Pet budget cutting
If you're like me, the household budget is getting pretty tight these days. But you don't want
to scrimp on your pet when it comes to their basic needs.
Some things are easy to cut out -- that extra holiday collar that's so cute (but clearly frivolous and unnecessary), a box of treats (that probably aren't that good for your dog anyhow).
But what about the high-quality food you want to make sure your dog or cat continues to have? My dogs both eat Innova, I use coupons and buy the 30-pound bag at a local chain pet store. But after years of hearing the buzz about Global Pet Food Outlet in Torrance, I decided to check out their prices to see if I could find a better price.
The store, at 20210 S. Normandie (at Jon Street, just south of 190th), touts the "lowest overall prices in the nation." They also deliver and say they carry "every major brand or natural dog and cat food, including organic and raw." The store advertises that it has a full stock of Eukanuba/Iams.
Besides food, they stock a large selection of toys (including Kong products), an array of nutritional supplements, treats, grooming tools and pet accessories. I didn't price check a lot of items (and wouldn't know if many of those things were cheaper without a direct comparison). But I did see a 6-foot long, heavy leather leash marked at around $20, which seemed like a pretty low price for leather.
So the bottom line is I can't vouch for their overall prices. But I can tell you this -- I saved about $10 on my bag of dog food. That's enough of a savings to send me back again. The store seems to have a very loyal clientele.
If you want to check on prices before taking a trip out there, you can call Global Pet Food Outlet at 310-327-3330. The owner was quite helpful and very willing to check prices for me in advance when I called ahead to make sure it would be worth the trip.
Hours are limited, however: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. seven days a week, but extended hours (until 6:30 p.m.) are offered on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
I found these consumer reviews online.
If you're familiar with Gobal and have been shopping there, let me know what you think.
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
wow...this is a great tip...we'll check it out
specially for cat food which seems to be going through the roof.....
Let me know how you like it -- and be sure to mention the blog to him, I don't have an email address for Global in order to send him a link (although I did sign up for the email newsletter).
I'll be calling to find out if they also have chicken feed as well as other livestock supplies. It'd be worth it to swing by when I'm visiting relatives since chicken feed has gone up so much recently.
Thanks for the great tip, however, I adore my local feed store and value their committment to the community. Family owned and staffed businesses need our support during these economic times and I don't mind cutting back on other things for myself and husband in order to pay more for the assurance of retaining a local feed store.
So, my chickens just lay more expensive boutique eggs and the dogs *ahem* output is of higher value as well. As long as I'm talking poultry, I may have to introduce you to our new rooster! Hootie is only 5 months old but has all the promise of becoming a very beautiful bird with stunning plumage. He's a reject of sorts from a friend who bought lots of pullets and got a few roosters in the mix. There is nothing like a wake up call from a proud you-know-what-word-I-want-to-use, but this young guy seems to think that the full moon setting at 3am is WAKE UP TIME! waiting for the neighbor's call.....
Thank you for the information. I checked them out today and saved about $25.00. Place was well stocked and had pricing very low on everything that I shop for. I will be going back to them about once per month.