The Littlest Pet Shop has opened its doors at Thistles shopping centre in Stirling. A free event for kids, it will run from Friday 2 – Thursday 29 July, offering visitors the chance to take part in fun animal-themed activities during the summer holidays.
Located opposite JD Sports, children will have their turn at playing vet, complete with lab coat, be given demonstrations on how to care for pets and get involved in exciting interactive sessions.
Kids will step inside the pretend pet shop and become The Littlest Pet Shop employees as they help look after their cuddly toy pets.
Thistles has teamed up with local animal charity Reanimate, which works to positively influence the wellbeing of people and animals in the community and rescues and rehabilitates animals of all kinds, with all donations going directly to the charity. The event is free and donations are entirely voluntary.
Gary Turnbull, Centre Director at Thistles, said: “This is the first event of its kind at the centre and we’re really pleased to be able to offer something so different and engaging completely free of charge to families during the summer holidays.
“We launched our new campaign, #ThistlesHelps, earlier this month which aims to lend a helping hand to the community after a difficult year. We hope that the Littlest Pet Shop goes some way to helping parents and carers when it comes to entertaining their children while they are off school or nursery.
“There’s a new theme each week so we are confident the kids will love the first session and want to come back for more in the following weeks.”
Sharon Taylor, founder of Reanimate, said: “We are thrilled to be the chosen charity for this project and look forward to seeing all the children learning about animals. This project will help us to buy feed, hay and cover necessary vet bills for all the animals under our care. We feel it will be particularly helpful for our oldest resident Twiggy who needs high levels of medication to help keep her healthy.”
Each session lasts 15 minutes, with sensory sessions taking place between 11am – 12pm every Sunday, as part of the ongoing work the centre does with Scottish Autism. The Littlest Pet Shop will meet all Covid-19 safety regulations, with online booking required.
Extra digital content on how to care for pets at home, where to go if you want a pet and information on charity partner Reanimate, will also be available to all attendees.
