That's not insurance though. If your dog needs say luxating pattella surgery that's $2,000 out of your pocket.

The grooming is cheaper because they don't require experienced groomers. You can be a groomer who has never had a grooming job and get one there.

I know it's not insurance..lol..I said "puppy plan" I'm not sure if they have animal insurance...

I'm not sure what pet smart u went to but in my town they are all certified groomers. They even have their license on the wall. And if u visit their website it will tell you. But actually it's cheaper for puppies under six months. But after that you into the $30 range which is still cheaper that a lot of private owned businesses. I had one groomer told me they would do both of my dogs for $35 each. Which is not bad for my 1.5yr old dog but too much for a puppy. And most private groomers go by dog breed no matter the age. I hate that. I think you should consider both age and breed. But you know, everything don't work for everybody right. We are all excellent care takers. Every time I stray away from Pet Smart I always find myself back there. They food is priced okay, and the clothes are always marked down, plus you get lots of coupons via email.

re: petsmart groomers

I don't take my dogs there (found a cheaper place that does a decent job) but my friend takes his scottie there and my dad takes his shih tzu and they are both very pleased.

I didn't say they wernt certified just they don't have to be experienced.

The one my pup goes to the groomers have been grooming for years. Besides everyone has to start at some point. That's how u get experience. If your child starts school you wouldn't say I don't want that teacher because it's her first year. That's how I see it. More experience don't mean better. A person who just graduated may know a lil more then somebody who's been their for years. I welcome the new and the old as long as my puppy is not being hurt and that the grooming looks great.
But it's not the first time that I heard a person disagree with Pet Smart on here. That's what YT is for. But I'm truly happy with the treatment my Maltese and Yorkie receive when they go. And I very much respect your opinion. Now smile. Lol

I would be leary of Banfields, the only reason I say that is with my experience you never see the same Vet twice. I do not take my dog to Banfields but know people who do, the dogs get good care but my opinion is I want my Vet to know my dogs history and know her personally.

I am probably not a good one to answer this, I have used the same Vet for over 15 years (since I lived in Georgia). I am very pickly about the care Sophie Kate gets and would only trust her to health to my Vet or to specialist she referred.

Regarding grooming, I use Petco so I cannot comment on PetSmart's groomers. I do know that the few times I have been in the store the grooming area is always busy.

When I make an appointment they always ask me if I wanted to schedule when his doctor is there or do I mind if he sees someone els. So I never had that problem really

PetCo grooming is pretty much like PetSmart. Went there once when I couldn't get an opening on the day I wanted it. They pretty good too.

How you guys feel about Royal Canin. I been feeding my yorkie Royal Canin 29 for puppies since I got her. But now I can't seem to find the 29 version. Went to several stores then I was finally told that they are removing the numbers from a Royal Canin and the one for puppies was the same thing I was buying before. It looks the the same to me but Idk...am I being to picky?

The Petsmart in my area is not good for grooming I knew one of the girls who worked there and was also not impressed with them. We also did Petco but it was just way to expensive. It took a very long time to find a decent groomer. My vet finally got one and that is where Callie goes they know her very well there. The problem with not having experience is they could not be as good with not cutting your dog, not leaving your dog on the table, not buring your dog, not dealing with a dog that moves a lot and so on. I prefer Petsmart with everything else besides vet and grooming though so it's not a Petsmart thing. That is where mine went for her puppy training and I was very happy with that and the trainer still remembers us after 7 years.

LilAh is one and a half and we have had banfield since I brought her home. I have heard a lot of bad things said about banfield but that is more likely with a chain. I felt like it was worth it the first year but maybe not after that (even though we signed up for the second year). The vets are very nice and the techs and receptionists always remember us by name and are super sweet. They were very considerate and accommodating when I wanted to split up lilah's puppy vaccines and we were in often as a result, she took Benadryl before each vaccine. I didn't like their deworming policy, they took a fecal but were handing over the pyrantel bedore the results were even back. Still it is my choice and my responsibility to make informed decisions about my dog and wether I want to do a more traditional rotational deworming or a more responsible ova count and parasite identification and managment plan. We had them for a 'Lilah is limping, she stepped on a Thorn' freak out and that felt good but of course if she had needed an X-ray that would have been out of pocket because as stated, it is not health insurance. We are having our first yearly maintenence dental cleaning this year and I am grateful that it is without question that blood panels will be done first an of course an iv and all of the things I hear folks worry about- they are in the limelight and have to have their a**es covered, that makes me feel better. I hear an independent vet would be cheaper, Idk about that in the pdx/Gresham area. They are convenient, they are a resource, they have only been considerate, polite,warm, welcoming and respectful to us as clients and I am happy with their services and my experiences.

We're in an awkward position of doing a lot of adoption events at pet smart. The store and banfields are technically seperate but still work together. Today we adopted a puppy to a very nice family at pet smart who ask about local vets and banfield. All we could do was advise her to check the contracts before signing, no matter which vet she chose. She wad also advised to check reviews. Luckily her vet for her previous dog is well known to us and has an excellent reputation.
As for the grooming I would nevet take my yorkies to them. They actually have a special program for puppies starting at 8 weeks. They only need 1 set of shots. Why would anyone take a pup to be exposed to heaven knows what, even if they're supposed to be immunized. I don't know what is required for their training but have spent hours there and have seen a lot of grooming. They are too rough with most dogs, even the bigger ones. They always seem to want to shave them. I guess it's easier. I have taken my golden to them but will only use a certain groomer. The other groomer who did the evaluations said he was matted and needed to be shaved. He has a mass, not a mat (my vet and a second opinion both say removing it would not be beneficial).

I totally agree...

I have never been to petsmart groomer, but I had to chime in because I hate when people think less experience means they are not as good as someone with a lot of experience. I was a teacher and believe it or not, when I was a first year teacher there were some parents that jumped to conclusions just because I was young. Some even requested a more experienced teacher. And let me tell you, I worked at great school, but there were some "experienced" teachers that were not great teachers. One used to come to me in the mornings asking what I was teaching that day. So, don't judge someone just based on experience. Everyone has to start somewhere, that's how we gain experience.

And as far at petsmart. Every store had different people working there. Like every store, or school, the will be some bad and some good.

I hear royal canin is a hood do food i just made a thread asking about a few different dog foods

QUOTE=Batgirl38;4444146]How you guys feel about Royal Canin. I been feeding my yorkie Royal Canin 29 for puppies since I got her. But now I can't seem to find the 29 version. Went to several stores then I was finally told that they are removing the numbers from a Royal Canin and the one for puppies was the same thing I was buying before. It looks the the same to me but Idk...am I being to picky?[/QUOTE]