Rawkstar Retailer – Pet Extravaganza
Not Just Pet Food…Pet Nutrition!
History of Pet Extravaganza
Opened 19 years ago by Terry and Lynne who still run the store today alongside their son Wade. They had been showing dogs for 30 years before taking on the venture of opening up their own pet store, but a twist of events ended up with both of them laid off at the same time. They wanted to do something they both liked together – which was working with dogs. This is what started Pet Extravaganza. They didn’t know a whole lot outside of they loved dogs but they just started and continued to learn along the way which propelled them forward. Terry said he remembered talking to a rep at the beginning about age expectancy with dogs saying “I don’t understand why they are able to live 14-16 years in other countries but in the States, they only live until 9”. The rep told him it was what we put in the food – the additives.
The Change
They did a little experiment on a 7-year-old that ended up living until 14! This really put things in perspective for them and they got really serious about learning about pet food and what they were feeding and recommending their customers to feed their pets. Terry then went to Pet nutritionist schooling. A little after his schooling he met a holistic vet who wanted to quiz him one time on what he really knew. Terry claimed that he knew more than the vet with the specific food and nutrition education he had. But she said “You’re not using raw right?” which sparked a whole new level for him. 6 or 7 years ago began their journey with raw. A couple of years ago a dog was taken to the vet with a sprained leg, but the vet said it was bone cancer – said he needed to put her down which was not what they wanted to do. He got a couple of opinions and after hearing so much about Raw, he decided he would put it to the test. Put her on raw and she lived 7 and ½ years longer than expected. All their big dogs are on raw now. “I understand raw is expensive, but some are better than nothing – do what you can afford. After time they will start seeing things change – energy, coat, brightness in eyes, entirely changed dog and once they start seeing it, they’ll say ‘wow'” (Terry).
What makes Pet Extravaganza unique?
What sets Pet Extravaganza apart in its area is Terry’s extensive nutritional training and knowledge he has. Not many, if any, in the area have trained and studied the nutritional aspects of pet food. With all this knowledge he has been able to gain a lot of trust in the community and local veterinarians trust him and send people to his store for recommendations on pet food. “When I have a dog with a problem come in, I am able to help them” (Terry).
Why bring in Northwest Naturals?
Why? Melissa had been riding me pretty hard – they had a bunch of other brands but not us. Well at the time people wanted non-HPP. They went back and forth for years. She brought in something that showed the HPP process and he discovered he actually had no idea what HPP actually was. She gave him a bag and that’s all it took. They loved it. Persistent and patient. USDA inspector is on-site at all times. Human-grade processor. Not everyone is aware of this so this blows people’s minds. 9x out of 10 switches people over.
What’s your favorite NWN product?
“Personally, the Bars Bulk because we are going through so much with so many dogs, especially large dogs. For smaller dogs is Freeze Dried because it’s so easy. All of our dogs are in show competitions across the country so we travel a lot and the Freeze Dried is great to travel with – easy to serve, light packaging, no need to refrigerate. And the recipes are the same between the Frozen and Freeze Dried recipes so I don’t need to worry about transitioning them” (Terry).
Come see Terry!
“We are a little store. I am usually the one that is here. So if you come in, you will most likely see me and I always have dogs with me. We’re not afraid to talk to you. We specialize in Holistic, All natural pet food and treats, Toys for the Extreme chewers, Grooming supplies, and Pet accessories.”
Website: https://pet-extra.3dcartstores.com/