The Best Pet Stores in San Antonio (According to a Local Pet Lover)

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best pet stores san antonio

Whether you’re a dog person, cat person, parrot person, or anything in between, you know there’s something special about the bond between a human and their pet.

You’ll need to swing by the pet store either for supplies or to pick up your best friend, of course.

I’m a crazy cat lady and a former rescue volunteer, so here’s a breakdown of my fave pet stores in San Antonio.

Map of the Best Pet Stores in San Antonio

My Favorite Pet Store in San Antonio: Polly’s Pet Shop

Look, if Polly’s Pet Shop weren’t so far away from me, I would visit all the time. This place is a family-owned shop and it’s downright cool. They’ve decorated the store almost like a zoo, complete with paintings, tiki decor, and huge habitats for their in-store animals. They even have ducks that live inside the store!

I adopted my sweet hamster, Felix, at Polly’s Pet Shop many years ago. While staff at Petsmart would just reach in and grab animals while they were sleeping, the staff at Polly’s gently woke them up. You can tell these people really care about the animals, whether it’s a hamster, a parrot, or a kitten.

P.S. – Polly’s is such a cool venue that they actually host birthday parties and field trips here. It’s arguably the best pet store in San Antonio, so stop by if you can!

  • Address: 940 Pat Booker Rd, Universal City, TX 78148
  • Website: Polly’s Pets

Best Puppy Store: Petland Leon Valley

Petland is the go-to stop for purebred puppies in San Antonio. My in-laws adopted their Lhasa apso and Shih tzu puppies here! Their breed availability is different any time you visit, but I usually see dachshunds, Australian shepherds, basset hounds, and chihuahuas here. You’re allowed to take the puppy into a designated socialization area before you adopt them, so you can make sure their personality is a good fit.

Of course, we’re talking about purebred puppies here, so be prepared to shell out $1,000+ if you get a puppy at Petland.

Aside from the puppies, Petland also sells hamsters, guinea pigs, fish, parakeets, and other pets. They have a pretty good selection of toys, collars, habitats, and food, although it tends to be pricier than what you’d pay at Petco.

  • Address 1: 7030 Bandera Rd, San Antonio, TX 78238
  • Address 2: 4000 Pond Hill, Suite 205, Shavano Park, TX 78231
  • Website: Petland San Antonio

Best Exotic Pet Store: Forever Pets

Its decorations might make it look like a fairytale land, but Forever Pets is a popular stop for pet parents. You won’t find cats or dogs here, but they do sell snakes, parakeets, finches, tortoises, frogs, fish, guinea pigs, and a lot more. This exotic pet store is a great place to go if you need supplies for winged or cold-blooded pets. And the store’s resident parrots and cockatiels always make for a fun trip!

P.S. – Forever Pets has a giant pirate ship in the fish area, and it’s Instagrammable AF. It’s def worth a stop just for the photos.

Best Store For Dogs: Mike’s Dog Store

Located in the Sunset Ridge Shopping Center, Mike’s Dog Store is all about (you guessed it) pooches! It’s definitely a more boutique feel than mega shops like Petsmart. Mike’s Dog Store sells just about anything you need for your dog, including treats, collars, food, and even more niche accessories like doggie life jackets.

The cool thing about Mike’s Dog Store is that they specialize in dog diets. If your dog needs to eat a special raw diet, they sell refrigerated dog foods. They’ll even work with you to find the right food for your pooch.

Heck, if you don’t feel like running by the store and you’re low on dog food, Mike’s Dog Store delivers! As long as you live within 10 miles of the store, you can get your order delivered for a $10 fee.

Best Store For Fish: Southside Aquatics

This exotic pet store specializes in all water-bound pets, including fish, turtles, hermit crabs, and lizards. They have a big wall full of betta fish, but if you’re looking for more exotic species of fish, they’ve probably got them in stock.

Southside Aquatics also sells everything you need to keep your pets happy, including habitats, pumps, nets, and food.

It’s a small business and certainly isn’t anything fancy, but the niche selection is great for aquarium nerds.

Best Store for Snakes: Sherwood Forest Feeders

I’m not a big fan of snakes, turtles, or lizards, but there are a lot of reptile lovers out there! If you need live feeders for your cold-blooded pets, Sherwood Forest Feeders is the place to go. They’re open every day of the week, so if you realize you’re out of crickets for your bearded dragon, hit them up! This store also sells accessories for birds, snakes, turtles, fish, and more.

Best Store for Rare Reptiles: Reptile Pets Direct

Reptile Pets Direct specializes in reptiles and amphibians. Reptile Pets Direct sells amphibians, chameleons, crocodilians (yes, you read that right), insects, pythons, snakes monitors, tortoises, lizards, and a lot more. They also pride themselves on carrying rare species (they even supply animals to zoos!), so if you’re shopping around for a more unusual type of chameleon, this is the place to go.

Pick up habitats, food, accessories, and rare pets at their location off of Pat Booker.

Bonus – My Favorite Pet Rescue: San Antonio Pets Alive!

I used to volunteer with SAPA! and really love this organization. I actually adopted my cat, Zap, from them!

SAPA! rescues animals from the San Antonio city shelter, saving thousands of lives from euthanasia. If you want to do good and find a great cat or dog companion, please consider adopting through SAPA!.

I used to volunteer at their adoption clinic, which is located inside Petsmart off Loop 410. They have a sizeable kennel in the back, as well as a big play area, for around 10 dogs. You can also experience heaven on earth by entering the Cat Room, where you can play with kittens or cuddle with a cat. All pets come microchipped and spayed/neutered—and sometimes SAPA! will even throw in toys and food.