can likely find breeders give you similar pups for more then 1/2 less then what the price tag is here. HOWEVER, I think the real differences are A) there are tons of scams, and people loose their deposits when puppy is not delivered B) Its hard to investigate the breeder and understand the quality (or lack there of) if you don't have the knowledge of the industry and / or if the breeder is across the coast from you C) Once you pick up the puppy, its pretty much your problem when buying from random breeders, definitely not with this store D) often, when purchasing from breeders, they fly them in; This is extremely traumatic and damaging to young pups (this store drives to pick them up, mine was driven from Indiana!) E) There are enormous amount of extras that come with the purchase, starting from initial care / shots, to crate, to started kits, etc. it has real / significant $$ value as you would have to spend the funds on these things anyways. So I chose to pay the higher fee for all of the above reasons.... (Plus I fell in love with our girl, and money was no longer an obstacle! :)

Last point, since you took the time to read the entire review... ask the store for a friendly discount and you may get couple of hundred dollars off... ;)

Thank you to Tom and his entire staff for this amazing experience... really truly appreciate the passion they bring and...

I am updating this as someone did respond nastily to my review and denied any fault. After this I spoke to a someone who not only apologized for the terrible actions of the staff I dealt with but corrected the issue and offered me a credit as well. I appreciated being able to replace my plant which is all I wanted. I had to leave out a star for the fact that the employee who basically decided I wasn’t leaving with a new plant no matter what wasnt fact checked from the get go.

Today I went to Pet Center in Old Bridge to exchange a plant I had purchased about a week or so ago for my beta tank. I took a while speaking to an associate to purchase the correct plants for my tank and fish. I did not have a way to hold the plant down yet so I kept the plant in the exact container it came in and put it in my tank until my special plant holder came in as I didn’t want to disturb the plant. When I went to remove the plant out of the water I noticed the stems were coming out by the roots so I checked a few more and saw they were not rooted much at all and were all basically coming out and smooshy. I immediately put it in water in a bag and went to the store to get a new plant no biggie since I have an account where they can see when and where I bought it. When I asked the employee if I could exchange it she said she had to ask the owner. She came back and I was told that the “owner” said I could pay half price for a new plant as I am supposed to remove the plant from the container they have them in in their tanks. I pointed to the tank that holds all their aquatic plants for sale in store and said to the employee that I had it exactly the way they keep all the plants until sold (as it would have been if I hadn’t purchased it and until someone purchases any plant) she said “that’s what I was told”and that “I can pay half for a new one”. I asked her why I would pay half for a new plant of the same kind and she repeated that’s what “her boss” said. Way to go Pet Center. The “boss” should have taken the time to come out of the hole they were hiding in and checked out the plant to see it was still green and not taken out of its original holder exactly as it was when I brought it home and that I did not want any money back just a replacement for the plant I was sold that would have died on me. Also the employee did not check when I purchased it she just told me “seven days”when I said I wasn’t sure if it had been a week. I said no thank you and she said ok smuggly and watched...

I’m sorry about the long post but if you care about animals I beg you to read until the end! I had a very disappointing visit at Pet Center today. The lack of empathy that some of the workers in this establishment for animals, while claiming to care about them, is quite disturbing. First off, I understand this may be out of Pet Center’s control, a man was in the store shocking his dog repeatedly. This dog was very small, docile and looked anxious because of the repeated distressing shocks or vibrations it was experiencing, which were arguably unwarranted because the dog was being well behaved. The absolute very least the workers could have done is kick the man out of the store. Instead, they were upset with us for being disturbed by the man’s cruel actions. Next, I would like to mention how they had a Blue Tongue Skink in an extremely small tank, in which he was barely even able to turn around in. This was considered his “forever home”. Take a minute to think about how you would feel if you were placed in a room the same size as you for the rest of your life. These are living, intelligent, creatures with emotional and most with the capacity to love you. It shocks me that people would treat them as a novelty or a toy. Next, I want to urge anybody who even cares in the slightest, to research puppy mills. There are thousands of animals (cats, dogs, and even rabbits, guinea pigs, bird, ferrets, and rats) up for adoption around the country. They are suffering while other people are spending hundreds and thousands of dollars at a corporation that doesn’t care about their animals. Breeding is extremely inhumane and causes numerous animals to suffer daily. Lastly, Pet Center held an event today where they entertained a petting zoo. The zoo had animals in tiny enclosures, with loud blaring music and screaming people. To top it off, they had a turtle in the same cage as rabbits. All the animals were clearly stressed and anxious, and the turtle was panicking while the rabbits were too scared to move. This is absolutely ridiculous, and clearly all the business as well as Pet Center care about is profit. I feel the need to write this review and be a voice for the voiceless. If this didn’t change your mind, I urge you to look at your dog, cat or animal you love dearly, and imagine them being treated in the way that breeders, petting zoos, and pet stores treat their animals. Maybe that will change your...