PetSmart
Reviews and Complaints

I'm sorry for your loss. Pet Smart doesn't seem to have a good reputation. Maybe next time you can find a pet sitter..?

for anyone who cares furminator is a lo shed system that helps to remove lose or dead hair by using a HYOALLERGENIC solution of aloe oatmeal vitamins a and e and other non-abrasive and soap free ingredients to stimulate the folicule and release the lose or dead hair making it easier to remove with the deshedding tools advertised. most likely this dogs groomer or bather got carried away during the brushing. this is what concerns me the most of all. get a clue all you groomers out there it takes skill and consideration for pets and their owners to be a truly successful and profitable pet stylist.

I can't really understand anything that you wrote but if you recieved the furminator treatment then they use a deShedding solution. I noticed its posted on a sign in the petsmart shop near me. Also if you look on their site its advertized "A premium service that includes a low-shed shampoo followed by an application of deShedding™ solution plus up to 30 minutes of brushing with the FURminator tool." Like the poster before me, write your complaint so it is readable. I don't understand why a dog with severe allergies would be sent to a petsmart or petco for grooming. Please take your dog to a vet for grooming, that seems like a medical issue if it is really that bad. :(

Please try again, and this time, please write in full, English language sentences. Complaining in "text" really detracts from the validity of your claim.

I am a groomer and in my expirence there is no reason for what is happening to these dogs... do not go to petco i have heard way too many horror stories about there groomers.. always talk with ur groomer before leaving them these are your babies and u deserve to know that they will be safe when u are not there

this is great. A employee that was probably fired because she cannot follow directions and was insubordinate. I love the employees that hate being told what to do. They come in thinking they know all and whats best for everyone and whats best for business. This employee could have went to the GM or even called the HOT line. Another thing is when your at work, your their to work, not make friends. You don't know anything about her personal life and if you do my mistake.

apparently you didn't have the guts to tell her to her face either?... considering youre posting this online.

Got a link to the commercial? I haven't seen it.

WOW! I work at Petsmart as a groomer and I can honestly say that all the pits that come in my salon are the sweetest, biggest, teddy bears. I've only met 2 pits out in the store that were trouble out of the thousands that come there, and those 2 were never socialized and kept in the back yard as junk yard dogs. Everyone in my store knows that we'd have a bigger possibility of being bitten by a chihuahua or poodle before we got bitten by a pit. And as for that trainer...how dare she even call herself one? She's not educated enough to be throwing accusations about breeds around like that. Cocker spanials are more viscious than pits. The only problem is you'll never find a story on the 6 o'clock news about somebody being mauled by a chihuahua...the breed that bites the most. Yes, the pit is a very strong breed...but that doesn't make them bad. Just makes the people who make them that way bad. I feel really bad for you guys. Pits are awsome and I'm so sick and tired of people acting like they are soooo scared of a big bouncy, wagging tail, licky face, overgrown lap dogs as they clutch their little Coach bags with their little Yorkie named Chanel in it. Mind you...Chanel just got through biting the groomers face and that groomer ended up having to go to the emergency room with 3 puncture wounds in her cheek. Go figure!

Tonight my husband and I went into Petsmart to purchase some items. While we were there there was a training class going on. We own two Pitbulls that are both CGC Certified and very well tempered..While we were standing right in front of this woman and her whole class (looking at leashes), she decided to tell the class how bad Pitbulls were and that they were all mean dogs..how she almost had her "face ripped off" by one and so didnt her mother..She told her class to stay away from them all. My husband and I did all we coould to walk away and not cause a scene. It is people like her that give these dogs a bad reputation and it is not fair. After the class got out, most people in the store were terrified of my dogs and made it obvious that we were bothering them. I have never felt so uncomfortable in a store in my life. If Petsmart values there customers I suggest that they respect them and stop feeding customers wrong information about specific breeds that they obviously know nothing about.

I agree with you. That's just ridiculous. All Pit Bulls are not mean. It all depends on how they're raised. I'm sick of the stereotyping and rules against them.

I am so sorry to hear this... I am a groomer at PetSmart (I just found this site and decided to see complaints about the company I'm working for) and I completely understand where you are coming from. I'm not just a groomer who paid for my own training elsewhere from the company, I'm also and animal welfare activist and besides regular doggie clients at my job I also groom/trim nails on the rescues and many dogs who've had horrible grooming experiences whether with this company or others. It really pisses me off reading stories like yours (not because of you, but because of what happened) because these things are so easily avoidable, injuries to animals are rare if you just take safety precautions! The worst I've ever done is quick a dog's nail by accident (which the sight of dog blood makes me sick to the stomach so it's rare and I explain to the owner, apologize profusely and give them a baggie of kwik stop in case it starts). Even with something so small as that I MONITOR the pet to make sure nothing is serious! This is why I don't understand why other groomers don't and I can't stand the attitude of many PetSmart "pet stylists." You are bringing your baby, your furry child to them and yes, dogs can be difficult at times, it's not an easy job but there is never an excuse to have a dog that injured and to be rude! My dogs mean the world to me and I've had bad experiences with vets before so I understand the frustration and anger.

Again I am so sorry to hear this and I hope your yorkie is feeling a lot better and I hope you don't lose faith in all of us groomers out there!

When you go into a Walmart with a McDonalds, do you expect to get your food and pay at the Walmart registers?

I'm with everyone else when it comes to telling you that Banfield isn't owned by PetSmart. They are in a partnership.

I do have another thing to point out. Banfield is a veterinary office. The staff are told to answer the phone even when they are with a customer in case it is an emergency. While she should have asked the person to hold once she had made sure that it wasn't an emergency, she might also have been waiting for their computer (which, believe me, are usually very slow) to try and process your debit.

The "condescending" tone she used is usually referred to as a professional tone. People who call into a doctor's office tend to expect the person answering the phone to be educated. The professional tone of voice reassures them of this, and allows the said professional to ask the necessary questions and generally cut out any hemming and hawing that the person at the other end of the line might do.

The reason that the flea medication on the rack is "Display Only" is due to theft. Top thing stolen from PetSmart stores: medications (dog, cat, avian, small animal, reptile, fish). Of course, leather collars would probably top the list, but PetSmart locks the most expensive of these up, so collars are down the list a bit.

you are a pathetic, flustered little person aren't you? In my opinion you need to grow up, simple as that, grow the heck up and stop making everything seem bigger than it is; Oh one last thing, everyone isn't out to get you, you are not TOP on everyone's list if something comes up you have to wait LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.
Its people like you that deserve hard times ALL THE TIME.

Really trying to gripe about anything aren't you? Did you ever think that some of this could have been avoided if you were not in such a hurry? Banifeild rents a space from Petsmart and things they sell get rung up there and Petsmart merchandise gets wrung up up front. You probably did swipe your card wrong and maybe all they can accept is credit and not debit. If you had asked questions nicely before exploding and storming out of the store like a 3 year old having a hissy fit, you may have been able to work this out. I am sure your friends and family agreed with you so you would not explode at them.

Banfield is not a part of PetsMart. It is a veterinary service within the store. Their check out or products are not connected to PetsMart. Honestly I surprised that they would sell you veterinary only products seeing that you are not a client. Most vets office's wouldn't.

God Bless those that have to deal with people that think the world revolves around them! The Banfield employee did nothing wrong and did not deserve your attitude. She is required to answer the phones while wating on others and you may just have to wait a little! Perhaps when you scanned the card it didn't read it properly. None of this is her fault- and things happen and geez! How petty can one get? I would imagine if you are that intolerant of things not going your way all the time, you will soon run out of stores to shop in! It's life! Get over it!

Please be more specific. What led you to believe that your dog had been mistreated?

This company is absolutely rediculous! I also would like to think the people on here for helping me get all the information to actually contact this company. In previous months I had even gone to an FYE store to figure it out and they had no idea what was even going on. It had stopped somehow for a month and I was thankful, and then these past 2 months it has came back. I have spoken to 2 different supervisors at the toll free number and I have never been so aggravated with a company before in my life. And to top it off their customer service reps were extremely rude when speaking to me! I hope you all figure out this also.

Oh and by the way these horror stories are people here about are all over the place not just from one store! Some people are real hard to please. But theres complaints at all big named stores, and even small ones too, these ma, n pa pet stores dont have all the rules the big corps do, such as cleaning bades after each pet, they may use a kennel dryer on a dog that it not supposed to be kennel dried. and then you would you go to if there isn't a manager on duty. At big corporations theres always a manager.

It's NOT the stores fault. It never is. They hire employee's based on knowledge and skill. Also they take a test at the beginning to see if the person is stable, " a psychology assessment". If they have experiance, they get the possition as a professional pet stylist if they pass. So the hired people, grooming these dogs would be at fault, if they dont follow POLICY. Every CORP. has policies! And if you do not follow them you get FIRED! So how is this petsmarts or petcos Fault?! It's not. If an incident happens, you would get a mnger and call corprate to make sure your heard. They will always be nice and work with you. If you don't want a spciffic groomer, watch and see how the stylits groom other dogs. Stand a little far from the window though- so the animals dont get excited. You wouldn't want someone enterupting you at work right?. Then just pick another groomer, there are good people and employee's. They do a great job!

I am a very loving, gentle, and compassionate doggie groomer in Monroe Township, NJ, who does ONE APPOINTMENT AT A TIME - I have heard the most horrible things about both Petsmart and Petco's groomers. I even tell my new customers..."Even if you never use my services again - ALWAYS use a private groomer".
I've had a lot of former Petsmart/Petco grooming customers complain of injury and abuse. YOU CANNOT EXPECT PERSONAL ATTENTION AND SERVICE FROM AN ASSEMBLY LINE! These are your BABIES - don't ever take chances, and trust your gut feelings...ALWAYS!

Sandra
Oh You Dirty Dawg Grooming with LOVE!
[protected]

My little Yorkie had a grooming appt at 12:30 today and nobody called us to say he was ready. I was so mad that I sent my husband to pick him up b/c they really didn't want to be seeing me as pissed off as I was. THEN! My husband called me from Petsmart to tell me they had not done a thing to him! It's now 6:00 and my baby has not been groomed! Talk about LIVID! I don't think I have ever been so mad in my entire life. Petsmart is grooming my child as we speak while my hubby waits and it's free. But guess what!?!?!? that's not enough! I want to know how something like this can even happen?!?!?! My dog has been neglected for the past 5 hours! They all better be glad I wasn't there, b/c I'd probably be spending the night in jail! I called the manager who said that the issue would be dealt with so that this type of thing doesn't happen again to anyone. He said that he has no idea how something like this happened b/c they have checks and balances in place for this very reason. I really don't know what to do. There is nothing that they can do or say to make this any better! I'm just ready for my hubby bring my baby home to me!

POODLE:

It is rare but that can happen. I know it does seem strange but, when the nails are cut right up to the vein (quick) in the nail there can be just a thin enough layer that when that thin layer gently scraps on the concrete or asphalt, it can start bleeding. They probably cut the nail just a LITTLE bit too short. (If the nails are black it is impossible to see where the vein ends in the nail). And it isn't the worst thing to happen in the long run anyway. Because the vein will naturally receed so the next time the nail can be cut just as short with OUT bleeding ( without quicking the vein at all). When a dogs nails grow and grow and grow very long without getting cut for a long period of time vets will actually have to cut the nail short themselves (causing the nail to bleed) and cauterize it at the hospital. The substance they used was probably styptic powder (Kwik Stop). Which is commonly used on dogs, cats, and parrots. I keep a container at home just in case. =) Anyway, don't take my word for it. There is plenty of information out there in the library or the internet.

I use to work for PetSmart as a groomer and have witnessed dog abuse. A fellow employee was seen punching a dog in the face three times. Statements were given to management and the employee was issued a "final" which means that if he hits another dog he will be fired. The alleged dog abuser still works there but I do not. My resignation was put in shortly after we found out that he would still be employed as a PetSmart groomer.

I took my dog Stanley in for his nails to be clipped. Explained to the groomer that he was scared of it and she assured me that she understood and would take good care of him, and to go ahead and pay while they got started. Well, when I came back she was yelling at my dog but quickly changed her attitude when she saw me there. Afterwards, I noticed Stanley had trouble getting into the truck but attributed it to the fresh nail trim. As the night and next day progressed, we noticed he was in pain and favoring his left rear leg. Took him to the vet, which petsmart did agree to pay, and it turns out she broke his left rear leg! Petsmart is paying the vet bills, but I think we should be compensated more than that for the pain he is going through. He is my best buddy and loves riding with me in the truck, but now cant do it unless I pick him up and put him in it. Unfortunately I cant find any lawyers who will take the case because he is just a dog, not a human. I got news for these lawyers, he is much more than "just a dog"! He is my best friend and my riding buddy...

Anyone know of any lawyers in west virginia or virginia that takes animal cases?

When we picked up our female standard poodle from Petsmart grooming salon in Fayetteville, NC this afternoon 22 August 09, I was horrified ! Almost all her nails are bleeding! I went back in the grooming salon and told the lady that groomed her that her nails are bleeding and that she had cut it very short, she took my poor poodle and applied some stuff in her nails and then told me that the nails is pressing in the concrete as the dog walk thats why it bleeds. What an excuse! Jeez ...I felt so bad for my dog, , , and we just left since she cant stand this lady touching her anymore.

It is a REALLY big deal to accuse someone of dog abuse. I highly doubt the groomer was abusing your dog. And if you and your child were standing in front of the window gawking at the groomer, it most likely made her very uncomfortable. We are not a circus show. We don't get paid enough to deal with you making faces at your dog, freaking them out. And in addition, puppies are generally very difficult to groom. They are not exposed and if you baby your puppy, which I'm sure you do, they assume they can get away with everything. So they scream and wiggle, even bite, because they don't know what's going on and they think they can get it to stop. Go ahead and try to groom your own puppy, you will soon discover that it is extremely difficult.

in fact the ambient air temperature controls are in colorado, not arizona. our az salons get hot too. salons generate a lot of heat and when you have dryers, hot water, 5 plus groomers, 2+ bathers, and a combined 10 to 20+ dogs in those fishbowls, yeah... it gets HOT! but agree when it reaches temperatures of 85 tell your ceo or mod to call the a/c hotline.

'groomer' is a Petco employee (a sociopath, in fact) who is going on here to try and make PetSmart look bad. She/he/it should try cleaning up her/his/its own store before criticizing anyone else's. Also, there are far more complaints about Petco than PetSmart and PetSmart wasn't just sued (again...June 2010) and found guilty of extreme cruelty to animals.

HR for most companies are Private and outsiders cannot just call and say fire this person it hearsay. It will not hold up. First off if it was that hot the employees would be sweeting their butts of and would complain enough it would change. I think two things are going on here, 1. You are having hot flashes, or 2 the humidity is making it feel hotter than it really is. My other guess is your mad at another issue and they don't want you to come back, it could be because your asking for more than what they are providing. Kinda like paying for one scoop of ice cream and demanding 1 and a half scoops.

I used to work at petsmart and them temp in there during summer is out of control. the groomers are sweating and its so hard to do ur job when its like that. managers and corparate do not give a ### about the grooming salon . its all about the money they can make and the money they can save by letting things like this go...

The ac is actually controlled by the headquarters in Arizona, and they will not think it is hot anywhere until it is like 115 degrees because they are in Arizona.

Last year PS decided to go "green" which translates to me, saving the corp money on a/c. The salon I worked in was very uncomfortable. I told the store mgr that not only it is uncomfortable for the dogs, it makes the groomers impatient and cranky (which in turn makes the dogs difficult and thus a viscious cycle ensues, making the entire grooming experience bad for your dog and the groomers) and heats up our equipment. Corp had the managers running around taking readings of the temps and humidity in every part of the store. This battle went on all summer and nothing much was ever accomplished. All I can think of is that the store mgr in Stroudsburg was being honest with you- that corp will not pay any attention to your complaint. Fighting with corp is like beating your head on a brick wall. We had to shut off all the dryers when the temp in the back area got to 85. Problem is, it may be 75 degrees but with the tremendous amount of humidity, it feels like 100 degrees.
Complain repeatedly until you get some response and don't stop until the problem is addressed in a positive manner.

It sounds like the groomer knew it, and the incident has been covered up. I would find another place. I wouldn't take the chance that person would ever touch my dog again.

I agree, it is very dishonest that the groomers did not tell you about your pets "misbehavior." I have been grooming for the company for 5 years now and always tell people about their pets behavior, to the "t". I have been bit several times and usually you jump around and squeal like an idiot for a few minutes, then have someone help you so the dog can be groomed without injuring anyone. i.e. the groomer or the dog. If it looks like that can't be done, then I call the pet parent and explain exactly what went on and why I can't finish the pet. However; unlike most groomers that I know, I do not just write the pet off after that. I tell them to bring their pet in just to get cookies and lovin's (no grooming done at that time) to make coming to the groomer a positive experience. My salon is all about positive experiences for these pets (and pet parents, though in my mind you come second to your babies, sorry), it's nice to see that from these post from other groomers we are not the only salon that feels that way, but it is sad that all Petsmarts across the country do not seem to have that same mindset.

I am a groomer for the company for almost a year now, and previous places for the last ten years. I can also add to the previous person that sometimes it wasn't bad enough to even mention. I also like to just say that sometimes I will just tell the owner of a misbaving dog that the next time if they misbehave I will add a charge. I really don't feel right adding something if the owner doesn't know about it. I do work with someone that is what you are describing, she actually had a client today that had lots of notes and he had no idea that there were problems with the feet cause he had been told the pup was great, and she just informed him that the groom may not get done because of the muzzle rule, as well as the age rule. I also feel that the lady before me that wrote the really long note is so right, we don't have the time to give with all that we are expected to do. We are receptionist, telemarketers, stockers, and on top of that we need to fill our schedules so we can keep our jobs. It is a great oppurtunity, but it isn't for everyone and sometimes, you have to really love it. I LOVE my job and I haven't ever been bit, and rarely have problems with dogs that I can't handle, I just cuddle up with them and they just calm down and I can finish...i see people being rough with dogs and it really upsets me and I just KNOW that if you just be paitent with them they tend to relax and let you do what needs to be done.

I'm sorry that you weren't informed that your pets had seemingly, by your account, misbehaved before. It is TRUE that most groomers do not mention a pet's poor behavior for a variety of reasons - most people view their pets as their children (think about how you'd feel if your child's behavior were criticized in public), groomers who do say things in a constructive way are often dismissed by owners, and lastly they don't want to risk their tip. AS A GROOMER OF 25 YRS. I know all of the above to be true. I see dogs who have been marked yellow in the computer although the owner has never been informed. My clients know when they own a "canine terrorist" and I explain why I charge more for their dog when they pick up - it's usually a lack or breakdown of communication between owners and groomers. Saying that, I do take the time to educate the pet parents how they can help their pets' behavior (which more often than not falls on deaf ears) and I remove extra charges when there's an improvement, or more often than not, when I know a pet parent has worked with little or no success with their pet. Something else people dealing with PetSmart have to realize is that the company expects their groomers to groom 2-3 dogs in 3 hrs., only allows us to muzzle a dog for 20 minutes for the entire day, weather or not the groom is completed, stock shelves in three aisles of retail and act as telemarketers to make appts. They don't allow time for dogs that need to be handled differently - some dogs just cannot handle the crowds in the windows, kids banging on the glass, and whipping through their grooming. Terriers are tough little dogs and can be nippy, sometimes it takes just a quieter atmosphere for quite a few dogs. That's why, after two horrible years with this company, I get to walk in tomorrow and resign.

I think you did have a groomer that hated his/her job. I've been a groomer for 3 years with the company, and I never suck up to customers. If I get bit, the pet parent will know about it. I agree with the comment above. I think you should ask for the groomer who you've had experience with, or better yet, ask the salon manager to groom your dogs. They will not sugar-coat things. There are groomers working within the company that will suck up because they fear losing their job if they don't be overly nice.

Personally, I think you had a groomer that doesn't like his/her job. No, not all dogs are the best, not all dogs stand like statues, and sometimes they may nip. If they didn't tell you about an issue before...that's because, chances are, there wasn't one until that groomer got ahold of them. Not to mention...alot of times dogs react to the groomers moods. I've been a groomer for 9 years. I've seen alot of moods from groomers change the outcome of the dog's behavior, because when these dogs are too much to handle for these amateurs, when I take them...the dogs are fine. Unfortunately...Barkley and the other baby were probably ruffed up a bit by that groomer, and they retaliated. I do believe you should take them to a person you trust or just request the groomer that was doing them with no problems. You're babies will be happier for it...not to mention you're peace of mind.

A lot of the harnesses are usually easy to figure out they should be self explanatory. Also, if after on assosciate SHOWED you on the dog how to put on the harness how would you expect to figure it out any better from instructions?

If you can't figure out how to harness a dog, you probably aren't fit to own one. And if you're so stubborn that you didn't LOOK online for the 100's of videos and images that inform you of the proper way to do this... well, I feel sorry for that animal. Suck it up, be a petparent, and don't blame it on someone else. And by the way, if the employee went as far as to show you on a stunt dog how it works, that's way more service than you'd receive at Target or WalMart... what a whiner.

I think people who say "PETSMART" making an over-generalization about the company as as a WHOLE are IDIOTS. And I think you need to say MY HOMETOWN'S PetSmart, because not all PetSmarts are the same. Yours PetSmart sucks and you need to cite this in your complaint.

correction* It is a PetSmart policy that ALL dogs, including those in training courses, MUST be leashed at ALL times on the property, inside and out.

I am sorry to hear this. I am a trainer at PetSmart in Pensacola, Florida. All of our customers MUST have leashed dogs while inside the store. It is a PetSmart policy that NO dog, including those in training courses, MUST be leashed at ALL times on the property, inside and out.

Again, another impatient and ignorant customer. You answered your own complaint in what you wrote. BANFIELD = ONE COMPANY. PETSMART=ANOTHER COMPANY. When you go to Subway inside of a walmart, can you pay for your Sub at the photo department? Or can you pay for your daughters new bicyle at Subway? No. If your in a rush, do not go shopping. Front-line is not always an "over the counter" medication. Sometimes you need to fill out information regarding it. Your not buying cookies.

learn to live with it - nobody cares anymore especially the young people. everything is a chore - doing their job - is a chore...

20 years ago, people cared whether you were at mcdonalds or chevy. the kids today dont give a hoot, all they do is sit on their phones texting, complain about everything and want more more more.