“Baby budgies, talking strain, in cobalt blue, green and turquoise. Also cages and stands, gold fish and turtles and all pet supplies. Harris Flower Shop.”
In 1950, when Harris Flowers placed their ad in the Barrie Examiner, they were blending the sale of pets into their existing florist business, something that was quite common at the time.
In larger centres, like Toronto, stores dedicated solely to the sale of pets and supplies could be found but Barrie, and other smaller towns, simply didn’t have the clientele to support such an enterprise.
Not so many years ago, the idea of a pet animal was somewhat of a luxury. While good companions, a dog or cat was expected to do something in return for its keep. Dogs guarded the home, protected or herded livestock and assisted the hunter while cats were supposed to keep the home relatively free of rodents.
Either of these animals could easily be obtained by visiting a local farm. It was during the post Second World War years that local folks began to become more interested in having certain breeds of dogs or cats and so the role of the breeder came to the forefront.
As the middle class rose, it was no longer just members of Barrie’s wealthiest families who could afford to keep an animal purely for companionship. A small amount of disposable income could allow someone to keep a fish or canary in the tiniest dwelling.
In 1955, Brown & Co., farm feed and seed dealers in Barrie since 1871, added some new items to their usually mundane inventory just in time for Christmas. Apparently, the unashamed pampering of pets had arrived in Barrie, as this ad in the Barrie Examiner shows.
“Pet Owners, may we draw your attention to the following. Christmas dog stockings, Christmas cat stockings, Christmas canary stockings, Christmas budgie stockings, leashes, blankets, leads, baskets, collars, divans, harnesses, boots, dog candies, toys. We are pretty certain we have something for your pet this Christmas.”
In 1959, both Lucky’s Flowers at 215 Bradford St., and the Fishbowl at 41 Gowan St., were involved in the sale of birds, fish and other small pets. It may be that the Fishbowl, a home business, was the first pet shop in Barrie. Lucky’s, meanwhile advertised that they had the largest selection of tropical fish and supplies north of Toronto.
A decade later, Barrie had no pet shops. It was this fact that brought Vern Eaves and his family to town in late 1969. Their home town of Oakville, Ont., was a little larger than Barrie and had recently experienced a lot of growth including the arrival of another pet shop to rival theirs. Finding that Barrie was without such a business, and had a reputation as a nice place to live, they uprooted their family and moved north.
The store window was rarely without a crowd of children with one of the main attractions being the weekly feeding of a whole egg to a tegu lizard.
“Inside the store one can wander around looking at puppies, kittens, rats, mice, guinea pigs, hamsters, rabbits, different kinds of tropical fish and a mynah bird.”
The menagerie also reportedly included an alligator. Now, that must have been something to see for the kids of Barrie!
Each week, the Barrie Historical Archive provides BarrieToday readers with a glimpse of the city’s past. This unique column features photos and stories from years gone by and is sure to appeal to the historian in each of us.
