Give Your Dog Variety!

It is important for an owner to supply their puppy and dog with toys made from different types of materials for two main reasons. One is that each material will help keep the teeth and gums clean in different ways so that the pet's mouth stays healthier. Second, is that dogs like to chew things made of different materials, otherwise they can get bored chewing the same thing over and over. Think of it like this, when you were a small child, you did not want to play with the same toy over and over. You wanted a variety of toys to play with and dogs and puppies need the same thing. By providing your pet with various materials, owners may find thei pet prefers certain materials over others and therefore should buy toys that the puppy or dog likes best.

We have a variety of dog toys available for your pet. Check them out by clicking here

Halloween Pet Costume Contest

Get ready for a bark-tacular time! Bring your howlin' hounds and scaredy cats to Pet Depot on October 24th and enter them in the 1st Annual Pet Costume Contest!

Each store winner will receive a 4-5 lb. bag of Science Diet Dog or Cat Food and a $20 Pet Depot Gift Card!

Pets will be judged on creativity, originality, attention to detail, and cuteness.

Arrive early! Registration begins at 12 pm.

No purchase necessary. Pets must be on a leash or in a carrier. Contestants can enter to win at one store location only.

Store Locations - Muscle Shoals, AL Guntersville, AL Jasper, AL Cullman, AL Florence, AL Athens, AL

What's up, Doc?

There are many people that prefer raising rabbits instead of dogs or cats. This is mainly because some busy people may not be have the time to train a cat or dog. Rabbits offer the flexibility of busy pet owners to leave them safely at home while they are gone. They are very affectionate animals and make great companions. Although, they are naturally social animals, they do fine on their own as well. Two or more rabbits in a cage is often to optimal choice, as they tend to bond naturally with each other. But be sure you know the sex of the rabbits if you do not want them to reproduce!

Rabbits life expectancy is around 10-12 years. To keep your rabbit healthy, be sure to feed it a vegetarian diet that does not have a lot of calories. Foods such as grass, leaves, cabbage and spinach as a good choice for your bunny. These foods tend to be very low in calories, but also high in fiber.

Unfortunately, dental problems are one of the main causes that rabbits tend to develop health issues. So, it is important to make sure you are feeding your rabbit the nutrients it needs. Rabbits' teeth grow at a constant rate, and therefore must rely on calcium as a required nutrient. When a rabbit's diet lacks calcium, it will take the calcium from it's bones, much like how our bodies work. Since the bunny is not receiving the nutrients from the a food source, this will cause the rabbit's teeth to decay and can cause many spinal and bone problems. So, it is important to feed your rabbit a healthy, low-calorie and well-balanced diet.

Eliminating bad behaviors with toys

Toys that can have treats put inside, such as the Kong Extreme Dog Toy, that the dog must work at to get out can help eliminate bad behaviors by keeping the dogs' attention on the toy with the treats. If the dog is chewing and working hard to get the food, this means they will not be chewing furniture, barking, or doing other unwanted behaviors. Their primary focus is to get the treat or food out of that toy. In the wild, canines must work to get food. People make it easy for their pets to get food at home, therefore boredom sets in, which can lead to the bad behavioral habits, such as chewing on shoes or furniture. Owners that give their pets treats, or even their regular food, in items like toys that the pet must work at to get to the food, will have a happier and better behaved pet.


Check out our list of dog toys that will help keep your pet occupied. Our toys are very durable and can handle even the roughest dogs.

Stop your dog from jumping up or barking

There are two ways to stop a puppy from jumping up or barking. The first, for jumping up, is to turn away and completely ignore the puppy until it stops, then turn around and praise the puppy. If it starts to jump up again, turn away again, until the puppy stops. Never give a puppy any attention, good or bad, while it is jumping up or that may make them do it more. But if the praise is given every time the puppy stops, it will soon get the idea that it won't get praised and patted until it stays on all four feet. This procedure will also work for older puppies and dogs that have gotten into this bad habit, as long as everyone does it that greets the dog. If a puppy is barking and gets scolded, it may consider this good as it gives them the attention they may be craving which may have started them barking to begin with. An owner can ignore the puppy when it is barking, and then praise it, and even give it a treat, when it stops. Again, the idea is that the puppy gets positive reinforcement for not doing the bad behavior.

One other technique to stop jumping up or barking is to actually teach the puppy to jump up or bark on command. Basically, if the puppy is coming toward you and you know it is going to jump up, be sure to say the command "Jump up" before the puppy does and give it a small treat. Then back up and say the command again and give it a treat again. Go through this a few times and then stop. If the puppy tries to jump up when not commanded, turn away and ignore the puppy. until it stops. Do this training two to three times a day and the puppy will soon understand that if it is not commanded to "Jump up", it does not get rewarded, so why jump up? Once the puppy understands this, it will not jump up unless commanded to do so. This is also true with barking or any other bad habits, to teach the puppy to do it on command so then the puppy won't do it otherwise. It takes patience but to stay very consistent and you will be rewarded with a well-trained dog.

Obesity in Pets

Obesity is becoming a major problem among pets. This is mostly caused from pet owners allowing their pets to eat table scraps. Of course, that is not the only cause. Being overweight is bad for dogs and cats because they can get the same kinds of health problems as an overweight person can, such as diabetes, liver problems, and joint pain. The best way to help a pet lose weight is by using a premium weight-control diet and to follow the directions for how much to feed. An owner should also cut down or completely cut out all treats and increase the pet's exercise. A customer should be aware of some so-called diet pet foods that use fiber as a filler. This will cause a large increase in fecal matter, therefore the pet has to go out more, and the poor digestibility of the food may make it impossible for the pet to get all of its nutritional needs met. Premium foods simply lower the amount of calories in the food so an owner can still fill the bowl but not cause excessive stools or loss in nutritional value. Although it is somewhat easy to tell if your pet is overweight or not, it is best to check with your vet to see if your cat or dog needs to be put on a diet.

New Lower Price on the PetSafe Wireless Dog Fence!

PetSafe Wireless Dog Fence

NEW LOWER PRICE!! $229.95