KROGER DRINK TASTE EVENT REIGNS OVER CATS AND DOGS

RICHARD TURCSIK

GERMANTOWN, Tenn. -- Tongues and tails were wagging at a recent taste-testing held at a Kroger Co. store in this Memphis suburb.

While fluffy, four-footed consumers were not allowed into the store, they were allowed to lap up Dr. George Hill Pet Drinks for dogs and cats at a table set up outside the entrance from noon until 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 18, to herald the drink's arrival in the division.

Hill, a noted veterinarian based in Salisbury, N.C., who also operates a pet motel, food supply store, clinic and grooming salon, created the drinks after observing that some dogs could not eat solid foods following surgery.

Officials at Kroger's Delta division offices in Memphis could not be reached for comment. However, Jim Brown, a sales manager with J.W. Brown & Associates, Roswell, Ga., which is brokering the product for Hill, said Kroger sold 224 bottles of Dr. George Hill Pet Drink during the two-hour promotion, with one shopper buying nine bottles for her pampered pooches.

Brown said the event was cosponsored with KIX FM radio, which did a remote broadcast from the store's parking lot, and advertised the taste-testing for days before the event. As a result, the event received much local media attention.

"There were three television stations covering it and it was run on the evening news, and the stations air all the way to northern Tennessee," he said.

Brown said once animals try the product they like it. While dogs will lap it up immediately, it usually takes cats a few hours before they will sample the drink because they are more finicky.

Brown said Dr. George Hill Pet Drink is also currently available in Kroger's Roanoke, Va., division; Food Lion, Salisbury, N.C.; Bi-Lo, Mauldin, S.C., and the former Red Food Stores, Chattanooga, Tenn., which now operate under the Bi-Lo banner.

The pet drinks are billed as liquid treats for dogs and cats, and not as a replacement for water. The drinks contain 12 essential minerals and vitamins, as well as brewer's yeast, which aids in flea control. The drinks are available in a beef-flavored formula for dogs and puppies and a chicken formula for cats and kittens.

Both retail for $1.39 a quart and from $2.19 to $2.29 for a half-gallon.