Way back in 1993, upon graduating college, Ric and fiancée (now wife) Leah drove up the Eastern Seaboard. The two had always shared a love for pets, and as the miles rolled by they began dreaming about their own modern pet supply store. Within a few hours, they had settled on a name: Dolittle’s. By the time they reached New York they had a concept: natural foods, unique toys, and a self-service dog wash. From there the two explored every pet store they could find. Their road trip to Quebec and back was spent collecting ideas, making sketches, designing products, and more. When they arrived home and shared their excitement with friends and family, the sobering response was: “That sounds great, but what will you use for capital?”
Since the two had very little in the way of resources, they realized a store would have to wait. But they could start right away building funds by selling handcrafted items in Charleston City Market. In the winter of 1994 Dolittle’s sold its first item: a hand-painted personalized leash holder for a black lab named Dylan. Among the items offered in the early market days were picture frames, leash holders, homemade dog biscuits, and bird houses. Appropriately, bird houses helped create the nest egg.
It’s good clean fun at Dolittle’s self service dog wash. Our dog wash has been helping parents get dogs clean since 1999. Whether it’s an after-beach rinse off or the monthly scrub down, our dog wash makes cleaning up easy. Our elevated tubs feature commercial grade hoses and we provide the cleaning essentials. All you need to bring is your dog. Best of all, you can leave the post-bath clean up to us.
We offer local delivery to addresses in the Charleston area.
There is a $5.99 delivery charge for orders under $50
Orders placed before 2:00 PM Monday-Thursday will be delivered by 6:00 PM.*
Orders placed after 2:00 PM Friday or on weekends will be delivered next business day by 6:00 PM.*
**Orders placed on a holiday or Sunday will be ready the next business day.
Curbside Pick-Up is available at all of our store locations.
Our goal is to fill Curbside Pick-Up orders the same day.**Orders placed on a holiday or Sunday will be ready the next business day.**
If for any reason we are unable to full the order as requested we will email you.
You will receive email notification once your order is ready.
Dolittle’s stores are tiny so we have to narrow our food selection to the very best. To select a food we do our research as well as check on-line reviews, and listen to customer feedback. Our criteria runs from strict (no by-products) to quirky (no celebrity endorsements). Premium ingredients and how it is made are important to us. We look for foods with whole ingredients that are ethically sourced. We want customers to feel safe and secure in the choices they make for their best friend. We know that the foods we sell are independently tested and go to market pathogen-free (which is safer than some human products). If a recall occurs we are quick to spread the word by way of our social media.
After all we feed these foods and we consider you part of our extended family!
Recklessly crunchy dog treats
Gourmet dog food & treats
A holistic approach to complete nutrition
Complete and balanced pâté recipes
Soft & Savory Treats for Dogs
Cat lover? Visit our cat shop for a wide selection of food, treats, toys and supplies.
Gourmet cat food
A holistic approach to complete nutrition
The Purrrrrfect Way to Treat Your Cat
Contact us! We have a full staff of cat and dog experts that can make recommendations, give advice, or place special orders. Be sure to use the Self Service Dog Wash to get your dirty beast clean! Curbside pick-up and delivery available.
