More than 60 percent of RVtravel.com readers shop at Walmart in a typical month, according to a recent RVtravel.com poll. And about the same percentage travel with a pet, mostly dogs and cats (sometimes both).
What do these RVers do about medical care for those pets when away from their hometown vets? Well, Walmart is providing at least one answer especially well-suited to RVers.
Today, Oct. 8, Walmart announced key expansions to its core pet care offerings — opening new Walmart Pet Services centers to widen access to in-person and virtual veterinary care, pet prescription delivery, grooming services, pet food and supplies. The newest locations will open within the next month in:
Cumming, Georgia
Alpharetta, Georgia
Glendale, Arizona
Chandler, Arizona
Mesa, Arizona
All locations offer reasonable pricing and build on the success of the Dallas, Georgia, pilot as new and returning customers seek care for their pets.
The pet category continues to be one of the most dynamic in retail, with a projected annual spending growth of 7% by 2030 and household expenses expected to reach $1,445 per pet by 2026. Veterinary services are now the second largest pet spending category after consumables and is expected to see continued growth as pet owners prioritize their pets’ well being.
Walmart Pet Services centers will continue to offer routine veterinary care (vaccines, wellness exams and minor medical services), and grooming (baths, nail trims, teeth cleaning, ear cleaning and basic hair trims), with services provided by experienced veterinary and grooming professionals in collaboration with PetIQ.
Walmart has plans to continue to expand its Pet Services centers, with ambitions to introduce the model to more communities in the future.
In addition, starting October 18, Walmart will officially launch its Walmart+ benefit with Pawp. This new online pet care service will give Walmart+ members free, 24/7 access to a team of veterinary professionals with unlimited free visits via text or video. This benefit helps pet owners quickly address their pets’ health concerns from anywhere (handy for RVers, for sure).
Walmart also recently expanded its Pet Pharmacy Services, providing customers across the country with a seamless and convenient, low-cost solution for pet prescriptions – delivered straight to their doorstep, whether home or RV. Walmart customers can continue to fill pet prescriptions in stores.
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Thank you, RV Travel! 🙂 This is good to know. We rarely travel long enough at any one time that we have to go to a vet other than dog #3’s vet at home. But, good to know that we have more choices while traveling. Thanks again, have a great day, and safe travels! 🙂
There’s a lot of things at Walmart but having a vet clinic would be my last choice to visit I don’t see top choices in vet selections. So it’s a no go for me.
Our local Walmart in. Chesapeake, VA built a veterinary clinic in the area where a nail salon went out of business. It set there for months, never opened and eventually closed down. We never heard why. We have had to find a vet while traveling with our 2 dogs but would never go to a Walmart.
Hopefully; Walmart’s pet care is affordable. I believe many pets are turned in because people can’t afford veterinary care and dod food. Dog food is expensive anymore. every-time we take one of our dogs to the vet. It’s a couple hundred dollars. Plus the vets aren’t open on weekends when it seems like they get sick.