Very disappointing experience. I do not recommend purchasing pets from this store. Today, my husband generously donated two large, healthy Oscar fish (which can grow up to 7 inches) because our tank at home was too small for them. While there, our 7-year-old son picked out three small glow fish, which we purchased at full price ($10 each)--no discount or credit was offered for the donation. We chose to support a local business, so we were happy to pay it forward. Unfortunately, within 30 minutes of introducing the new fish to our tank, they all died--despite proper acclimation. When my husband called the store to explain what happened and seek a possible resolution, he was told there was nothing they could do: no refund, no replacement, and no discussion of the fish we had donated just an hour earlier. The store simply cited a strict no-return policy. When I arrived home, our son was heartbroken and in tears. He had gone from feeling excited about his new fish to having none at all in the span of half an hour. This experience felt very disrespectful and dismissive, especially considering our goodwill donation. The customer service lacked empathy, and it's clear this business is not community-oriented. I will be sharing our experience with other local and military families so they can make an informed decision, NOT to shop here. If I could give zero stars, I would. read more

Simply Pets - Died fish we had to dispose of - Pet Stores Near Me - Chesapeake, Virginia

This business is associated with an online scam! Don't fall prey like I did, they got $450 out of me and tried for more but weee unsuccessful in attempts made. I reached out to the shop hoping they were not part of this online bird sale scam. I was disappointed to find out they were part of it. They ask for Zelle money in hopes of a new baby in this case a bird. Then they have a third party ask for more money for a "refundable wildlife insurance " to help it along. In this case it was another $800. Please be aware read more

this is pertaining to customer service and rudeness from their facility I talked to a few months back on the phone...then over text. So we had gotten a turtle from here as a baby as a gift for a now ex family member, who left the turtle with us. We inquired about trading the turtle or giving the turtle to them not remembering exactly what breed it was. We did some research and found out. It was some type of Chinese turtle I forgot the exact name. They asked for and said that is an invasive species and They proceeded to tell me I did NOT get that turtle from them. Which makes me think they're selling an invasive species if they're so sure about the breed, even though we had done research ourselves to figure out the breed. When I was a frequent shopper who bought a decent amount of fish as well. However, after being told, I did not get the turtle that we literally got from them at their store. I was left on read, that maybe they thought they replied or accidentally left me on red so I sent another message over and left on read again. I still have the holding container that they put him in for the way home. if they didn't have space to take in any animals, they could've said that if that was the issue, however being rude was just absolutely shocking from the what I thought was nice staff, well most are. Just in particular to whomever I was communicating with was very very unprofessional. As well as others are saying, as I mentioned, we've bought many fish from the store and actually stopped because it became too frequent and often that they would die. We knew we were not the issue, especially after buying fish from elsewhere in them doing perfectly fine and still here today. From their store I think we have like three of their fish still alive today out of probably 25 to 30. To add to the feeder review, I also saw it is really sad in there. I literally saw babies eating each other, bloody body and just eating another baby. I've never seen this before. Usually there's always food on the top so they can reach up and eat their food no issues for the most part. Everything seems as good as it can get with their set up usually everybody's cuddling together and or eating or what not laying with their mother's. However, I wonder how long it was that those babies were not fed to drive them to want to eat another cause they're definitely was not any food on top. And for another note, Coco they're white bird. She is the sweetest thing ever and I feel so bad because she's in her cage. What seems like 24 seven and in the store. She is not for sale. She just lives in the store in a Cage. I remember a few times I went over there and saw the store was closed and this was when Coco was in the front of the store. They ended up moving her to the back of the store because she was being too loud and annoying When she just wants attention . She loves saying hi coco, pretty bird and loves pets. You just have to watch out as sometimes she gets a little too into it and that's not good. However, to end on a better note, the staff for the most really nice and I've never had one walk away on me while asking questions or anything. I've only ever got pure attentiveness. Just shame on the one worker from the beginning of my review. read more

Wanting to purchase a specific morph of crested gecko. Left with the outcome of never going back and I will tell everyone I know in the reptile community not to go here. While looking at crested geckos the woman who claimed to be the owner when I asked to speak to the owner accused me of opening bins in a very rude manor. Explaining I did not open the bin she then decided to come stand beside me, then proceeded to go back to the counter and tell the other employees to watch me as if I was going to steal or something. After trying to decide if I was going to purchase the animal or not and going back to look again I noticed she was intently watching me constantly. I went to the counter and asked for the owner or a manager and this is where it got worse. When I stated she was rude to me it just escalated from here. TLDR unless you like being treated like an idiot, accused of things you did not do, being spoken to rudely, and supporting businesses that foster lazy/inhumane breeding practices DO NOT go here. Just an example 5+ crested geckos or gargoyle housed in the same enclosure under the excuse of "breeding", adult bearded dragons also being housed together under the excuse of breeding. The overall husbandry of the bearded dragons and leopard geckos on the floor to purchase is ignorant at best. With someone who apparently prides themself on their animals intentional overcrowding to make money at the sake of the animal is a better description. From looking at other reviews she really should not be allowed to work with the public and I am sure makes the working environment for the employees hostile as well. read more

Great customer service, very helpful with me being a newbie. Their store was amazing to walk around in. So much to look at and all kinds of fish. Also have many reptiles. read more

Great selection of reptiles, birds and fish! Live plants too. Tanks, hides, substrate materials also. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Only place I've found for live foods for my daughters Ball python. ( she won't touch frozen), even though this shop carries pinkies etc. read more

Go to Pet Smart instead. The fish I bought died 30 minutes after I left the store and they refused to replace them, or give me a refund. I'm a regular customer and I donated fish to them and didn't even get a discount and was lied to. Don't shop here. The shop needs to be cleaned: my son kept saying roaches are crawling on the floor, and the staff is rude. read more

This is the first pet store where I've seen two turtoises roaming freely. They have a ton of fresh water fish, especially cichlids, turtles, birds. The talking parrot was fun to mess around and conversation with. There is a lot going on at this pet store. Everything is alive and meant for people who have a fish hobby or looking to explore their reptile section. The smell of pets in the air is bearable consider they carry many little animals like guinea pig, hamsters, snakes and lizards. But perhaps their carpet can get some shampooing. But I get it, they have free roaming turtoises on the loose, leaving gifts for the pet store associates to clean without a doubt. They have the a lot of fresh water fish selections, I'd advise people looking for salt water, swimming friends ...to go else where. read more

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Great store always has what I need.. I found the service to be friendly prices are reasonable. If you were a snake owner who likes love feeders as opposed to frozen this is a great location. read more

Super nice and experienced staff! Definitely recommend buying a healthy animal from here rather than wasting your money on sick unhealthy animals at places like pet smart. Staff are always super understanding and happy to help, huge selection of a variety of animals from fish to ferrets to snakes. if you go here you won't regret it. read more

Been going here for years. Jeff is super friendly and I always like dealing with him. But Shannon is a b!tch. Id avoid her as youll have a less then a friendly encounter. Shes the only reason I don't like going there. They have a super cool dude working the fish department tho. Very nice, smart guy experienced with the fish. read more

An amazing experience from adopting an amazing (both in quality captive bred and price) crested gecko and now they are a great place for reptile supplies. They have amazing brands that have always been less then Amazon Prime's prices. Plenty of knowledgeable workers; however, getting their attention was difficult sometimes. I did a lot of research before I got my gecko so I am more of acknowledging their excellent inventory (saw pink tongue skinks, amazing bearded dragons, well kept turtles, and rare types of geckos) and quality supplies like live feed and gecko diets. Will gladly recommend this place for someone looking to get a quality bred reptile and well priced equipment in one spot. Do your own research (Clint's Reptiles on YouTube provides amazing info on the best reptile for you and links to great setups/equipment) and you will love this store! read more

Simply Pets - Her "fired up" look when we saw her that night - Pet Stores Near Me - Chesapeake, Virginia

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Every time I am in the store at the same time as the store owner's wife Shannon, it is an unpleasant experience. The owner Jeff and the employees are always pleasant and kind. Shannon is always rude, and from what I can tell, I am not the only one with this sentiment. Every poor comment on google is about Shannon... and yet she still works behind the counter and is the first face you see when you walk in the store. I have almost nothing bad to say about the store, except that she should attend some sort of customer service training or the store will continue to lose business because of her. read more

This is probably my least favorite pet store around... A lot of their animals today looked really neglected and employees seem to not care about their jobs. Just standing around and chatting with each other when there were plenty of reptiles that needed new water. I especially feel bad for Coco!! She's always in a tiny cage & has even started pulling out her feathers. read more

So my husband and I went in on Saturday and talked to the owner about re homing our freshwater fish due to us moving soon and the owner was all for it. So we came back on Sunday, fish in a bucket and everything. We even broke down our tank, dude to the owner saying "yes we will take them". We show up and apparently the owner doesn't work there on Sundays (understandable) but he did not tell us that. The worker who assisted us was completely incompetent, telling us that there's no space at all for our fish and we were out of luck with the fish, then walked away! Who does that??? read more

I made a phone call about paying some turtle safe plants. The lady on the phone was EXTREMELY RUDE to me and talked to me as if I was dumb. She cut me off while I was talking to say that the turtle would eat the plants. I didn't have a problem with her telling me this, but it was the way she went about doing it.This is not the way to treat customers who patronize your business. I started going there ,because they had decent prices for some of their items. However, after my experience today, I will no longer come to this pet store. GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!!!! YOU DESERVE RESPECT AS A CUSTOMER! SIDE NOTE: This isn't the first time I felt that an employee were rude to me at this store read more

I got a red eyed tree frog and it was given to me with issues. BE CAREFULL. I've owned reptiles throughout my life and never had a problem. The frog we bought had everything we needed when we bought him and we noticed the next day he had these small holes in his skin. Long story short my frog died and they won't give me a refund unless I bring it's dead body back to the store after I buried it! It's been two days since we bought it!!! read more

Where do I begin??? I bought a "Female Cinnamon Pastel" ball Python from them. I always quarantine new reptiles. Overnight, there were a lot of mites on the paper towels. I treated the mites and all was well. I picked up some feeders for all of my snakes. I usually don't shop at simply pets, but it was on my way home from work that day and it was feeding day. I noticed a strange smell when I got home. It was coming from the box of weaned rats. I checked them. One had an open infection on its belly. I couldn't see it at the store, the teenager who was helping me was not interested in helping me and only held the box open long enough to verify size. It's not like I pick up and inspect feeders at the store. The place I usually go to, Pet Paradise, has never had this issue. But, I digress. I had the ball Python I purchased there checked out by a breeder to verify the info I got when I bought him. That's right, she is a he! And the morph was wrong. He's a champagne lesser. I was sold a snake that's worth 2/3 what I paid for it. When I told the store, they gave some excuse about going off what the breeder tells them. And that was that. My girlfriend was looking for bedding for her Guinea Pig. She stopped in to simply pets and grabbed the bedding and some live mealworms. We've been feeding geckos, beardie, tarantulas, and scorpions for a week on these. Tonight, I noticed my Chinese earth tiger wasn't moving. I gave him some water and saw these little white worms coming out of its mouth. I'm pretty sure, given the past history, the parasites came from the worms purchased there. Now I have to worry about the rest of my collection. I'm beyond livid. I signed up for this app just to leave this review. I will never, ever buy anything from them. And I will not let anyone I know shop there. They don't take care of the animals. They don't care. Customers are all uneducated inconvenient hassles. Go anywhere else. ANYWHERE!!! read more

The way they keep animals is just awful, cohabing 2 bearded dragons in a 40g on straight sand just isn't right, and the ball pythons, the tanks they are in have almost zero humidity and dont have a humid hide and they have stuck shed it's honestly quite sad. read more

I've been going to this fish store for years, and sure there have been a few red flags, issues, etc. But I got over most of it. But when I go in to conduct business I already spoke to the owner Jeff about, and I am stopped by the CO owner, Shannon who opens a dialog and we briefly discus my golden axolotl I brought in for trade, being that I breed them and I knew from our conversation on the phone the day prior that Jeff was low on axolols. It wasn't more than 30 seconds into my dialog with Shanon that she snapped at me when I told her how much they were selling their axolotls for, because she misunderstood and thought that's what I was asking for him. That was not the case. I was taken aback. Stunned. I myself am a disabled veteran with ptsd as well as ASD. So my responses in this instance have to be precise otherwise I'm just a crazy, disgruntled, donk. I saw Jeff in the rear of the store, so I said, ill just go talk to Jeff, as the tone of Shannon was already hostile. She then tried to, I guess guilt me into not doing that by saying "but... you started talking to me.." and then said, "fine you wanna talk to Jeff, JEFF THERES CUSTOMERS THAT NEED YOU IN THE FRONT" and walked away. I then showed Jeff the axolotl. He gave me a reasonable, honestly acceptable offer. But as I told him, the interaction made me uncomfortable. I did not conduct business on this day. And then there's the Google review responses. Not just to me. But all of the responses to negative criticism. Ick. I'd expect more tact from older business owners. read more

Do NOT buy a live animal from this store! We bought a 2 month old tortoise and it only lived 2 weeks. They DO NOT give refunds, only offers to replace. I did receive a store credit which is basically useless to me as I do not wish to purchase anything from this store again. Please do your research before shopping here! read more

People are rude they walk away while youre asking a question, ask if they have a certain fish she responded this is the reptile not fish she should have walked with the customer and helped her thats good customer service but just stood there they are in the wrong business try serving warrants. read more

Friendly family business. Great quality small pets. We got a dwarf hamster and a Syrian hamster here. Both young amd healthy. read more

Simply Pets - Pet Stores Near Me - Chesapeake, Virginia

They just really don't care about anything here it seems. I have been coming for years and never treated well,but never to the extent I was today. I tolerated it because it was the closest pet store. Now I will do the extra driving. I just don't understand always being rude and not taking care of the animals you sell. Just go literally anywhere else. Idk what they do with their income but it certainly isn't care for the animals. There are ALWAYS dead ones in the tanks. Every single time I see at least 5-10 dead animals. Not fresh deaths either! Bad attitudes and little to no care for the animals. Idk how they have been in business for so long! I did not get to take pics of the animals bc of the crazy lady who is apparently the owner, but I guarantee if you go to this store you will see them for yourselves. They are always there. The female owner threatened to fight me and not ring me up for literally no reason today. She said that I did not ask directly enough for what I wanted and I was wasting her time. I just don't understand this place. Please pass by it. I even posted this review on FB and the owner acted very unprofessional on FB as well, claiming me to be a liar. I told them the exact moments of time to check on their camera. read more

Owner is kind of rude and contradicting. Cool store to walk around and see different animals. Some of the workers are kind and will ask if you need help while others seem like they'd rather be doing anything else. read more

Not such a great day. DON'T SHOP AT SIMPLY PETS IN CHESAPEAKE! I have been searching for reliable places to purchase healthy freshwater fish, in particular guppies and plecos. Upon entering the store there were 3 teens/early 20 year old people standing at the counter, 1 was behind the counter and the other 2 laying on the counter from the other side flirting, chatting, and being silly, very unprofessional in my opinion. The young girl behind the counter asked if I needed assistance and I said yes I would like some fish she said she would be with me shortly. So I walked around and looked at the reptiles and amphibians and was disgusted by the terrariums, excess feces in the bottom, poorly cleaned, and some didn't even have a source of fresh water. Next MANY of the fish tanks are POORLY MAINTAINED; water was cloudy, many dead fish laying the bottom of the tanks, and the many fish looked unhealthy. Based on my knowledge of live breeders most of them had INTERNAL PARASITE, they were thin, weak, lethargic and pooing said parasites, some were even having difficulty swimming. I am knowledgeable about how to treat so I was opting to purchase anyway because I have some other fish to treat as well. So I chose what looked like the healthiest fish in the tank. There was a feeder guppy tank that said a DOZEN for $1.99, looking at the tank it was clear the owner was unaware of what was in the tank numerous endler guppies of different colors and styles. So after 30-minute wait to be helped the young girl came to help. I asked if it was okay for her to try and fish out some of the more colorful "feeder guppies" and would it be the same price she said of course. She even stated saying there is nothing saying you couldn't. So I didn't handpick as the owner try to say that I did, and the cashier was the one to actually do that. I even mentioned hey I think that's 12. Well the owner comes over and VERY RUDLY tells me by handpicking, which I did not, the "feeder guppies" were then $0.46 cents each. The cashier commented I don't know why she said that, because that has never been the case before. During the time I was receiving assistance to men were asking the girl questions about specific tanks and she walked away from assisting me to help answer their questions. One gentleman said he was on lunch and was just doing a quick check and would return after work to make purchases and left. The girl finished helping me and said it will $1.99 for the dozen "feeder guppies". The owner then proceeds to tell me she with an attitude in a RUDE manner she was charging me $.49 instead of $.46 per fish at the register and proceeds to tell me I was the reason she lost a customer, but he was coming back after work. So I said okay but I would actually like to handpick my fish from the bag then. She said she was going to dump the whole bag back in the tank. I was shocked with her disrespectfulness and her rude tone when there was no sign stating the difference in charge. I will never shop here and neither should anyone else. I forgot to mention I was shopping with all 3 of my toddlers. read more

Love this place!! They sell R/O water and pre made salt water (Red Sea pro) and they have tons of supplies for reef maintenance I think it's the best saltwater store around hands down! I come here all the time they have a huge selection and Jeff gives great advice can help you solve any saltwater tank questions. They also carry a wide variety of birds and reptiles and fresh water fish read more

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Worst place to get a pet . People are rude like they don't care . Bought a turtle and it died in a week and they gave me the run-around about it . So I went somewhere else to purchase a bearded dragon . Won't send them any customers. read more

This place is not good, awful customer service and the older lady with glasses talked to my GF like she was a total dummy. The old lady with glasses was impatient and awful service. She either needs to take a class on how to properly talk to a human being or just retire because this place is losing customers because of her. The girl in line next to us even said "yeah she's mean to me everytime I come here as well. If I could give it no stars I would read more

Feeder animals not taken care of. I am not at all against using feeder mice. However, letting them die in the tank is just poor practice. They should be taken care of or frozen until time of feeding. Letting them starve and die in the crate, is a complete waste and disregard for life. read more

I went yesterday morning and the workers were very rude. They acted like I had done something wrong for asking for assistance. The chubby older lady with glasses in particular was very hostile. Lots of animals. I was intrigued until I smelled and saw dead rodents in the cages. I left right after with no purchase. I only looked in 1/3 of the cages but I did not want to chance seeing any more dead things. Especially after eating my breakfast. Do not recommend read more

Very helpful. Great advice, and the animals seem very well cared for! Thank you for all of your help! :)

The workers here are knowledgeable, helpful, kind, and go above and beyond. On top of their 100% professionalism they honestly care more about the animals than the customers which in my opinion is more important. I have made countless purchases here and have not found another exotic pet store that I would rather go to. Shout out to Olivia, Stormy, and Austin for all of their help!!! read more

Great information from the people in the store. Straight forward and to the point and if you know a bit about the animals good potential for some good conversation. You can learn some tips on your pet care too. The employees are always very kind and helpful. To the people who have had problems, I'm not sure why cause they have the best feeder rats and mice and never had anyone give me an attitude. Also I have needed to return a defective humidifier and they even tried to see if they could get it working themselves but they couldn't so they gave me a full refund and credit to my next purchase read more

Slow service not attentive to customers. Went in for a simple purchase 20 minutes later still no service. Seemed that cashier was only one that could get aquarium items, reptile service rep was unable to adequately assist. read more

I seriously can't say enough about how amazing this place is! I have a sick fish and looked EVERYWHERE for the supplies I needed to treat him and could not find what I needed anywhere. I called every pet store from Suffolk to Virginia Beach and even work in the grooming salon at a large pet store and no one had the products I was looking for. This wonderful little store had everything I needed! And they are SO friendly and helpful! This store was quite literally a life saver today! From now on I go here FIRST! They have an amazing selection of anything you could possibly need for fish or exotic pets, plus a huge variety of happy and healthy pets and fish to choose from. read more

**DONT BUY A PET HERE** This app really needs a NO STAR option. This pet store is literally the BIGGEST SCAM IN HAMPTON ROADS. DO NOT BUY A PET HERE. I purchased a hedgehog from these people unfortunately without knowing the extent of the MITE INFESTATION my hedgehog had. After spending over $170 on a vet bill to check and treat for the mites, I went back to this establishment for some compensation considering the fact that I was told that there was a 7 day guarantee from any pre existing condition. Clearly 3 days after getting her was not long enough for her to get mites from anywhere BUT the place she came from. The manager however stated that the vet bill was on me because I did not call them about the mites before I went to the vet which is absolutely LUDICROUS considering we were NEVER told to do so when purchasing her that we were to contact them first if there were any problems. The manager however offered me an $8 bottle of some 'natural mite treater' which they claim to use on their hedgehogs but OBVIOUSLY IT DOESNT WORK IF SHE HAD MITES WHEN I GOT HER. I literally can not believe this place. I will NEVER EVER EVER recommend it to ANYONE. STAY AWAY FROM THIS PLACE. read more

I have been here multiple times every week the last 5 years and I have NEVER been let down! Starting when Nicholl worked there to now when the sweetest girl Olivia that works there. They have the best knowledge and personality. Any time I have had any concern about anything in the store (including animals) they have addressed it immediately! It made me very happy to see such caring people in a small shop completely worth the drive read more

Went to get dog treats... To my surprise they don't sell dog treats.. They were friendly though... There's no reason not to leave a good review read more

This shop is just like most pet stores out there. Greedy. For those of you not wanting to read the lengthy review I am about to write, in short this family owned pet store lies to their customers. I had been given a rescue rat that was pregnant. After all the babies were weaned I was having problems finding homes for 2 albino boys. I had about 5 homes fall through and knew the reason no one really wanted them was probably because they were common albino. However they were sweet and handled since birth. I kept them for a about 2 months in an quarantine cage while I continued to look for a home. I only house females and neutering them was almost $350 per rat. So keeping them was not an option. I had been told about this pet store Simply Pets by a friend who had been in the store and noticed it was well kept and clean. She asked the owner if they took in donated animals (knowing I was still trying to re-home the boys) She also asked if they would sell them out as "pets" and not "feeders" since they are rats. The owner told her yes. I then called a few days later asking the same thing. The owner assured me that she had a cage and that they would be kept up front with the "pet rats" and sold for a slightly higher price than the "feeder rats". The very next day I arrived with the rats and met the owners husband. Before handing them over I told him my concern and he also told me that they would go in the front of the store with the "pet" rats. I gave them a quick cuddle goodbye and handed them off feeling good about the situation and thinking they would find a great home. I then met my friend who recommend the pet store since I was in the area and we ran a few errands. Many hours later we were passing the shop and both decided to stop by to see the baby birds (just for fun) and check on the boys. Once we got there we did not see the rats I dropped off in the front of the store with all the other small animals. As we walked back to the reptile section and I saw a rat rack. Checking through all the racks I find my boys. They had been thrown in with a bunch of sneezy adult males in a tiny rack. They were on a cedar bedding ( not be used for rats) and seemed terrified. When I questioned the owner she began stumbling over her words and kept stating she needed to talk to her husband who was no longer at the store. She implied that I could not get them back until that happened. Trying to keep it together I quickly exited the store. This family owned business is all about making money. They don't care about the animals or for their customers. Taking in animals is free inventory for them. The owner also mentioned getting birds from breeders than do not band their birds. What kind of breeder now a days does NOT band their birds? Unethical or even illegal ones. This all could have been avoided if they were honest with me and said "we can not promise to sell them as pets" They had three opportunities to. The husband stood there and lied to my face and took them from me. If I had known I would not have taken the 50 minute drive to the ghetto of Chesapeake just to have my rats fed off to a snake as LIVE feed. read more