Year of mixed fortunes for Pets at Home
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It hasn't all been good news for Pets at Home this year. Back in September the BBC's consumer Watchdog programme exposed serious cases of poor animal care at several Pets at Home stores...
Watchdog reported on two cases of ringworm in guinea pigs sold to Watchdog viewers while in a separate incident two rabbits died soon after they were bought by a member of the public from a Pets at Home store.
A Watchdog team then went undercover in eight of the company's stores and found fish suffering from disease. In one store there were 10 dead fish in a tank. Small animals were also filmed in a poor state of health.
Watchdog employed the services of Mike Jessop, a former President of the Small Animal Veterinary Association.
On the programme he claimed: "I believe Pets at Home are in breach of several codes by which they are regulated. These codes are in place for animal welfare.
"The company seem to have too many animals. They should either increase their staff and training or decrease the number of animals."
Watchdog quoted Pets at Home CEO Nick Wood as saying the report was a huge concern for everyone at the company. Pet welfare was at the heart of everything they did, and they deeply regretted any instances of failing to meet their exacting standards.
Based on the Watchdog findings Pets at Home were reported to be reviewing health check training, increasing fish tank checks plus monitoring and improving stores and training.
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