No Price Increase On Most Livefood Items

As with all businesses, decisions have to be regularly made on pricing of products. Costs are increasing all the time; cost of raw materials, cost of energy, cost of utilities, cost of transport, cost of wages. Unlike some large businesses such as supermarkets (who can often dictate to the supplier what price they are willing to pay and even charge suppliers for the privilidge of stocking their products) we have to pay the prices our suppliers demand. We can sometimes negotiate discounts for products we sell in volume and we belong to various wholesaler schemes that provide promotional offers. These discounts and offers we pass directly on to our customers, members of our emailing list, followers of our Facebook page and this blog will be familiar with our regular monthly offers and discounts. However price increases happen every year, often more frequently with some suppliers, and we have to make decisions on how to handle the increases.

Where we can, we always look first to absorb cost increases into our business. There are a number of ways this can be done and we always exhaust all of these methods first. However, once these are exhausted we have no option but to pass on some of the increase to our customers. We never want to do it but some times it is unavoidable. It is only ever done as a response to genuine increases in cost to our business and in response to justifiable increases by our suppliers. In some cases, where we have felt supplier increases have not been justified and an element of unfair market manipulation has been at work, we have stopped stocking that suppliers products, rather than colaborate in overcharging our customers.

livefood

We have recently been informed of what we consider to be a justifiable increase in cost by our livefood supplier. The cost to us for livefood has not increased for a number of years, in fact it actually went down due to improved volume discount a few years ago, a reduction we passed on in full in our own pricing. However the suppliers costs have been steadily increasing over this period. Like us they have done a number of things to avoid passing on these increases but are now at a point where they can no longer do this. Some of their cost figures are eyewatering. They have absorbed increases in production costs over the last decade of a whopping 42%, without passing any of this on. This feat has been acheived by efficiencies, market growth (higher sales volumes) etc.. Unfortunately with the recent increase in the National Minimum Wage and other increases in feed and energy costs they are forced to increase their prices to us. Whilst most of the increases on their high volume items are relatively small (2.3% for prepacked locusts for example), some of the more exotic, small volume items are quite large (10% for dubia roaches).

livefood

So, what do we do? Just pass on the increases to our customers so it remains viable for us to sell these products but lose customers? Absorb the costs and keep our prices the same but go out of business because we no longer have money to pay our own costs (rent, energy, utilities, insurances , suppliers , etc, etc.). In the end our only sensible option is to anaylse each product range in turn and come up with a compromise.

livefood

From the end of May then, there will be a new pricelist for livefood and I am pleased to announce that the higher volume items such as crickets and locusts will not be increasing in price at all. They will be staying at £1.99 a tub. However some of the lower volume sellers will have to go up a little. For example dubia roaches will increase to £2.75, although lobster roaches will remain at £2.49.

livefood

It is never a good thing to increase prices but we do feel that these supplier increases are justified this time round and that our livefood quality remains the best around. We do not just receive it from our supplier, stick it on the shelf and hope it sells before it dies. We look after our livefood, feeding every couple of days (yes it is very fiddly and time consuming but worth it), cleaning out old food and any dead insects, keeping numbers in tubs up by recombining tubs where necessary and controlling temperature to ensure the food is in the best condition possible for your reptile, spider or whatever. Also we do have our loyalty scheme. This means participating customers get an additonal 2.5% off everything they buy when their poiints accumulate. So we are confident we still offer the best value for money on livefood.

So apologies for the small increases in price of some products but remember NO INCREASE in price of locusts, crickets, mealworms, morioworms and waxworms..

Livefood deliveries during the autumn/winter

Our Angell Pets FREE local livefood deliveries in Gloucester, Cheltenham and Painswick are very popular. During the warmer months we are happy to leave the deliveries in a secure location, by prior arrangement, if the customer is out.

livefood

However as the nights draw in and during the colder months this is not possible as the insects would likely die before being brought in by the customer. So with this in mind and wishing all our orders to remain in tip top condition, could all customers ordering livefood for FREE local delivery please ensure they request delivery for an evening they know they will be in to receive it.

From now until the mid spring we cannot leave any livefood deliveries in outside locations (recycling bins, outside storage cupboards etc.) if a customer is out. We will still attempt to redeliver the order during the next delivery slot for that area, as per our delivery policy but we cannot just leave the orders outside to spoil.

Obviously this only affects livefood (and already is the case for frozen food orders). Packaged pet foods and non perishable goods can still be left in a secure location by prior arrangement.

Thank you for your understanding.

The Angell Pets Team

Livefood down in price at Angell Pets

Livefood prices are following the general trend of negative inflation that we have seen over the past few weeks. We have negotiated a better deal with our suppliers and are passing on the savings to our customers.

livefood

Our livefood prices have not increased in the past five years. This is the first price change we have had on this essential item and we are pleased to say it is down.

The new livefood price list is as follows:-

Crickets now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Locusts now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Waxworms now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Mini Mealworms Now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Mealworms now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Morio worms now £1.99 (REDUCED from £2.75)

Calci worms now £2.99 (REDUCED from £3.07)

Bean Weevils now £2.99 (REDUCED from £3.83)

Fruit Fly cultures now £2.99 (REDUCED from £3.83)

Tropical Woodlice now £2.99 (REDUCED from £3.83)

Whiteworm culture now £2.99 (REDUCED from £3.83)

Springtails NEW £2.49

Pachnoda (fruit beetle lavae) now 2.99 (REDUCED from £4.24)

With the recent 40% price reduction of the price of jelly pots, this makes buying and keeping your livefood a whole lot cheaper.

Don’t forget all livefood can still be delivered locally FREE OF CHARGE as well and we are renouwned for the quality of our livefood. We feed the livefood boxes three times a week to keep them in tip top condition. None of this will change, it’s just the price that has come down.

The Angell Pets Team

 

Angell Pets Easter Opening Times

Angell Pets are open as usual all over the Easter weekend.

Angell Pets

Angell Pets

The opening hours for Angell Pets for the weekend are as follows:-

Good Friday – 10am – 4pm

Saturday 19th April – 9am – 6pm

Sunday 20th April – 10am – 4pm (normal Sunday hours)

Easter Monday – 10am – 4pm

Tuesday 22nd April – back to normal hours – 9am – 6pm.

On line orders will processed as normal but deliveries will obviously be affected by the Easter break.

So pop in and see us at Angell Pets over the weekend for everything for your pet. For dogs and cats, birds, small mammals and rabbits, fish, reptiles, spiders and other invertebrates, accessories, enclosures food and more. If you can’t see it, we can probably get it in for you. Alternatively visit us at Angell Pets online.

The Angell Pets Team

Pet shop closed for the holiday period?

Pet shop closed ? Does your local pet shop close over the holiday period? Many small independent pet shop businesses close over Christmas and new year, just at the time when their customers need them most.

pet shop gloucester

We are closed for Christmas day and most of Boxing day and most of New Years day (see my blog for exceptions). I work seven days a week and these are my only three days off a year. However I make sure that we are available through our online pet shop during these periods and that we are open on every other day of the holidays.

A lot of small pet shop owners complain about the challenges facing their business in the modern world then refuse to take the steps necessary to protect their pet shop from those challenges. They complain about big chains being open longer but won’t open seven days a week or on bank holidays or over the Christmas period. They complain about online pet supermarkets; faceless, uncaring giants that do not know anything about their products (all valid commentary) but then fail to invest in an online pet shop presence to compete with them(and in fact compete very well as they would be able to offer the help, advice, additional services and customer service the big pet shop companies and warehouses cannot).

Well we are a different sort of independant pet shop. We open when we are needed, we have an excellent online pet shop, we have an active Facebook page to interact with customers that can’t make it into the shop and we deliver free to our local community, offer nail clipping for small animals for only £1 with a free health check, free water testing (by someone who lectured on water quality on a diploma course not some little Saturday person who doesn’t know one piece of very soft anatomy from a bonier bit), offer micro chipping and lots of free advice. We support our local community with school talks and community events, charity prizes and free advertising of charity events.

Over the past few years (we have been open over 4 years now and we opened in the very depths of the recession too) we have seen independent pet shops close all over the country in the face of growing competition from pet superstores etc. (you know the ones) that should not be able to hold a candle to the small independent pet shop (and in reality everyone knows they can’t), and online warehouses. In all case, including that of friends of ours, none of them have taken up the challenge and put things in place to protect their business.

How many had an active Facebook page (so often, when I’ve talked to business owners they said things like “I don’t see the point” or have bothered to find out how to use it properly)? How many had an online pet shop or anything more than just a one page site with the business name and address on it. I was going to say better than nothing but not really. If it is not an actively updated page it may as well not exist, it won’t come up in any searches (unless someone was searching for that specific business name). How many still didn’t open on Sundays and bank holidays? How many closed at 5pm so anyone on their way home from work couldn’t just pop in and get their supplies? How many didn’t do free deliveries from their pet shop to their local community and so missed out on all those customers that just couldn’t make it in when the shop was open or found the shop just that little too far to travel?

Again our pet shop is different. That is why, to use terms you hear on the business slot on breakfast TV every day, our total sales and market share have continued to grow ever since we opened and with the launch of our online store, backed up with the knowledge of our staff on the products we sell, continues to grow almost daily.

So thank you to our regular pet shop customers who remain incredibly loyal, welcome to our new customers, online, on Facebook, on the telephone or on foot and we look forward to seeing you all in the new year if we don’t see you in our open pet shop between now and then. We have ordered in extra stock of all the best selling products to cope with the normal rush from customers who usually go elsewhere but can’t because they are closed or have run out.

Have a great Christmas and a prosperous New Year everyone.

The Angell Pets Team

Angell Pets Christmas Opening Times

Angell Pets is OPEN over the Christmas and New Year holiday period. We close for only three days a year. Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day. We are OPEN every other day of the year.

Angell Pets co

Angell Pets Christmas opening times are as follows:-

Christmas Eve – 9am – 6pm

Christmas Day – CLOSED

Boxing Day – CLOSED (I will be at the shop for one hour from 11am to 12 noon feeding the animals if you are really stuck)

Friday 27th December – 10am – 4pm

Saturday 28th December – 9am – 6pm

Sunday 29th December – 10am – 4pm

Monday 30th December – 9am – 6pm

Tuesday 31st December – 9am – 6pm

New Years Day – CLOSED (again I will be in for an hour at 11am to feed the animals)

Thursday 2nd January – back to normal hours (9am to 6pm Mon – Sat, 10am to 4pm Sunday).

Any online orders will be picked and packed as normal but will be subject to Parcel Force’s own Christmas shutdown. Any Angell Pets online orders for FREE local delivery will be picked and delivered on days (evenings) when we are OPEN.

We will be delivering FREE to GL1, GL2, GL3 and GL4 post codes right up to Christmas Eve. So if you forget some one or need a last minute present or bag of dog food, order online or give Angell Pets a call to place your order and get it delivered FREE.

Giant centipede care sheet

Giant centipede – these fearsome beasts are becoming ever more popular as hobby species. In the past nearly all were wild caught specimens and as such something we do not sell. However a growing number of captive bred animals are now avaiable as hobbyists improve their knowledge of these facinating creatures and replicate conditions necessary for breeding the giant centipede.

ALL species of giant centipede are venomous, some very venomous. Deaths from bites are very rare and normally effect young. old or sick people but even if not fatal they are very painful and are medically significant. To add to this, the animals are very fast and generally very aggressive, our advice is DO NOT handle a giant centipede, always feed with tongs (nice long ones!) and execute extreme care when opening their enclosure. Obviously a giant centipede is not for the beginner and we would recommend them only for those people used to dealing with fast, aggressive but perhaps less venomous creatures (some of the old world tarantulas spring to mind).

The giant centipede is a bit of an anomoly. They burrow through the litter and top soil hunting their prey. They seem to “like” feeling something brushing against them, (a hide of some sort is recommended) and yet they will spend a lot of time out in the open: similar to the giant white knee tarantula, so they also make good display animals in any collection.

The giant centipede gets big (20cm+ with some species) and requires an enclosure that is at least twice the length of the adult giant centipede in both dimensions, bigger if possible. They are ground living but can climb up the corners (using the silicone for support) so a secure lid is a ‘must have’. No gaps – they WILL get out. There have been reports of them chewing out of thin plastic pots, so if using these type of pots with “pederlings” we would recommend “double bagging”: use a smaller pot inside a bigger one so you will still have a captive giant centipede if it gets throught the first pot. Have some height to the enclosure. It is not necessary for the health of the giant centipede but it is necessary for your health. They are fast and may well run up the side (if the height is less than the length of the giant centipede) to come and get you (or at least to make a break for it). Consider yourself informed of the risks.

giant centipede

 

I won’t suggest what substrate you SHOULD use for a giant centipede, but alternatives to consider are coir, coir mixed with orgainic soil, a mix containing vermiculite etc. ProRep make a good substrate for spiders called “Spider Life” which also works really well. It can retain moisture but will discourage fungal growth, which is a good thing! You can add leaf litter for authentisity if you like (I do like a natural looking enclosure for my animals).

As with tarantulas a giant centipede gets most of its moisture from its food but do put in a shallow dish. I like the micro bowls for smaller specimens and the small/medium bark bowls for the larger ones. Remember, a hide is a ‘must have’. A flat piece of cork bark works well and is nice and cheap. Other than those listed, you don’t really need anything else in the enclosure for your giant centipede.

The giant centipede comes from tropical regions around the world: this means the climate is warm and humid. Humidity can be easily maintianed by deliberately overflowing the water bowl (slightly) and intermittent gentle misting (generally a couple of times a week should surfice, but just monitor the humdity to make sure and don’t over do it and stress out the centipede). A heat mat is probably the gentlest way to heat a giant centipede enclosure; it will also cause one patch of the substrate to dry giving a mixture of micro environments (wetter around the water bowl, dry around the heat mat) and a temperature gradient. This allows the giant centipede to choose where it wants to be rather than having to stay too damp or too dry, both of which could be a problem during its moult. A rough temperature of 75 -85 centigrade is what you are aiming for (too high and the giant centipede will dry out and not be able to moult properly) too low and it will not metabolise properly. Humidity needs to be around 75 – 80% and is particularly important for pederlings of most species. Too low and again dessication will occur, too high and mould, fungus, mites etc start to infest and this is seriously detrimental to the health of the centipede.. Humdity can be adjusted by the size of the water dish, misting frequency, cover of the ventilation grills etc.

Giant centipede

 

Giant centipedes are voracious carnivores. They actively hunt anything from small insects to mice and lizards. Don’t feed anything too large (no larger that half its length, maximum), live insects are fine (micros for very small pederlings), you can go up to mice for the real big ones. I shouldn’t have to point out that feeding live mice is illegal (UK) and is the realm of the fool who wants to “show off”. There is no need to do it. Always use tongs or tweezers if feeding directly. If you put in live insects and they are still there after a couple of days take them out. Your giant centipede could be getting ready to moult and during this time is very vulnerable to attack from prey species (who may themselves by carnivorous). Never leave dead or rotting food in the enclosure. It should be warm and humid in there and this is just the right conditions for some nasty fungii and bacteria to flourish, putting your treasured giant centipede at risk. Keep the enclosure clean.

Just a quick word on species. The commonest genus of giant centipede found in shops is Scolopendra. This genus contains a number of species and sub species of giant centipede found right round the world, some naturally, some introduced. Variation amongst single species is also common. This makes the giant centipede very hard to identify. Species and sub species classifications change with research. Two dark giant centipedes could be different species, two that are different colours could be the same species. Often the actual differences that seperate them are very small (microscopic) and can only really be seen on dead specimens (it may be differences in teeth and you would’t want to be checking those on a live one!). For this reason mistakes in classification are common and any species name should be taken as given in good faith but possibly wrong. As more captive bred specimens arrive on the market this should improve.

 

The Angell Pets Team

 

 

Online pet store launched today

Online pet store for all your pet supply needs with a company you can trust.

We have been working on providing an online pet store service for our customers who live too far away to make it into our store but still want to use a pet shop with a reputation for caring for our customers animals. The site was launched today.

online pet store

 

Orders generated from our online pet store will be received in our Gloucester pet shop and picked and packed by our experienced staff from our shop stock (not from a warehouse by a nameless picker on minumum wage with no interest in your order). Orders will then be dispatched the next morning by one of our couriers.

The online pet store site is new and still needs alot of tinkering, more photos, some technical changes to the price displays etc. but it is now live and reporting to our shop system. Some stuff might move around the site as these changes are put in place but the main structure is there.

One thing you will quickly notice is that livestock can’t be purchased with a “click” of the mouse from our online pet store. We strongly believe that buying an animal needs a proper dialogue between the seller and the buyer. If you select livestock you will be directed to call us to discuss the sale. The on line pet store site will however let you know just what we have in stock and some of what we can get.

Our range is large and getting larger every day. My next task is to get all of the stock in the shop on the online pet store site. All of our main sellers are there but we have a lot of other stock that we order less frequently still to be put on, so if you can’t find what you want this week, check back as it may just suddenly appear. Of course you can always give us a ring and we can get in what you need (if we don’t already have it).

We pride ourselves that we stock all the good big brands and a lot of smaller brands that you may not see elsewhere. You may find us light on some of the  “supermarket brands” on our online pet store. This is because we stock products that offer quality at good prices. Low quality products that in many cases do not suit the animal are not what we are about. We do have a couple of the obvious ones but that’s just so we can ask the customer that comes in why they are using such a product and then help them find a better, often cheaper alternative.

So have a look round, contact us if you need clarification on a product before buying and enjoy our new online pet store.

 

The Angell Pets Team

Livefood protein and fruit jelly pots

Livefood jellies to prolong the life of the insects. These convenient jelly pots can be fed to livefood or directly to reptiles. Either way your lizard is getting the full benefit of these nutritious feeding solutions.

Livefood at pet shop Gloucester

The pots can be used with the single or double holders to mount inside a glass vivarium to feed geckos or inside livefood keepers, Alternatively just invert the egg carton in a box of livefood and they fit snugly and provide an excellent food and water source greatly extending the life of the insects.

The pots sell for 99p each or 50p each when purchased with a box of livefood and come in five different flavours. The protein gel pot is best for keeping livefood alive over an extended period and will allow them to grow.

Just ask at the till when you next purchase your livefood.

The Angell Pets Team.

Pet Shop Gloucester January Offers

We have some really great pet shop Gloucester offers from Best Pets this month.

Some of our most popular lines are at fantastic prices. Click the link below for the offers.

Best Pets January

 See you in our pet shop Gloucester soon and a happy new year

Pet shop Gloucester

The Angell Pets Team