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Please note:
These articles, written 2003-4, were intended not just for the benefit of local aquarists and visitors to Vancouver. Rather, they were written as part of the Travel section of Aquarticles, to show people from other cities and countries what the retail aquarium scene was like in Vancouver at that time. The articles will not necessarily be updated and things will inevitably change, so use caution if actually using the articles as a guide.

The Aquarium Stores of Vancouver Canada
by Howard Norfolk
Original to Aquarticles.com

Part VIII:
Petcetera
2876 Rupert Street, Vancouver. 604-464-0600
And five others in Greater Vancouver.  33 locations throughout Canada
For location go to MAP

When reviewing the places where people can buy aquarium fish in Vancouver, we must not forget the big-box stores, or as they call themselves, "pet superstores." Petsmart, an international (U.S., U.K., Canada) publicly owned company has a big store in Langley, but our own all-Canadian version is Petcetera. Lots of people buy their fish and supplies from Petcetera.

Petcetera was founded in 1997 by Daniel S. Urbani, and the corporation now has 33 stores throughout Canada. The Head Office is in Richmond, a suburb of Vancouver.

There are six Petceteras in Greater Vancouver, and others in nearby towns. As corporate owned stores they are all very similar, with the same policies and products. The branch that I know best is the one on Rupert Street, so let's take a look at this one :-

Click on photos for enlargements, then go "Back"

   Located at a busy intersection, the store is huge, taking up half a city block. At the rear is a large car park.

     
Upon entering, you first pass through a "street" of specialist services. Shown here are the "Vetcetera" Pet Hospital (including dentist) and the Photo Studio. There are also a large and busy dog grooming suite, a "doggy daycare," a room where homeless animals are available for free adoption, and a man who sits at a desk making dog and cat identity tags and giving information about the store.

  
These dogs are waiting for their masters at the "Doggy Daycare." Dogs can be left here during the day, and they will be "walked and regularly brushed," enjoy "toys and supervised activities," and have "raised, comfortable beds for naptime." Dogs can also be brought here for professional training.

  The main store is a vast warehouse....

     
.... with rows and rows of dog and cat foods, and everything else you could possibly want for your cat or dog.

  
This is some of the selection of dog collars and leashes. When not on a leash your dog can be kept to your property with an electronic invisible "Instant Fence."

  
These "dog toys" are mostly for throwing and retrieving. A neighbouring aisle has less colourful toys, mostly for chewing.

Many of the cat toys resemble mice.

There are more dog shampoos than many shops have for humans.

  
Dogs and cats have their own toothbrushes and toothpastes.

  
....And to keep the other end of your dog clean, how about these dog diapers and dog sanitary pads "for female dogs in season."
I didn't notice any diapers for cats, but for $229.96 you can buy a "self-cleaning fully automatic litter box, with three waste holding settings and hidden gears. Takes littercare out of your hands."

  
There are various displays of "dog fashions," including brightly coloured lifejackets (for boating), and dog raincoats....

  
....and dog boots. (Useful in cold weather).

  
There is a gift wrapping centre to wrap up your pet's gifts, and lots of greeting cards, some of which your pet "sends" to you, and others that you send to your pet.

Something that has always fascinated me but I didn't spot on this visit are the TV videos especially made for dogs and cats to watch. I've been waiting for videos for fish! Although I agree that most fish are too self-centred to sit still and watch a video, surely some plecos and maybe discus would enjoy a travelogue of the Amazon River? But then this wouldn't appeal to African cichlids, so perhaps it is just too complicated to make fish friendly videos?!

....O.K. So you've dropped off your dog at the dentist and have an hour to wait. You struggle to the car with some huge bags of dog and cat food. You buy the dog a new raincoat and a pair of boots (better make that two pairs!), a new toothbrush (and one for the cat), some toys which you gift wrap, a Get Well Soon card, and perhaps a birthday card for your hamster.

So what do you do now? - Well, how about strolling over to the Fish Department to pick out some new pet fish for the tank in your kitchen or the kids' bedrooms?

There are plenty of fish to choose from, in 260 freshwater and 48 saltwater tanks.

I was shown the Fish Department by Kevin Gianakos, a young man who had just taken over as manager the week before, after five years' experience working in the Kelowna Petcetera. Kevin has an interest in fish and keeps them at home. He and an assistant were busy re-organising and tidying up the department.

It is often said that the quality of fish in a store such as this depends on the interests and abilities of the manager. This is true, and of course it applies to individually owned pet stores as well, which vary according to the owner.

Let's wish Kevin good luck in his new position, and hopefully his department will become a model of its kind!

Here are the photos I took:

     
Saltwater: Hawaiian squirrelfish, longnosed hawk, Clark's clown fish.

All the tanks were of mirrored glass on all sides, which makes for a nice display but made it very difficult for me to take my usual flash photos! I found that I had to point my camera straight up or down, and the middle tanks were just about impossible to photograph.

  
Due to the mirrors I only managed to get more or less acceptable photos of these black platies and gold barbs, and just had to make a note of the other fish I saw, which included lots of livebearers, danios, barbs, white clouds, gouramis, bettas, angels, various tetras, catfish, jewel and firemouth cichlids, severums, African cichlids and other popular common tropical fish.

All the fish are identified by these cards, giving the fishes' common and Latin names, their characteristics, and the water conditions they prefer - very useful for beginners. Have you ever seen a fish simply named and priced with others in a dealer's tank and wondered which fish it is? - I know I have!

     
There are lots of goldfish from $5.49 up, including these bubble eyes and orandas at $15 each.

  
Small koi are $25.

You might be lucky and find some oddball fish, such as this tiger oscar for $15. I didn't ask, but thought it must be a trade-in that had outgrown someone's tank.

  
There is a display tank with plastic plants and ornaments, and some beginners' set-ups.

Real aquatic plants are easy to choose here.

  
Rocks and corals, and aquarium decorations

These fizzy tablets "make a goldfish bowl a happy home for your goldfish buddy."

Petcetera is not, and does not try to be, a destination store for advanced aquarists. It is a place where the average family can find pet fish to fill the family aquarium or the aquariums in their children's bedrooms. Such non-aquarists might be intimidated going to a specialist aquarium shop with all its fancy equipment and expensive non-community fish. At Petcetera they can find basic supplies and their children can safely pick out inexpensive friendly fish.

When I interview today's top aquarists they often say that they were given their first aquarium when they were about "eight years old," and that their parents "knew nothing about fish." I wonder how many aquarists of the future will remember fondly the family visits to Petcetera to buy dog food, and the thrill of going over to the Fish Department to choose a new fish to bring home!

Other pets are sold. This is the reptile section. There were also birds and small mammals.

     
A gerbil, $11, a dwarf hamster, $16, and a rabbit.

Petcetera is a responsible supplier of live pets, as stated in the company policy: "Due to the lack of knowledge and misunderstanding of keeping exotic animals as pets, Petcetera does not support the sale of these animals. Instead, we facilitate the adoption of exotic animals through the Adoption Centre, which features a display area where animals are on exhibit in the store for adoption purposes."

Petcetera doesn't sell dogs or cats - it gives them away for free! A great service is the P.A.W.S. adoption programme referred to above, which is found in every store. Homeless animals are available for anyone who can take care of them, and the goal for 2003 is to raise $1.3 million in order to find homes for 12,000 unwanted dogs and cats throughout Canada. I should know all about this - I adopted my two cats from this store, one of which is sitting on my computer desk next to the printer as I write!

Petcetera has a free "club" for regular customers, the Petcetera Plus Program. It offers such things as "buy 10 bags of food, get one free," "buy 1 fish, get 1 free," and various other benefits according to how much you spend, plus an e-mailed newsletter. For more information, see Petcetera's web site at: http://www.petcetera.ca

***

Note: Not all Canadians spoil their dogs and cats quite as much as this article implies! I don't think I've ever seen a dog wearing a raincoat or a diaper, nor have I ever bought my cats a toothbrush or a birthday card! But these products do exist, so someone somewhere must be buying them???