At Frome Pet & Aquatics on Saturday 6th August, we have a special promotional day celebrating the ‘summer of the cat’ with Royal Canin. We have amazing offers all day and nutritional experts on hand to give advice about cat diets.
So, come on down and join us and grab a bargain – you’ll be welcome!
For details telephone 01373 462068 or email bathpets@aol.com – or on our Facebook page at NotJustPets. Follow us on Twitter @NotJustPets too!
We are delighted to announce the winner of our pet photo competition which was entitled “they’re not just pets, they’re family”
This is Riley who lives with @JoJoCoombe who sent this lovely picture to us via Twitter. This was a really tough competition to judge with some lovely pictures and it is great to see our customers really treating their pets as part of their family. Our independent judge thought that this one encapsulated the title of the competition perfectly – and Riley is most definitely part of the Coombe’s family.
Riley is the Coombe’s Bernese Mountain Dog – he’s only 9 months old and Jo says “he is a gentle giant that enjoys cuddles and paddling in the river”. His prize will be winging its way today to him.
Thank you to everyone who entered the competition and for spreading the word that “they’re not just pets, they’re family” which is our Company motto. Here is a gallery of photos for you all to enjoy.
Don’t forget to “like” our NotJustPets page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at @NotJustPets.
At Frome Pet & Aquatics on Saturday 6th August, we have a special promotional day celebrating the ‘summer of the cat’ with Royal Canin. We have amazing offers all day and nutritional experts on hand to give advice about cat diets.
So, come on down and join us and grab a bargain – you’ll be welcome!
For details telephone 01373 462068 or email bathpets@aol.com – or on our Facebook page at NotJustPets. Follow us on Twitter @NotJustPets too!
Hello everyone!
Take a look at the picture gallery from our competition “they’re not just pets, they’re family”. Which is your favourite so far? The competition is going well but we still need those pet pics – send in your pictures to show us how your pet fits into your family and the winner will receive a prize for their pet.
It’s been a busy week at NotJustPets this week – starting with Anny taking some special small furry creatures off to Warminster to show youngsters at a holiday club how to look after these small animals. We offer a service to local clubs and schools – either come in and see us for a tour and educational talk or we will come to you and bring some animals for the children to handle and ask questions about. We provide free literature according to the age group and we have had some fabulous feedback and some lovely letters and pictures from the children. Just call 01225 461478 and ask Anny for more details.
The children Anny visited aged from 5-14yrs and Anny was asked some wonderful questions like “what is the meanest pet you can keep that lives in water?” and “what does the biggest snake in the world eat and what is that snake called?” The children decided a terrapin might be the meanest underwater pet, although another customer suggested a piranha (which we do sell!) To answer the snake question, the Python reticulatus is the longest and can grow up to 30ft long, although it isn’t the heaviest and they eat mammals and birds but as they are non-venomous they are not really a threat to humans.
Whilst we do sell pythons in our pet shops, we mainly sell corn snakes and milk snakes and we have a pet albino Corn Snake called Colin (see picture). Colin is very curious and once threaded himself through my trouser belt loops to see what was around the other side! What a fashion accessory! We keep all the skins that Colin sheds to map his growth and to educate customers when they ask questions about him – the picture below shows an old shed from about two years ago which we were showing children at the Frome Cheese Show. We are not entirely sure how old Colin is, but think he is in his mid-teens and he is around 6′ long now.
If you need help with your snake set-up just let us know – we stock a good range of vivariums, accessories and frozen food as well as free caresheets and some good books in store.
We have been busy with our holiday animals this week – and we have been asked to board everything from tortoises to cockatiels. Whether you have a pet reptile, small furry or bird you may want to have someone look after it while you are away on holiday. At our Bath store we can offer your pet a holiday too! We can look after rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, birds and reptiles for a small daily fee – so you can go away knowing your pet is in the best possible hands. If you are interested, contact us via the website or by email or call on 01225 461461. We get busy in peak season, so book early to avoid disappointment.
We have some great offers coming into the stores next week including a lovely 6′ rabbit hutch with a run attached to house our gorgeous bunnies on sale at the moment. The harlequin rabbits have wonderful colours but they need lots of room – so these will be on sale from Monday at £199.99 including bunny (or a pair of bunnies from the Frome shop) – that’s if these gorgeous cuties don’t sell over the weekend! We still have Cinnamon and Nutmeg too (end pic on right) – they really need a home now and they are gorgeous!
We also have a Nutrition Day on Saturday 6th August with some fabulous offers on Royal Canin cat food. Trevor from Royal Canin will be in store to answer all your nutrition questions and there will be some huge discounts on cat food. So come on down next Saturday 6th August and join us!
Don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook at NotJustPets, follow us on Twitter @NotJustPets and add any comments below. We’d love to hear from you. Thank you for taking the time to read our blog! Have a great week!
Hello Everyone!
Is your pet part of your family? Does your pet make you smile? Cheer you up after a bad day? Bring you the papers? Tell us about your favourite moments with your pet and we will post them up on our Facebook site – and send pictures in to us as detailed below and win pet-related prize!
Did you notice our new tag line on our logo – “they’re not just pets, they’re family” which we added this week?
Many pet owners think of their pets as part of their family – and we are sure you do too! So how about sending in pictures of your pets to show that they are a part of your family. The best picture will win a pet-related prize!! Just make sure the picture shows your family – with your pet.
Send your entries in to us via our website, by email to bathpets@aol.com, or put them up on our Facebook site NotJustPets at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Notjustpets-Pet-Shops-in-Bath-Frome/103981576322758 or via Twitter to @NotJustPets
The winner will be announced at the end of July! We can’t wait to see your pics!! 🙂
Hello Everyone!
Is your pet part of your family? Does your pet make you smile? Cheer you up after a bad day? Bring you the papers? Tell us about your favourite moments with your pet and we will post them up on our Facebook site.
Who noticed our new tag line on our logo – “they’re not just pets, they’re family” which we added this week? We thought we would explain why we chose the name for our website. We love our pets and so, it seems, do millions of people in the UK, as evidenced from the article below.
Many pet owners think of their pets as part of their family – and we are sure you do too! So how about sending in pictures of your pets to show that they are a part of your family. The best picture will win a pet-related prize!! Just make sure the picture shows your family – with your pet.
According to a well-known information website, a survey in 2007 survey by the University of Bristol showed that 26% of UK households owned cats and 31% owned dogs, estimating total domestic populations of approximately 10.3 million cats and 10.5 million dogs in 2006. According to National Pet Month “our nation’s love for pets is stronger than ever due to companionship needs, security or just simply for more family fun. There are 27 million pets in the country and 43% of households contain at least one furry, feathery or scaly family friend, making pets well and truly part of the UK’s landscape”.
The leading industry expert, the Pet Food Manufacturers Association (PFMA) http://www.pfma.org.uk/ carried out research on behalf of National Pet Month, which celebrates Great British Pets (April-May) – and for which Not Just Pets won the Best Event Award 20011 (!) – and this has provided an insight into the pet purchasing trends in the UK, showing facts like 60% of single people buying pets for companionship, 39% of whom replaced their partner with a pet! Phil Sketchley, Chairman of National Pet Month says “Pet ownership has grown over the years to this national high and it is no surprise that so many pet loves see their pet as a companion.”
The Top 10 pets as per the Pet Food Manufacturers Association (PFMA) Pet Research were:
1 Dogs
2 Cats
3 Rabbits
4 Birds
5 Hamsters
6 Horses/Ponies
7 Snakes
8 Gerbils
9 Tortoises/Turtles
10 Rats
The Top 10 dogs as per the Pet Food Manufacturers Association (PFMA) Pet Research were:
1 Labrador
2 Border Collie
3 Jack Russell Terrier
4 Yorkshire Terrier
5 German Shepherd
6 Rottweiler/ Dalmation
7 Bischon Frise
8 Cocker Spaniel/ Shitzu
9 Labradoodle/ Golden Retriever
10 Greyhound (incorporating Whippets)/ Chihuahua
So, what are the benefits to owning a pet? According to the Pet Health Council http://www.pethealthcouncil.co.uk/ there are many benefits. Scientific research shows that pets can help reduce stress, help prevent (and detect) illness and allergies and can aid recovery and boost chances of survival after a life-threatening illness. Pets help people of all ages and in many difficult and sad situations, such as ill-health and bereavement. The Pets As Therapy is a charity which arranges the visits of pets to hospitals (and residential homes) so that those in need can benefit.
There are some amazing scientific studies of how pets have helped children with learning difficulties and behavioural problems and issues of self confidence; even studies to show that although it is traditionally thought that allergy sufferers shouldn’t have a furry or feathered friend, scientific evidence suggests that the opposite may hold true and pets have an important role to play in building up a child’s immune system. For more interesting articles like this, check out the Pet Health Council website.
Pets provide us with companionship and enjoyment – and exercise! From walking the dog to playing with the cat, they provide hours of fun and friendship and we can learn so much from them and about them.
We can train dogs – how about this fantastic video sent to us from one of our Twitter followers of Jesse the Jack Russell terrier doing useful jobs around the house (amazing dog tricks!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9Fyey4D5hg
We have trained our German Shepherd Dog, Luna to get the post and fetch balls and put them in a box – you can watch her here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjK9JZGRkRw
So we think pets ARE part of our families and we look forward to hearing about your pet-related stories about how your pets are part of your family – on here (comments below) or on our Facebook page “NotJustPets” or talk to us on Twitter at @NotJustPets. We’d love to hear from you.
Tell us what you would like us to blog about too – we have been asked for information recently on New Tank Syndrome, getting a new puppy, fleas and worms.. would you like more information here on topics like this? Get in touch, “like” us on Facebook and tell us what you’d like to see. THANKYOU!
So – I decided to ask the staff for topics to blog about this week, including any ‘funny stories’ etc – and in chorus they said “Have you heard the one about the boss who fell off the step..” So, yes, that was me – whilst rearranging the upstairs shop floor in our Bath store I inexplicably fell, in what seemed like slow motion, from the bottom step of a very small flight of only four stairs! Result? An enormous ankle, torn ligaments, possible fractured bone..although the bonus was I did fall into a small pile of dog beds, so a slightly softer landing! I do have pictures, but you don’t want to see them, right? So, plans for this week a little scuppered.
The last couple of weeks have been busy and very varied – from dressing up for National Independents’ Day on 4th July 
to broken ankles,
to sending Hot Pink Dog Lips to California for a choosy doggie! 
As noted in our Store News last week, we are delighted to win the National Pet Month award for the best retailer event – in recognition of the three open days we held during that month. Well done to all the staff and huge thanks to all our customers for supporting these fabulous days.
Lee is settling in at Larkhall now that Shirley has moved on – she sent us this lovely pic of her not working but sunbathing at her new home in Scotland. We wish her all the very best and miss her already. Lee is doing a grand job trying to fill her boots and is getting to know everyone at Larkhall. He has his very own tag engraving machine so he can engrave tags on site for only £3.99! (Lee with two of his lovely ferrets)
Last week at Bath we had some beautiful Belgian Hares come into the shop – and as quickly as they came in, they went out – and you can see why. How beautiful are these
bunnies? We are hoping to get some more – and will be putting up an info page on our site soon. Meanwhile we have some beautiful harlequin bunnies among others in the Bath store and we are still trying to find a home for Cinnamon and Nutmeg, a gorgeous pair of bunnies in Frome 
seen here sharing breakfast with the guineapigs.
So, who saw the article about Lily’s Kitchen in the Daily Mail? You may have missed it with all the News of the World shenanigans.. here’s a link – http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2013274/Is-dogs-dinner-making-ill-Its-just-humans-eat-salt-fat-sugar.html
– and we are proud to say we stock Lily’s Kitchen and it is a really popular product in our Bath shop. 
Why not give it a try?
At our Frome shop we have some beautiful bearded dragons in store and some blizzard morph geckos. Care sheets will be available on our site for these and are in store too.
Beardies 
Blizzard Morph Geckos 
There are lots of offers still in all stores – 15% off all vivarium set-ups and aquariums – 1.5kg James Wellbeloved still on special price at £5.99 (stickered bags) – OVO Hamster housing all at special prices, including Lofts at £34.99 and many more! OOH and we have just had a new delivery of Beco Bowls, Cat Litter Trays and Scoops in – come and get yours before they’re gone!
Please ask any questions below, add any comments and pop over to Facebook to “like” us on our NotJustPets page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Notjustpets-Pet-Shops-in-Bath-Frome/103981576322758 or follow us on Twitter at @NotJustPets. We’d love to hear from you! 🙂
Well done to all our staff for winning the Retailer Event Award for National Pet Month!
The theme this year was “Happiness is time spent with your pet” and we had three fabulous Open Days to celebrate at Frome and Bath.
Frome Pet & Aquatics Open Day had a fabulous Open Day on 2nd April – the theme was “Happiness is.. time with your pet” and everyone was certainly happy on Saturday – customers, staff and charities alike. 
There was so much to see and do on the day and we certainly achieved our aim of promoting responsible pet ownership with lots of animal handling and good advice being given and in raising a wonderful total of £528.42 for the Cats Protection and GWRE (Greyhound Rescue) charities.
The Dog Portraits were also a huge success and we are looking forward to seeing the doggie photographs.
We would like to give huge thanks to everyone who came down, supported, worked, had their dogs photographed, bought raffle tickets, sold raffle tickets, dressed up, painted faces or had their faces painted, danced, gave expert advice and goodies, brought dogs and other animals, made cakes, bought cakes and so much more!
On Saturday 9th April – we had Open Day at Bath Pet Centre
Sadly DARIUS, the WORLD’S BIGGEST BUNNY was unable to come to our Open Day due to sad circumstances with his owners, but he is hoping to come to us in the near future.
Nevertheless we had a fabulous day! We had painting, a fabulous PRIZE DRAW, “hands-on” sessions with the animals, a reptile talk, the Hedgehog Society, Bat Rescue, pet nutrition experts with samples and freebies, 
Howard Grove, Bath’s very own Dog Whisperer came down to talk to customers and give advice about the behaviour of their doggies, a colouring competition, cakes, Ashman Jones, the local vet on hand to give advice – and Starbucks provided us all with free coffee!
We even had the Purple Cat come in for a visit and Danger Mouse – and they had fun out in the streets selling the lovely cakes.
We hope we showed all our customers lots of ways to spend happy times with their pet – and we raised over £150 for Canine Partners and Oldies Club who were also with us on the day!
We had another fabulous day on Saturday 30th April for our Open Day for National Pet Month 🙂
We had some lovely visitors and doggies supporting us on the day including Tag, Sid, Trixie and Lucy from @OldiesClub (http://www.oldies.org.uk) the senior dog rescue and rehoming organisation and beautiful greyhounds and lurchers from Greyhound & Lurcher Welfare & Rescue (http://www.glwr.org.uk) We also had fabulous support from Royal Canin (thank you Jasmine) and James Wellbeloved (thank you Sam) who gave out advice and samples to our customers on pet nutrition.
Lee (our new Larkhall manager) brought his lovely ferrets Lily and Daisy and talked to lots of people about ferret handling and care, we had Fred & Barney guineapigs and Anny brought Cedric and Lilli her friendly rats and Deagol, the cutest, smoothest hamster ever!
Mrs Gale made some fabulous cupcakes and all the staff baked cakes and biscuits to sell on the day.
.
Pippa from Ashman Jones Veterinary Surgery came down to chat to our customers and give advice and Taiga our young German Shepherd customer won first prize in the raffle – £75 to spend on nommy treats and goodies! 
The staff all dressed up on the day and the raffle, facepainting and cakes all raised funds for Oldies Club and the Larkhall Festival charity (amounts to be published later). Greyhound & Lurcher Welfare & Rescue also raised money on the day selling their lovely cards and collars and from donations from customers and Cats Protection Bath also joined us for the day. 
Janine showed lots of customers our spider skins and snake sheds and the youngsters were particularly fascinated to learn how so many creatures shed their skin.
Huge thanks to everyone who helped make the day such a success, to the staff for working so hard and the charities and suppliers for supporting us on the day and most of all, our lovely customers! National Pet Month… Done and Won!
Photos are here:
and on our Facebook page here
and you can follow us on Twitter @NotJustPets
On Monday 4th July this year we will be celebrating Independents’ Day for Retail outlets all over the UK. Help us to celebrate this special day. We are offering 10% off to all our customers on all purchases on Monday 4th July on everything except livestock. Our staff are dressing up in fancy dress too! So – come on down and support your local independent retailer on Monday!
So, what is Independents’ day?
Skillsmart Retail and the National Skills Academy for Retail are teaming up with local retailers across the country on 4th July to celebrate Independents’ Day.
Everyone is encouraged to buy at least one item from a local independent retailer and celebrate diversity on the high street. We’ve teamed up with Mary Portas the Queen of Shops herself, trade associations such as the NFRN and Association of Town Centre Managers, along with national, local and trade press to make sure the campaign is a success.
Supporting independent retailers
Skillsmart will also champion the skills great independent retailers have and show the public that their local shopkeeper is not only a vital service, but someone who wears many hats; they are the accountant, sales assistant, buyer and often everything in-between.
How can you get involved? 
Shop local and tell us what is your favourite shop in your local high street – and if you like our pet stores, don’t forget to come in and support us – and tell all your friends! You can “like” us on Facebook too – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Notjustpets-Pet-Shops-in-Bath-Frome/103981576322758 or follow us on Twitter – “@NotJustPets”.
For more information about the campaign, contact gillian.cowan@skillsmartretail.com.
Hi there – Janine here 
(yes, I’m often wearing bunny or cat ears!)
Wow! It’s been a busy couple of weeks and quite a few changes happening at NotJustPets, especially at our Bath and Larkhall stores. Apart from all the day to day things involved in running the stores, here are some of the other things we have been involved in over the past few weeks:
– rescuing two turtles (one found on a pathway, nowhere near water!)
and I am pleased to say both went to a good home 
-we rescued a piranha and found that a good home too
– we ran our Rabbit Awareness Week competition and sent out a lovely Jellycat bunny to the winner, Jeni Arnold (@Seren9 on Twitter) – well done, Jeni! 
– we sourced raisins for one of our lovely customers (unusual request)
– we met two lovely ex-Apprentices in our Bath store, @KateWalsh5 and @ApprenticePhil who loved our shop!
– we have been setting things up ready for the Garston Veterinary Open Day this Saturday – we are taking bunnies and guinea pigs and rats to the day and will be giving out lots of advice, flyers – and a 10% off voucher for your next purchase instore! Check out other details about the Open Day on Twitter at @GarstonVets or here at http://www.garstonvets.co.uk/content/
.. and lots more.
Sadly we have said goodbye to one member of staff, Lisa, who had been with us for 6 years and is relocating to Gloucester – Lisa won Employee of the Year last year with the PPRA awards and strangely enough, another winner of the PPRA employee of the year award (in 2009) our fabulous manager at Larkhall, Shirley, is leaving at the end of the month also after 6 years to go back to
Scotland to be with her family again. We will miss them both but wish them well in their new adventures. Thanks for all your fabulous service, ladies.
Good news for Larkhall customers though as Lee from our Bath shop is learning the ropes from Shirley right now and will be taking the reins there really soon. Lee will also be introducing a new tag machine at Larkhall – so you can have your dog tags engraved on the spot, like we do at our Frome store.
We have recruited new staff Helen, Ryan and Max at our Bath store and will be putting pics up soon. Helen is also on Twitter at @WiltshireWalker – which is where she heard about our vacancy 🙂
On 4th July it is Independent’s Day where we would love to encourage everyone to buy at least one item from their independent store – and to celebrate the day we are hoping to have some things going on instore. Now – we need YOUR help:
Shirley suggested dressing up as Will Smith from the film (Independence Day!) or dressing in traditional costume. We hope to have some nutrition experts in at the Bath shop. But.. what would you like to see on that day? Ideas for what we should wear? Maybe traditional costume from 1776? We would love your suggestions..
We would love for all our followers to “like” us on Facebook – so why not pop over there and make it so! If you do – quote this code “Blog166” and message us your email address and we will send you a 10% off voucher for your next purchase with us!
Lots of fab products in store making headlines at the moment – Sureflap, the new ‘chipped catflap is selling like hot cakes, and no wonder 
– it is a great product – “SureFlap cat flaps recognize the ID chip already implanted in your cat, allowing access to your pet and making unwanted visitors a thing of the past. Your home becomes a secure environment for your pet, leading to a happier, more relaxed animal” – follow these guys on Twitter at @SureFlapNews too.
Other great products which are selling well are the award-winning Canny Collar “a simple dog training collar designed to stop pulling on the lead and make walking your dog a pleasure”; 
Becobowls, scoops and littertrays – learn all about them on our New Products blog page (and buy them online or instore with us) 
http://blog.notjustpets.co.uk/category/new-products/ and Fizzion, the new (also award-winning and eco-friendly) pet stain and odour treatment: 
“Fizzion’s award-winning formula is the most powerful cleaning solution on the market to spot-treat pet mess on carpets and most hard surfaces in your home or store. Fizzion’s non-toxic, environmentally friendly solution, instantly goes to the root of the stain and the odour, breaks down the bacteria on contact so that it can be solubilized by our unique cleaning solution. Unlike enzymatic cleaners that require long waiting periods to activate, Fizzion works instantly on contact. There is no waiting time – just spray, wipe and watch your stain disappear permanently”
And finally, what topics would you like us to discuss on here/on our Facebook page/on Twitter? Would you like to hear Luna’s perspective on things (Luna is our mad German Shepherd girlie dog!)? Let us know in the comments box below, or email us at bathpets@aol.com or via the website at www.notjustpets.co.uk. THANKYOU!
and Grrrfff! from Luna 🙂
