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Pet store offers alternative, natural approach Billie Jo Vinson and her dog Lola sit in Johnson's Wellness Pet Supply store in Ashland. [Photo by John Darling] Tuesday Jan 16, 2018 at 6:33 PM Jan 16, 2018 at 6:33 PM By John Darling For the Tidings As a herbalist with a passion for alternative, natural-holistic health modalities — and a big pet lover, as well — Billie Jo Vinson wanted to take take pet care to the next level, so, last summer she opened Wellness Pet Supplies. Her shop, in an antique house of Ashland’s A Street, offers a range of food that are free of hormones, antibiotics and toxins and are not compressed and extruded mechanically, which, she says, can change the molecular structure of pet food. She has researched every product in-depth, she says, and her list of promises, posted at the door, says everything — tick-flea spray, chew toys, herbal and supplemental items, dog sweaters, all of it, is eco-friendly, good for pets and not from China. Vinson has explored over 50 brands of dry pet food and boiled it down to two — Carna4 and Grizzly Pet, the best, with no pesticides, GMOs, meat hormones or antibiotics. The latter is made in Canada (Grizzly is all wild salmon) and therefore meet EU standards banning any synthetic products. They have only 12 percent carbs, the lowest she could find. Many normal dried pet foods are overfilled with peas, potatoes and legumes, she adds, and those aren’t good for carnivores. Most mainstream kibbles are “cooked to death and then extruded,” but the good ones are baked, she says. Her shelves are stocked with the esoteric stuff you’d expect to find in an alternative healthcare shop for humans, including homeopathics, essential oils and flower essences. The tick-flea spray works in the field as uses cedar oil as its base. The wide selection of chewy, dried animal parts — chicken feet, water buffalo tracheas, chicken necks — “may look gross,” but she says they are good for pets and support cartilage, joint and tendon health, plus animals loves to spend hours chewing them down. “My cat Jack always has his face in the jar of chicken necks,” she jokes. “I’ve had to start a tab for him.” Vinson’s mission is to spend lots of time with each customer, getting to know person and pet — and the animal’s history — and allowing them to take samples home to see if they’re appropriate, then allowing returns, which are hard to get online. “I love this store,” says customer Kristin McIntyre. “She is really knowledgeable and takes time to answer any questions. She really understands felines. Most stores have a huge dog section and a tiny cat area, so it’s nice to find someone local who is on the same page as me. My cat was crazy, semi-feral, had PTSD and stopped eating. She’s good now.” As you might expect in a specialized, handmade line of health products, they aren’t cheap, but Vinson smiles and says, “You can pay more now or you can pay more at the veterinarian.” It’s open from 10 to 6, daily except Mondays at 462 A Street. The shop does fundraisers for the Friends of the Animal Shelter and Southern Oregon Humane Society. They also handle one of the hardest tasks for pet-owners, doing professional nail clipping for $7, on the first Sunday of the month.