Critter Jungle

I’ve been shopping at Critter Jungle since 2006 and have always found the staff very helpful and pleasant.
Today I went to pick something up for my pet, and I observed a young immigrant man walk into the store to ask if they were hiring. Before the door even closed behind him, the staff person started berating him to her coworkers (and what looked to be a sales rep or possibly another customer). Essentially, she was ranting about the young man coming in to inquire about a job while holding a plastic grocery bag, but clearly she had an issue with him personally.
After I left the store, I took my purchase out the car and debated about what I should do. I didn’t want to go in and create a scene, and based on the conduct I had just observed I wasn’t sure if filling a complaint was worthwhile. After a few minutes I went back in to return the item and when I inquired if the staff person I had seen earlier was the owner, the individual at the cash confirmed that indeed yes she was.
I’m truly disappointed in what I witnessed today and I will never shop there again.

Been going to critter jungle for some time now.
Staff is great, pets they sell are healthy.
Staff is knowledgeable about the pets.
Prices are fair for a quality product.

This is a great pet store for your furry friend. They have a wide variety of high quality food and toys. Their staff are all friendly and you can tell they’re all real fond of the animal persuasion.
Bought a new harness for my dog without him and after getting home wasn’t happy with how it fit. At least it was too big, we wouldnt want to give the poor guy a complex about his weight, the dogs. They took it back for a full refund no questions asked. Well I guess there were some questions, he asked why I was returning it. And after explaining it to him, the reason for the return, he didn’t fuss about it any further. Which I guess when you get down to the meat and potatoes of it all is even better than a ‘no questions asked’ in the first place. The former being that even after his inquiry as to the reason for its return, the harness, he let the return proceed as if no questions were even asked toward the reason in the first place, for the return. I wondered if he was even interested in the reason I was returning it, the harness, or was just more using his question as a form of idle chit chat. Although, I do suspect he would have been greatly interested if the reason for returning it were that it was broken or otherwise rendered defective. This being he could send it back to the manufacturer, or maybe in this case just the distributor, for a full refund or for what is becoming all too common nowadays, credit towards future merchandise. Fortunately it didn’t need to make it’s way back to the distributer, or the manufacturer, but just a few short feet over to the right, back on the shelf with its other countrymen. It was more of a hook protruding from a peg board end display than a run of the mill shelf. A whole wall of hooks actually, overflowing with harnesses.

I have always had a great experience with Critter Jungle and often drive out of my way to go there. The staff is always knowledgeable and if they don’t know the answer, they find a staff member who does. The prices are great and they often give food samples if you are interested in trying a different food.
I have recommended them quite a few times to friends who were having health issues with their dogs and they came back with great responses. Even if you can’t visit their store, give them a call and they are extremely helpful over the phone, even if you aren’t a customer. They are a huge supporter of rescues and can be found at a lot of local dog events. I don’t trust very many pet stores opinions when it comes to my dog but they are one of the few who I would go to for any kind of advice!

I recently went to this store to purchase all the things required for a proper small crab habitat. I went there knowing what I wanted and had a list, expecting to have to do all the work myself as with a lot of pet stores I’ve been to in the past, but this wasn’t the case at all.
Once I asked about terrariums and hermit crabs, their resident hermit crab expert came to help me, his name was John.
What impressed me most was the service wasn’t about a sale. I ended up spending less thanks to John’s help, but still getting top quality products for my crabs. As he was very well informed and an owner of a little crab colony himself, he knew exactly what I did and didn’t need.
I can happily say with his guidance my crab habitat is absolutely ideal. Perfect temperature and humidity level (80%!) and the crabs seem very happy. If you’re interested in purchasing hermit crabs I very much recommend this store above other pet store chains. The crab I purchased that day is very friendly and brave, clearly very well cared for before he came into my care.
I will continue to shop here and recommend them to all my friends.

Good pet store. Heavily support rescues in the area and are very knowledgable about many different products and do offer high quality food and treats. Great an friendly staff.

My darling roommate and I have a handsome cat, he’s a long haired black cat… he kind of looks like the dragon, Toothless, from How To Train Your Dragon, but smaller, and furry! Over the summer months, he gets really hot, and it’s kind of hard to manage… So! we got him shaved, like a lion!
I have driven past this store on a weekly basis, since I was 10, but don’t ever remember going in before! I found it hard to find a cat shaving business in Ottawa, even with Unilocal.Critter Jungle has the service and is close to my house — which is great because I don’t think Dex would like a long drive after I got his fur buzzed off!
I called in the morning to make an appointment for the afternoon. I showed up a bit (15 mins) early and ended up waiting for about 30…
The woman was nice enough, she had two dogs in with her, one was being picked up, and the other was hers. which was different…
My cat has never been shaved before, and was not a happy camper after about 5 minutes… this lady did a great job on him, until he scratched the shit out of her!
I’m talking blood running down her arm! It was everywhere! I felt bad for her, but she knew what she was getting into when she saw my little dragon cat! No gloves either… which struck me strange…
It was a little pricey, but overall, a decent experience, she missed some bits, but I probably would too if my cat did to me what he did to her! Ahh!
I might go back, but his fur has just grown back in fully, so as long as we keep him brushed all handsome and stuff, we wont have to force him through that experience again… although he looked great as a lion!

There’s a million pet stores in Ottawa, but Critter Jungle is by far my favourite place to visit. The displays always have some enticing adorable accessories (just today I saw a Croc-​shaped pet bed — heck yes!), but this place is not all about window dressings — they have insanely knowledgeable staff, holistic food, and great selection for your little fur babies.
I used to hesitate visiting local pet stores because I thought the bigger retailers had more selection and lower prices. Dumb idea. Prices at Critter Jungle are totally fair, and boy do they love their animals! One of the owners is usually on site and loves to chat about your pet (shocking — they knew Finn was a corgi right away, not some «dachshund-​german shepard mix» like some other «pet stores!»). Their passion for animals is evident — they’re very passionate about pet rescue and natural food choices (which is evident by the crazy amount of holistic products they stock!).
When Finn was a puppy there gave me a ton of food sample so we could check out what he liked best. Normally, I’d reserve this treatment for a real child, but Finn’s kind of a diva sometimes, and this was really helpful. We noticed a huge change is his coat and teeth and when we talked to the staff they were genuinely thrilled to help.
Critter Jungle also offers grooming services which we’ve yet to try, but I’m sure they’re quality of care and customer service extends to that realm as well. I’ll update once we’ve gone a couple times.
If you’re looking for a place to find great pet toys and accessories, knowledgeable staff and a great natural food selection don’t pass this place up. The store is tucked away in Hampton Park Plaza just past Carling and Kirkwood.