Psychic Kitty knows just what your pet needs
 
 
Its wacky name conjures up a turbaned cat peering into a crystal ball, but Psychic Kitty is about dogs, too. In fact, it's about the whole dog and the whole cat. Psychic Kitty wants to be your source for holistic pet care.
 
Holistic is getting to be a buzz word, but it's not taken lightly by Ruth and Carolyn Blecharczyk, the sisters who opened this pet-supply and gift shop in South Kingstown almost a year ago. They say they scrutinize every product, edible or not, to make sure it's good for animals.
 
Walk down the food aisles and you can see what they mean. You're not likely to recognize any brand name. That's because none of the mass-marketed, advertised-on-TV foods are there. The only ones stocked are organic, low-grain and no-grain kinds made with ingredients approved for human consumption "and made in a USDA-approved kitchen" -- those last words, said Ruth, are key.
 
Not to worry: You won't be tempted to compete with Cujo at the food bowl. The foods look the same as ever (kibble and canned), but companies such as Pet Guard Organics, Evanger's and Halo replace much of the usual grain fillers with meat, fruits and vegetables.
 
Dogs and cats, Ruth said, do not need carbs. Ruth is so appalled by what's in many pet foods that she's compiling a "Book of Shame" simply listing the ingredients of many brands.
 
The store is also a source for frozen foods for pets on a raw food diet, in which pets eat raw meats and bones almost exclusively. Proponents say it returns an animal's diet to a more natural state, but it can be time-consuming to prepare. Companies such as Aunt Jeni's Homemade 4 Life ("The Diet Mother Nature Intended") and Bravo Raw Diet have come up with high-quality, convenient, frozen raw food so you can just defrost and feed.
 
Ruth points out that while higher-quality food is higher-priced, pets need to eat so much less of it that the final cost can even out.
 
The sisters opened their store after Carolyn decided she was ready for a change from a career in credit management and human resources. She brainstormed retail ideas with Ruth, who had spent years studying biology and animal behavior at various colleges and then working with veterinarians, in the horse world and finally as a manager and partner in the local pet store Critter Hut. They decided the time was right for a true holistic pet store.
 
Why did they call it Psychic Kitty? "Because we're an unusual store, and we wanted people to be drawn in to check us out," said Carolyn.
 
Ruth then became trained in animal massage and reiki, which she does in customers' homes or at the shop. She and Carolyn strive to be a resource, recommending acupuncturists, pet communicators and pet sitters as well as veterinarians who specialize in different treatments.
 
But the shop is not all about mahi-mahi cat treats. The non-food portion is filled with supplies such as stylish food bowls, beds, aromatherapy shampoos, and toys that have been personally tested. Pet-themed gifts include elegant slate welcome plaques bearing profiles of breeds (theConnecticut company is willing to customize them), clocks, cabinet knobs, door bells, night lights, books -- even announcement cards about your new pet.
 
Finally, among the welcome mats with pithy sayings to grace your front door, this was my favorite:
 
"Ask not for whom the dog barks;
 
"It barks for thee."
 
Psychic Kitty is in South County Commons on Route 1 in South Kingstown. Call (401) 284-0660. Web site: www.psychic-kitty.com.
 
-- PAM THOMAS, Lifestyles Editor, Providence Journal