It truly is better to give than to receive, and it’s especially nice to give to someone who will not give you a store-bought gift in return. Giving gifts to pets checks both these boxes, and pets almost always like what you give them.
Many people have very close attachments to their pets, and the feelings go both ways. In fact, some researchers opine that the bond between pets and owners is not unlike the bond between parents and children.
So, even though pets aren’t picky, it’s only natural to want the best available gift for them. Many times, a pet subscription box is a good idea. Each box is full of gifts for cats or dogs that appeal to almost all breeds. But sometimes, a more uniquely-tailored gift may be in order.
Online Pet Gifts
For many people, the internet is the best place to buy subscription boxes or any other pet gifts. The store is always open, almost never runs out of product, and usually delivers to your door.
Google Shopping is a great tool because it combines available goods from many different retailers into one place. Most purchases can be completed with a PayPal account, which makes shopping very convenient.
There are some downsides. It’s impossible to actually see what you are buying before you buy it, and many people miss that experience. The internet also robs you of the chance to interact with other people, even if it’s only a clerk behind the counter, and some people miss that interaction. One of the biggest minuses is that, unless you’re willing to pay a premium for fast shipping, the internet is no place for last-minute gifts.
Offline Pet Gifts
Most online retailers are the big national chains, like Walmart and PetSmart, or pure online retailers, like Amazon and Jet.com. There’s nothing wrong with buying from these establishments, but sometimes, it’s important to make a statement with our money.
This is the idea behind Small Business Saturday, the shopping extravaganza day squeezed between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. For many people, there are lots of advantages to buying pet gifts from small, local retailers, such as:
- One customer more or less means nothing to a Walmart manager. But that customer means something to a small business owner, and many of these owners are willing to go above and beyond to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Franchise stores ship much of their money out of the community or perhaps even out of state. But the dollars that go to local businesses may never stray too far from that neighborhood.
- PetSmarts are everywhere, but corner pet stores are hard to find. Unless shoppers spend their money in these establishments, there will be even fewer of them, and a neighborhood’s character suffers because of that loss.
Some people believe that smaller pet stores do not have the same variety of gifts as their big-box brethren. That’s true regarding the items on the shelves, but small business owners almost always order items that a customer wants but are not in stock. Try finding that level of service at Target.
A thoughtful gift helps everyone in your house have a happier holiday, no matter how they chose to celebrate it.
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