JUNE

1 Kick off LGBTQ+ Pride Month with an act of customer inclusiveness and support. A few ideas: Add rainbow flags to your selfie station like Paws on Chicon in Austin, TX. Put your logo on rainbow bandanas for pups to wear at the Pride parade. Order or bake your own themed cookies — and since it’s Flag Day on the 14th, do like Dog Krazy stores in Virginia and bake one shape to decorate in rainbow stripes or as Old Glory (at right).

14 INTERNATIONAL BATH DAY falls on a Tuesday, typically a slower day for self-wash. Boost those sales with a Cute Wet Dogs (or other pet) event. Invite customers to bathe their pet and share a pic on social media, then at the end of the day, randomly award a gift bag filled with grooming wipes, a stuffed rubber ducky and, of course, treats for the adorable pet.

18 What do your customers do when they hear that it’s CLEAN YOUR AQUARIUM DAY, but they just don’t feel like cleaning their aquariums? Well, they contact you, their local fish supply store, because you had the foresight to promote your latest tank-cleaning specials on your social media pages, website and daily bulletin. Didn’t you?

19 FATHER’S DAY can be a challenging one to market. Just who is the dad? The human or the biological parent? That hasn’t deterred our more enterprising pet pros from coming up with neat ideas. Frank Frattini of The Hungry Puppy in Farmingdale, NJ, hands out dog tennis balls to all of his male customers. Pawsitively Scrumptious, in Crestview, FL, does a gift box that includes a “shareable” treat for pet and parent. And Animal Connection in Charlottesville, VA, hands out “free flight cards” for the brewery next door.

21 SELFIE DAY is your annual reminder to install an Instagram wall so pet parents can share their visit to your business with followers. Change the theme with the holidays or seasons.

24 Pet perks are becoming a big deal to employees, especially the young, with 71 percent of millennials saying they would take a pay cut if they could bring their pet to work. Ahead of TAKE YOUR DOG TO WORK DAY, reach out to some of the larger employers in your area and ask if they are taking part. If so, offer to provide doggie bags of treats and other supplies that will help the day go as smoothly as possible. Be sure to tuck in a $5 gift card to your business as well.

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JULY

4 JULY FOURTH! You know the drill: Help customers get their pets on a CBD or other calming product regimen well ahead of the holiday for best results. Put together survival kits for dogs and for cats featuring those products along with a lick mat, chews and other supplies to distract from boom-booms during the long weekend.

16 Today is GUINEA PIG APPRECIATION DAY. And there is much to appreciate about these small pets, like their sociability, that they have more toes on their back feet than front, and how they “popcorn,” or hop, when excited. Share these or other fun facts today.

17 Mark NATIONAL ICE CREAM DAY, with yes, an ice cream social. Have plenty of single-serve options in stock and ask your reps for treat samples to use as toppings.

19 It’s the MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL ALL-STAR GAME. Promote your own “pet all-stars” — a lineup of your pet customers who come in.

31 Today is the 212TH DAY OF THE YEAR and a key date for internet-based motivational campaign the 212 movement. The thought goes like this: At 211 degrees F., water is hot. At 212 degrees F., it boils. Boiling water creates steam, which can power a train. That one degree of extra effort can thus effect state change. Are you prepared to make that change? (The science is actually suspect, but use it regardless to power you through the day!)