Animates NZ Reviews 51

Animates Nelson gave me fish with parasites that wiped out pretty much my whole tank. I am disappointed as I have been getting fish from here for years. Their tanks have always been over crowded, and they would always say we needed a tank a certain size (which we had) but their tanks were much below that size.

Animates in Kaiwharawhara, Wellington, never has any parks. Despite more than 20 clearly marked Animates customer only spaces outside I went yesterday and got the last park, the rest were full, and inside the store they had three customers. Are staff parking in the customer car parks. This was my third visit in the last week as I couldn't get a park the previous two time. Nice store but WAY TOO EXPENSIVE!! Everything is 10-20% cheaper online through other retailers with free delivery. Service is also incredibly slow with many instore items having no price tags and staff struggle to find products on the computer. I will not be back in a hurry.

The service we recieved at te rapa store hamilton from Levi was amazing she was helpful and was friendly and approachable, the te rapa store i have always been asked if I need help a girl apologized for stock in the way asked if I wanted it moved,they always happy to help which makes me go back everytime. If.i could remember all the staff I have delt with names.id say them.but I have never had a bad experience there thanks te rapa staff hamilton.

Dunedin store, Cumberland St: Went to get some kitten food today 18/11/25 around mid-morning only to be greeted by a not-very-friendly and abrupt guy. Been served by this in the past but decided not to say anything and see if he improves! He needs a course in good customer service. From time to time one comes across people like this at the store. Obviously good customer service isn’t their priority so that’s a great shame.

Bought 5 Lemon tetras to go in my tank, my tank was healthy and clean. They told me that they are quarantining a few fish as they came with some type of disease, not a problem, I asked about the fish I was going to buy and if I should quarantine them just incase. They said nope absolutely healthy nothing wrong with them and that I can put them in after about a hour or two of floating them ontop of the tank water in their bag. 3 days later all of my fish have died I only have 7 remaining out of at least 60 fish. Absolutely terrible, I have 2 bristlenose catfish, one is about 2 years old and the other is about 5, both healthy and happy and they also died..it’s quite saddening to see this happen and be given the wrong information. Will not be buying more fish from them sadly.

Good service, but prices are a little bit high.

Animates Mount Maunganui. Awesome place, pricey but standard for pet supplies. Awesome service and knowledge of local services and pet care and products. Always a frequent and positive experience.

ANIMATES PAPANUI CHRISTCHURCH
OUTSTANDING 5 STAR SERVICE
ACTUALLY I WILL GO 6 STARS

AS THE STAFF AT PAPANUI HAVE GONE ABOVE N BEYOND for me

i’m a tropical fish owner n have had a lot of different issues with gettin all the ph /ammonia /and nitrate levels right for a clean healthy environment for my fish .
The staff so Genuine n helpful n caring n so knowledgeable .There expert advice after performing frequent water tests explaining the results and how to rectify n fix any issues i have been having. Even knowing the different types of tropical fish and there different needs n habitat etc…. and the list goes on : honestly so much to learn n know

ABIG THANKFUL for caring n taking the time FOR SAVING MY TROPICAL FISH .THEY ARE NOW ALIVE HAPPY N HEALTHY IN A CLEAN stable tank
i really appreciate all yas do n learn plenty more from yas every time i visit your store .

for a start you can get staff without massive attitude ! went to one of youre stor

es

for a start you can get staff without massive attitude! went to one of your animates stores in masterton came across a right b.... apparently the manager went to get some fish she gave me the third degree about everything! said it wouldnt sell me the fish without a water sample told her id done all water tests it still wouldnt sell me the fish never had that anywhere else a right bully hitler will never go back to one of your stores anywhere again!

Well reading some reviews re: Customer service is spot on! it's time there was improvement. We spend $1000's of dollars at this store.
I thought I'd use the online service as phoning is inconvenient. My query grooming. The first reply I received from was prices are online.
I replied re: Yes I have seen the prices online & nothing listed for what my query was, no price was online.
2nd reply - you will have to phone our groomer.
I gave up !! isn't this why we have customer service 🙄
We help pay these staff members there wages with what we spend In this store!

Terrible quality fish, recommend Hollywood fish farm or breeding them yourself. Also the lady who served me at animates flung a fish onto the floor and put it back into the tank, wonder what else they do to the fish we buy. Horrible care for the fish don’t recommend.

Purchased a brand new Eheim Jager 300 Watt Heater which is rated for a 600 litre to 1000 litre tank from Animates Hastings. My tank capacity is about 550 to 600 litres. The heater would not heat the tank sufficiently for tropical fish. I took the heater back and they exchanged it and the replacement had the same issue despite multiple attempts at calibration and watching YouTube videos. I then asked for a refund and they came up with excuses saying the room was too cold and I needed 2 heaters when it was a clear cut case of the product not meeting the marketed claims. Had to complain and escalate the case to the manager which was met by the same lame excuses instead of a refund. This a clear breach of the NZ Consumer Guarantees Act. Very disappointed as I've spent thousands of dollars at Animates over the years and this is how they handle a loyal customer when there is a legitimate complaint. Avoid Animates and shop elsewhere. Will be escalating this.

The company far too expensive. They issue further blood tests when it's too soon to see improvement.Eg; enzymes on liver from blood test ordered another test a week later when 6 weeks would have been more appropriate. Have found a cheaper and far better vet. Animates quoted $1400-$1700 for 4 teeth. New vet changed diet to digestive care for liver. Teeth need cleaning not removal.Mecanary. Appointment July 2024

Customer support absolutely shocking, don't even bother contacting them they are a waste of space.

As my Maltese X usual groomer was booked up for quite a while ahead, I decided to take him to Animates at Linwood today 05 July, but never again, should have been more patient and waited for his usual groomer. My dog (Blu) usually has a lovely fluffy tail which his usual groomer keeps looking fluffy but now it looks like a stick!!

Thankyou animates Te-rapa. Placed order on a Sunday, delivered rural on the Tuesday morning. Highly recommend

I'm disappointed with the inconsistency of recommendations made by staff. I got a learner aquarium kit for my daughter and strictly followed staff instructions on getting the fish for it. They recommended initially 3 male guppies and then come back after a week to get 4 females. When I returned a different staff said that my tank couldn't sustain the females and consequent breeding. Why recommend the guppies in the first place? So that my daughter won't go home sad and disappointed I got 3 males instead. Still she was looking forward to female guppies.

I am writing to express my deep disappointment regarding the recent experience I had with Animates Kaiwharawarha. As a long-standing customer, I entrusted my perfectly healthy cat to their care, only to be blindsided by unjust charges.

Despite my protests, Animates declined to reimburse these costs, including second opinion backing their billing policy and blaming me for giving consent for the tests. Their CEO, Neil Cowie, not only failed to address all the issues but also displayed a shocking lack of empathy. His response essentially amounted to "too bad."

The way Animates handled this situation, particularly during a time of significant financial crisis for me, was absolutely unacceptable. It is distressing to see such a lack of professionalism and accountability. I have reported this incident to the Commerce Commission, raising concerns about Animates' billing practices and the fear-mongering tactics used to persuade customers to agree to unnecessary tests.

Money talks with this company.

I was appalled when I visited the New Lynn branch. It is kitten day and I saw kittens in tiny cages with no bedding so the public could come and stare at them.When I queried this at the check out the girl did not appear compassionate and I was told these poor kittens would be in those cages for 4 hours on a hot day. I was very upset and am disinclined to shop there again where I have spent hundreds of dollars

If this is the company in Peterborough they charge extremely high prices and don't tell you until afterwards. There is no price list on show.