By karl vilacoba
Staff Writer
Pete’s Pets specializes in small animals, like this Texas collared lizard.
Around 11 p.m. Feb. 17 — the height of the Presidents Day storm — authorities called Colin Clauss, owner of Pete’s Pets, at his Toms River home and told him the store was in the midst of a serious fire.
When he arrived at the store’s Kennedy Mall location, Hooper Avenue, firefighters and police were doing everything in their power to rescue the animals. Some reached into cages for lizards and snakes, unaware of what they were or if they posed any danger.
Public works officials plowed through feet of snow to make way for the fire trucks. Animals were loaded onto an ambulance and transported to the Jersey Shore Animal Center, Brick Boulevard.
The blaze was started by an electrical wiring problem in the store’s sign, according to Brick Fire Chief Kevin Batzal.
Poppa the degu’s ability to withstand cold temperatures may have saved his life during the fire, which coincided with the Presidents Day storm.
Sprinklers above the ceiling fought the fire and saved the building, but put the animals in grave danger. Clauss estimates that hundreds of animals, unaccustomed to marine environments but trapped in glass tanks, drowned when their confines filled with soot-stained water. Others were not biologically prepared for the cold weather and froze to death.
Co-owner Dawn Kiss was working late cleaning the store, but didn’t smell the smoke. Not until police banged on the door did she realize the building was on fire.
At first, Clauss was unsure if he’d ever reopen Pete’s Pets. But at that low moment, members of the community, regular customers and even owners of other local pet shops picked up his spirits and tipped the balance on the decision.
"It’s basically what changed our minds," Clauss said. "We had people sliding cards under the door of our old store."
PHOTOS BY FARRAH MAFFAI Pete’s Pets owners Colin Clauss and Dawn Kiss pose with Buddy, a bearded dragon, which survived a fire at the store’s former Kennedy Mall location.
Pete’s Pets has been open for business seven days a week since July 5. Although it’s in a new Mantoloking Road location, customers may recognize some of its old faces.
Buddy the bearded dragon is a survivor from the fire, and has come to symbolize the store. He’s a 5-year-old "store pet," and is not for sale.
"So many people called and asked if Buddy made it," Clauss said.
A degu named Poppa is another survivor from the Kennedy Mall. A rodent relative of the chinchilla, native to the mountains of Chile, Poppa’s tolerance for cold weather served him well during the largest snowstorm to hit New Jersey in seven years.
The new Pete’s Pets store on Mantoloking Road has several reptiles on display, such as these desert iguanas.
The new Pete’s Pets is smaller than the Kennedy Mall store, but Clauss and Kiss are happy with it. Gradually, the store’s regulars are finding out about the new space and returning.
"It’s much better than the other place," Clauss said. "I’m not dealing with neighbors on both sides. Also, I’m not dealing with a lot of walk-ins who are just killing time."
Some customers prefer the new store’s residential area as a matter of convenience, Clauss said.
"We’re actually selling more cat and dog food than we ever did before. It seems like everyone is saying, ‘You live so much closer to my house now,’" Clauss said.
The time the store was closed gave Kiss an opportunity to shop around at other area pet shops. She soon realized that Pete’s Pets filled a certain need in the community. Pete’s Pets specializes in reptiles, fish, rodents and other small animals, and carries a line of foods and supplies less common at mainstream stores, she said.
"I went all around the area looking for crickets, and I found that everyone said we had the biggest ones in town," Kiss said.
A few years ago, the two brainstormed about what kind of small business they could open together. They bought Pete’s Pets from its original owner, kept the name and hit the books to learn more about their new trade.
"This was new to us. We had some very good support from our suppliers, and we still do," Clauss said. "I’ve got about three people I can call any time if I have a question or a problem."
Ironically, the Kennedy Mall experienced another fire on July 17 — five months to the day after the one that scorched Pete’s Pets. This time, firefighters were called in plenty of time to solve the problem, and the store was only closed for a few hours.
The cause of the latest fire was similar to the Pete’s Pets situation, according to Batzal. Electricity between an old transformer and the Cost Cutters store sign heated wood in its area. Unlike the pet store, there were no sprinklers above the ceiling in that section of the mall.
"The propensity for fire was much greater in that area. By luck, some Cost Cutters employees smelled the smoke and reported it," Batzal said.
The mall now must replace all of the wiring above the ceilings, Batzal said.