Unsolicited Advice at the Grocery Store!!!!!?

Question

What do you all feel about people that HAVE to give you THEIR two cents about what you are buying for your pets?? Or are you one of the people that offers advice to people you don't know??
No right or wrong answer at all here!!!

I was at the grocery store getting cans of Friskies or 9-Lives mixed grill or supper supper for my 2 19 year old cats that get some daily with thyroid medication. I know it is crap food, but they eat it and like it and they are old enough to get what they like.
The last three times, there has been SOMEONE that needed to tell me that I can get better food at PetSmart or someplace else. Or that I am SLOWLY killing my cats. Or some other crap.

I have had the SAME thing happen when getting the Beneful crap that comes in the little tupperware container that I get for the 15 year old mix that I have.

Does anyone else hate this?

Personally, I do not feel the need to educate everyone in the store!! Do you??

(NO RIGHT OR WRONG HERE)

I even had this really ANGRY lady go off on me 2 years ago when buying a Flexi lead. In PetSmart!!!!!!! She was loud about it too!!!!!!
Maybe I just attract the nut jobs!!!!

I guess they are the same people that tell you all kind of things when you are out with kids. Like the only lady that told me kids that use pacifiers grow up to be aneroxic!!!!!!!

I did tell one lady a while ago that it was for my grandparents, as they are on a fixed income. She said something about me needing to find the LORD and then I would not be a smartypants.

And all my pets do eat a better quality dry. I don't feed the old cats Meow Mix or anything.....(not that there is anything wrong with that!!)

Answer 1

Tell them nicely that you are aware of the other products but personally prefer the taste of this (holding up can) smile really big while they look dumbfounded and walk away.

The key to avoiding the nuts is to appear to be the bigger nut LOL.

Answer 2

OK I like the comment about buying the petfood for your elderly parents who are on a fixed income LOL.

I always cringe when I see someone buying crap food.. but I dont say anything. Most people are just so convinced that beneful and purina are great food. And like your situation, you use it as a treat to get pills down!

I get weird comments when I buy dog clothes. Always something along the lines of how silly dogs look in clothes. I get even weirder looks when I tell people that he's hairless, so he NEEDS clothes.

A year or so ago, my older brother went out of state for 6 months for a job.. my twin brother took over his apartment for that time, and took care of his cat too. My twin is not an animal person, so a coworker made a comment when they saw him buying a bag of cat-food. He said to the coworker "What? Im hungry.. I gotta eat" LOL

Answer 3

I guess if you're an animal lover, you tend to get a little antsy when you think other people are doing something wrong. I can definitely see how seemingly "helpful" advice can get really annoying. However, I think it's worth a shot to ask the advisers what they feed their animals because you can do two things with this info: 1) see if the food they advise really is a healthy alternative or 2) Dig up some dirt on the food they use and shoot back at them whenever they decide to criticize your food choice!

Answer 4

LOL. well me being me might have been a bit rude right back. WTH made it their business? i might have to ask what they fed...nicely....then more then likely they tell me some other poor food.....like Iams.

Its like a health nut yelling at me for a bag of chips a yummy greasy kind like its going to be my only dinner. ummmmmm chips...sorry side tracked...anyway.

I feed a raw diet to all my pets but i must say i have a few cans of a crappy food in case i forget to set their food out or have a lazy day.

but the way i see it even if you do feed a lesser food at least you feed your pets. not everyone is rich that owns pets and i don't think everyone should have to be rich. a dog will love no matter if you are a billionaire or a homeless person on the street. That's what makes them great.

Answer 5

Some people are really pushy like that and obnoxious about it too.
And yes,I'm guilty of trying to educate others in the grocery store.But only when I see someone standing with a totally confused look on their face.And once when I read about a certain recall and then went to the store and overheard a couple of employees complaining they needed to pull a certain food but they could'nt get to it yet because the manager had sent them up a different aisle to do something far less important and I happened to see an old lady pulling the same food off the shelf to buy.She got a little perturbed with me but fortuneately they would'nt allow her to buy it at the register.

Answer 6

Wait until you have children..... Everyone has an opinion on childrearing too.

You know what? There are dogs in this world who are never fed regularly nor taken to a vet. Anything you feed the pets in your care is better than neglecting them. And if you have pets that are elderly, then you have done well. It is nobody's business. Period.

Now if you were to ask for advice on food, then I wouldn't say the Purina was perfect. But you are not neglectful or abusive if you feed it. So just ignore people and let it go. Life is too short to worry about other people's opinions.

Answer 7

you are your pets owner *period* no one else should feel they have a right to violate your space or your time with their issues, I especially love the one about finding the Lord looks like she needs to find him first.
you find what they like, my cats lived on cheap hard cat food, tuna sauce every now and then and in the winter sometimes some hot mush they were extremely healthy and lived to be 18 years old (human) we had nut jobs telling us how to feed them as well before I would point out that, that might be a good diet for an indoor cat an outdoor one like mine did not need "the frills".
Unfortunately people today know their Rights but not their manners.
I would remind the "helpful" people that you did not solicit their advice nor do you think they are all that brilliant since they don't have manners or common courtesy.

Answer 8

Everyone has their opinion on foods and they will voice their opinon whether you want to hear it or not.

Sorry to go off subject here but, a friend of mine asked me about her seeing eye dog. She said he was having some diahrrea and her knowing what a dog fanatic I am asked me about what it could be. I asked if she had taken the dog to the vet and she said she already did. I proceeded to ask what food and she said iams. I said to be honest with you I wouldn't let my dogs near iams if it was the last food on the earth. I said it has corn in it and some dogs are allergic to the corn and other fillers in it.
So I said another food you could try that isn't the best quality food but, is better then iams is nutro. I told her I haven't ever had a problem with the nutro dry food in the past. But every dog is different. I know others who feed nutro without a problem. I told her to feed straight dry food either nutro natural choice or nutro ultra.
I have also feed solid gold, california natural, wellness, natures variety raw instinct kibble and also raw.

I like the petsmart trainer here, she always comes up to my dogs and pets them and says how well behaved my dogs are. She asks me how I train my dogs to be so lovable and well behaved. I said lots of show handling classes, socialization and working with them from the time they were finished their puppy shots.

You are funny Lady M!!! LOL

Answer 9

Your cats are 19, and your dog 15. Congratulations! Sounds like their doing well on Grocery store food.
On the dog category the topic food is heated. Most of those that give the expensive dog food have a tendency to slam the less expensive food. I saw one avatar make a remark most humans eat artificial colors and fillers etc. Made me think. Anyway, I feed my dogs what my vet recommends. The puppy food for as long as I'm told.
They have the medical degree and my dogs over the many, many years my dogs have lived healthy lives on their recommended food.
I have a medical degree....a bachelors degree. I have a semester in nutrition. Part of patient teaching is in nutrition so I will not recommend it be listened to that vets have no knowledge in nutrition.

Answer 10

It's taken a long @ss time to kill those cats don't you think! Screw them and tell them exactly that. I ain't never seen a cat live that long being no matter what they've been fed. I'd say you're a good cat keeper.

Or..... How about you make them look like idiots. Play interested and listen to what they have to say and when they finish, ask them what the lifespan of a cat is and the oldest cat they've ever had and when they give you a smug answer tell them that your cats are 19 YEARS OLD and that the cheap food you're buying is your secret.

Answer 11

To tell you the truth, I have never had this happen, but if it did I would just tell them I don't need nor do I require their advice. I would attempt to be polite about it at first, but if they persisted I would have to get a little more aggressive with them and tell them to mind their own business!
The only good cat food is the food that your cat will eat! You could go out and buy the most expensive thing out there, but if your cat wont eat it, whats the point?