Wheatgrass for cats brings award, sales to Reno firm

When Sean Rowe makes his quarterly visit to the offices of the nation's biggest pet retailers, he usually gets 45 minutes with the folks who buy bowls and feeders.

They love Rowe, the president of Reno's Veterinary Ventures Inc. Pet owners happily spend $60 or more for one of the pet fountains marketed by Veterinary Ventures under the Drinkwell name, and consumers happily return to retailers to buy replacement filters.

But when Rowe developed an accessory to the bubbling Drinkwell line a basket in which cat owners can grow wheatgrass upon which their pets can nibble he found himself dealing with a whole new set of buyers who select merchandise for retail locations.

Never mind that the Aqua Garden is clipped to the side of a Drinkwell fountain. In the eyes of the big retailers, the product was a treat, necessitating a pitch from Rowe's team a different group in the corporate office.

Their efforts got a boost when Cat Fancy magazine awarded the Aqua Garden its Editor's Choice Award.

They got even bigger boost as retailers figured out that cat owners who bought an $8.99 wheatgrass garden would be returning every month or so to buy $6.99 seed packs.

And it's not just the repeat sales of the seed packs that retailers love, Rowe says. Pet owners stock up on other merchandise when they visit a store.

The Aqua Garden, which Veterinary Ventures rolled out in March, has been one of the factors driving the company's 30 percent annual sales growth.

"They're selling like gangbusters," Rowe says. Petco just ordered another 4,000 units. European distributors are eager to get their hands on the Aqua Garden.

Next up, says Rowe, is a portable pet canteen branded as the "Hydro-Go."

The product combines a 36-ounce canteen with a fold-out bowl, allowing dog owners to give their pets a drink while they are on the trail.

The product, Rowe says, has all the earmarks of a big seller. One major retailer began moving toward placing an order within an hour after buyers saw a prototype of the Hydro-Go.

The company's original products the line of Drinkwell fountains and an ergonomic kitty litter scoop were the brainchildren of Mary Burns, who had a veterinary practice in Sparks before selling the company.

Rowe, however, shares the patent on the Aqua Garden with a Wisconsin supplier to Veterinary Ventures who developed a concept that Rowe brought to reality.

The pet canteen combines a concept by Burns with two years of development work by Veterinary Ventures' staff of seven.

Triad Plastics Technology shares the manufacturing of Veterinary Ventures products with Chinese suppliers.