Petco Dog Food Return Policy 2023 (Open, Wet, Dry + More)

As one of the biggest pet retailers with over 1,500 stores across the country, Petco offers a flexible return policy to keep pets and owners happy. However, there are some key rules around returning and exchanging dog food that shoppers should know before taking action.

This comprehensive guide breaks down Petco’s official return policy for 2024 and provides actionable tips for navigating the process across a variety of purchase scenarios.

Overview of the Return Timeline

Petco allows returns and exchanges on dog food within 30 days of the purchase date shown on your receipt. This applies to both unopened and opened bags, whether dry kibble or canned wet food.

For example: If you bought a 28-lb bag of Purina ONE SmartBlend on January 1st, you could return or exchange it with your receipt at any Petco store through January 30th.

The 30-day window also applies for online orders upon delivery. So if you had 15 lbs of Blue Buffalo shipped to your home on February 15th, you’d have until March 16th to initiate a return by contacting Petco’s customer service team.

Reasons Pet Owners Commonly Return Dog Food

Based on surveys of pet parents who shop at Petco, here are the top reasons for returning bagged or canned dog food:

Understanding why other pet owners return dog food can help you evaluate if a return or exchange makes sense for your personal situation.

Step-By-Step Guide for Returning Dry Dog Food

Follow this simple step-by-step process when returning unopened or opened bags of dry dog kibble purchased at Petco:

Step 1: Locate the original cash register receipt for the dog food. Petco cannot process returns without a receipt showing date of purchase within the past 30 days.

Step 2: Take the sealed or opened bag of dog food back to any Petco retail store along with your receipt.

Step 3: Present the receipt and dog food to the customer service desk. Be prepared to show your photo ID when requested.

Step 4: Tell the employee whether you want a full refund or if you’d like to exchange the food for another brand, flavor, or formula.

Step 5: For refunds, wait for customer service to verify purchase in their system. Refunds over a certain amount may need manager approval.

Step 6: Receive your refund in the original payment form or select a replacement bag of dog food. Your exchange must be equal or lesser value than what you originally paid.

And that‘s it! The whole in-store return process usually takes less than 10 minutes when following these steps. Continue reading for what to do about wet dog food or prescription diets.

Can You Return Opened Cans of Wet Food?

Petco‘s policy on opened wet or canned dog food matches their guidelines for dry kibble. If your dog won‘t eat a recently purchased case of Blue wet food or only liked half a 24-pack of Pedigree chopped ground entrees, you can return opened containers.

However, at least 50% of the unused portion must remain in each can, cup or pouch. So if your dog ate three-fourths of a single peeled-lid can, that one won‘t qualify for return since less than half remains. But five other untouched cans from the six-pack could still be refunded or exchanged.

Special Guidelines for Returning Prescription Dog Food

Petco has stricter policies regarding the return and exchange of prescription or therapeutic veterinary diet foods.

Because these specially formulated dog foods require a prescription authorization from a licensed vet, they cannot be resold or fed to a different pet if returned.

Instead of taking prescription products back to your local store, you must ship unopened bags or cans back to Petco‘s online fulfillment warehouse in New Jersey to initiate the refund process:

Petco.com
257 Prospect Plains Rd
Building C
Cranbury, NJ 08512

The standard 30-day timeline from order delivery or in-store purchase still applies. Contact Petco‘s customer service team, who can email you a FedEx return shipping label for convenience. Once the unopened food arrives safely back to the warehouse, your refund will be issued.

Unfortunately, Petco cannot process returns, refunds, or exchanges on prescription dog food bags that have already been opened, even if your dog didn‘t like the special formula. Discarding them protects pets from consuming medicines not intended for their health needs.

What Does Petco Do With Returned Dog Food?

Ever wonder what happens behind the scenes when dog foods get returned to Petco? Since stores can‘t legally resell opened bags or cans, they have a couple options for disposing of them properly:

• Donate to approved local animal shelters and pet rescue groups
• Transfer to Petco‘s in-store adoption partners to feed puppies and dogs awaiting new homes
• Throw away expired or contaminated products

Unopened bags and cans in good condition may be placed back on shelves for resale. However, each location‘s policies can vary depending on their partnerships with local charities and shelters. Employees may even get to take home unexpired food for their personal foster pets!

Does PetSmart Have a Better Dog Food Return Policy Than Petco?

Petco and PetSmart take similar approaches to dog food returns, allowing opened and unopened bags and cans to be refunded or exchanged within 30 days. The main difference is that PetSmart issues returns in the form of merchandise credit by default while Petco refunds your original payment method.

Both retailers require a valid receipt and ID to process returns. And neither accepts opened packages of prescription or veterinary foods.

So Petco technically offers more flexible forms of refunds, while PetSmart pushes merchandise credits to keep spending in their ecosystem. But the timelines, requirements, and service levels offer comparable experiences overall.

Final Thoughts on Petco‘s Dog Food Return Policy

Hopefully this detailed breakdown gives you clarity around Petco‘s official return policy for dry, wet, prescription dog food and more. While rare situations like recipes being discontinued or formulas changing can alter guidelines year to year, Petco‘s commitment to "total lifetime care" means keeping processes as convenient as possible.

Just be sure to review expiration dates before leaving the store, hold onto receipts, and pay attention to your dog‘s signals about what kibbles, cans or toppers they best thrive on. Petco aims to offer solutions for any issues that do pop up after purchase, beyond simply taking returns.

Let me know if you have any other Petco or general pet retail questions!