After working in the pet industry for a dozen years, Dylan Carter jumped on the idea of owning a store that provides the pets of Woodland better nutrition in their diets.
“I think that people are starting to come around to the idea that you take care of your dog the same way you would take care of yourself,” Carter said. “The cleaner [the food] you feed, the longer you live. If you feed processed foods or high sugar foods and things like that, they’re not good for you, and so just feeding a good, clean food will give a dog or cat or gerbil a much longer, happier life.”
Carter and his wife, Melissa Curry, opened Hometown Pets in Woodland last April. When the husband and wife duo first opened their pet supply store, they said they left spaces on shelves to add products community members requested. Now, Carter pointed out, they will need more shelves as they continue to meet customer requests.
Carter said he also wanted to open a pet store in Woodland so people didn’t have to drive so far to get healthy pet food. As well, along with the hassle, most pet food found in non-pet specific stores are not what a carnivore needs, he said.
“We focus on nutrition, so all of our foods that we have are selected for a particular reason,” Carter said. “Most of the foods that you could buy at a grocery store, probably half of them that you buy at the big box stores, all have corn, wheat or soy. Carnivores don’t need those things. They don’t process those things, and so none of our foods have corn, wheat or soy.”
Carter and his wife also pride themselves on creating a true hometown atmosphere, starting when a customer walks in.
On Wednesday, Aug. 21, Carter said a customer earlier in the day shared that they went to a larger pet store in the morning, walked around for an hour and received no help from an employee.
“We welcome everyone in as soon as the door opens. We’re ready to help,” Carter said. “So I think that’s a big difference. We’re hands on, we cater to particular needs and particular dogs and cats …”
The food that the store carries caters to overweight pets, underweight pets and more expansive needs at a cost that is affordable. Along with dogs and cats, Carter said they carry items for rodent pets, as well. They said an expansion into reptile foods could happen someday, with Curry adding that sourcing live reptile food is not as easy as they expected.
Since opening a little over four months ago, community feedback has been positive, they said.
“People love it, and I think they tell their family, their friends, their neighbors, and so we get a lot of people that come in and say, ‘Oh, my neighbor shops here and we thought we’d come in,’ or, ‘My groomer told us about you,’ ” Carter said.
As of Friday, Aug. 23, the Hometown Pets store has received 11 five star reviews on Google.
Along with nutritious food items, the store also offers toys, cat towers, treats and more.
Hometown Pets is located at 1251 Lewis River Road, Suite A, in Woodland and is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Follow the store at its Facebook and Instagram pages, or call 360-938-2023 for more information.
